Trading transaction support device and method

Abstract

To provide a sales transaction assistance device and a method for reducing a risk that a purchaser side purchases recycled equipment at a price that does not match a value for the purchaser.SOLUTION: A sales transaction assistance device is configured to: simulate a past equipment use pattern of a purchaser who uses recycled equipment and simulate an operation state of the recycled equipment on the basis of operation logs of the recycled equipment; evaluate, on the basis of simulation results obtained from the simulations, the operation state of the recycled equipment when the purchaser uses the recycled equipment; estimate, on the basis of the result of evaluation, an influence of use of the recycled equipment on the purchaser; estimate a reasonable price of the recycled equipment for the purchaser on the basis of the result of estimation; and present the estimation result to the purchaser.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a trading transaction support device and method, and is suitable for application to a trading transaction support device that supports the trading of recycled equipment, for example. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, environmental awareness has increased, and the use of recycled equipment has been attracting attention. In this case, the value and operating costs of recycled equipment vary depending on the user.

[0003] Patent Document 1 discloses an invention relating to the recycling of used secondary batteries, in which a plurality of potential buyers are selected based on the deterioration state of the battery installed in the vehicle to be traded in and the acceptable deterioration state according to each user's intended use, and the trade-in price is determined based on the estimated sales amount according to the intended use and the cost according to the distance from the trade-in location. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 6944209 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] The invention disclosed in Patent Document 1 takes into consideration three factors: whether the degree of deterioration meets the requirements determined by the intended use, the expected sales price for each intended use, and transportation costs. However, the selling price of a used secondary battery is determined by the intended use, and there is no consideration given to changing the selling price for each potential buyer even if the intended use is the same.

[0006] In addition, recycled equipment is generally traded at the seller's asking price without considering the value to the buyer, which means there is a risk that the buyer will purchase the recycled equipment at a price that does not reflect its value from the buyer's perspective.

[0007] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above points, and aims to propose a trading support device and method that can reduce the risk that buyers will purchase recycled equipment at a price that does not reflect its value to them. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] In order to solve such problems, in the present invention, a buying and selling transaction support device that supports the buying and selling of recycled equipment is provided with an equipment usage simulation unit that simulates the past equipment usage patterns of a buyer of the recycled equipment, an equipment operation simulation unit that simulates the operating state of the recycled equipment based on the operation log of the recycled equipment, an equipment operation evaluation unit that evaluates the operating state of the recycled equipment when the buyer uses the recycled equipment based on the simulation results of the equipment usage simulation unit and the equipment operation simulation unit, an equipment usage impact estimation unit that estimates the impact of using the recycled equipment on the buyer based on the evaluation results of the equipment operation evaluation unit, and a fair price estimation unit that estimates a fair price of the recycled equipment for the buyer based on the estimation results of the equipment usage impact estimation unit and presents the estimation result to the buyer.

[0009] In addition, the present invention provides a trading transaction support method executed by a trading transaction support device that supports the trading of recycled equipment, which includes a first step of simulating the past equipment usage patterns of a buyer of the recycled equipment and simulating the operating status of the recycled equipment based on the operation log of the recycled equipment, a second step of evaluating the operating status of the recycled equipment when the buyer uses the recycled equipment based on the simulation results of each simulation in the first step, a third step of estimating the impact of using the recycled equipment on the buyer based on the evaluation results of the second step, and a fourth step of estimating a fair price for the recycled equipment for the buyer based on the estimation results of the third step and presenting the estimation results to the buyer.

[0010] According to the buying and selling transaction support device and method of the present invention, a fair price for a recycled device can be presented to the buyer, thereby enabling the buyer to recognize the fair price for the recycled device for himself. [Effects of the Invention]

[0011] According to the present invention, it is possible to reduce the risk that a buyer will purchase recycled equipment at a price that does not correspond to the value to the buyer. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a buying and selling transaction support system according to a first embodiment. [Figure 2] 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a device usage log table. [Figure 3] 2 is a block diagram illustrating a series of processing steps related to a trading transaction support function in the trading transaction support device according to the first embodiment. FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a device usage log registration screen. [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a buyer-side evaluation scenario setting screen. [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a recommended device list screen. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of an operation log registration screen. [Figure 8] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a seller-side evaluation scenario setting screen. [Figure 9] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a predicted sales price range display screen. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a recommended selling price display screen in the first embodiment. [Figure 11] FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a buying and selling transaction support system according to a second embodiment. [Figure 12] FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating a series of processing steps related to a trading transaction support function in a trading transaction support device according to a second embodiment. [Figure 13] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a recommended selling price display screen in the second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0013] An embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

[0014] (1) First embodiment (1-1) Configuration of the trading support system according to this embodiment In Fig. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes an overall trading transaction support system according to this embodiment. This trading intermediary system 1 is a system that supports trading transactions of recycled equipment 5 in a virtual trading market (hereinafter referred to as a virtual trading market) on a network 2, and is configured with a communication terminal device 4 on the seller 3 side, a communication terminal device 7 on the buyer 6 side, and a trading transaction support device 9 that provides a platform for this trading market.

[0015] The recycled equipment 5 is second-hand equipment that a seller 3 wishes to sell in the virtual trading market. The communication terminal device 4 of the seller 3 and the communication terminal device 7 of the buyer 6 are each composed of a computer device such as a desktop personal computer, a laptop computer, a tablet, or a smartphone, and are connected to a trading support device 9 via a network 2 such as the Internet.

[0016] The trading support device 9 is a server device operated by a circular economy platform provider that provides such a virtual trading market, and is configured with a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 10, memory 11, a storage device 12, a communication device 13, an input device 14, and a display device 15.

[0017] The CPU 10 is a processor that controls the overall operation of the trading support device 9. The memory 11 is made up of, for example, a semiconductor memory, and is used as a working memory for the CPU 10. The storage device 12 is made up of a large-capacity nonvolatile storage device such as a hard disk device or SSD (Solid State Drive), and stores and holds various programs and data that need to be stored for a long period of time.

[0018] The programs stored in the storage device 12 are loaded from the storage device 12 into the memory 11 when the sales transaction support device 9 is started up or when needed, and the programs loaded into the memory 11 are executed by the CPU 10, thereby performing various processes for the sales transaction support device 9 as a whole, as described below.

[0019] The communication device 13 is configured by, for example, a NIC (Network Interface Card) and performs protocol control during communication with the communication terminal devices 4 and 7 via the network 2.

[0020] The input device 14 is composed of, for example, a keyboard, a mouse, etc., and is used when the user inputs necessary information and commands. The display device 15 is composed of, for example, a liquid crystal display, an organic EL (Electro-Luminescence) display, etc., and is used to display necessary information. Note that, instead of the input device 14 and the display device 15, a touch panel that integrates these may be applied.

[0021] (1-2) Trading support function (1-2-1) Overview of trading support functions Next, we will explain the outline of the trading transaction support function installed in the trading transaction support device 9. The operating modes of the trading transaction support device 9 based on this trading transaction support function include a recommended equipment presentation mode, a sales price range prediction mode, and a recommended selling price presentation mode.

[0022] The recommended equipment presentation mode is an operating mode in which, in response to a request from a buyer 6 of recycled equipment 5, a fair price for each recycled equipment 5 put up on the virtual trading market is calculated for that buyer 6, and recommended recycled equipment 5 is presented to the buyer 6 from among the recycled equipment 5 put up on the virtual trading market based on the calculated fair price.

[0023] The sales price range prediction mode is a function that, in response to a request from a seller 3 of recycled equipment 5, predicts the current sales price range of the recycled equipment 5 that the seller 3 is planning to put up on the virtual trading market, as well as the sales price range of the recycled equipment 5 if its performance is improved by modification, and presents the predicted results to the seller 3.

[0024] Furthermore, the recommended selling price presentation mode is an operation mode in which, in response to a request from a seller 3 of recycled equipment 5, a recommended selling price (hereinafter referred to as the recommended selling price) of the recycled equipment 5 is presented to the seller 3.

[0025] In practice, when in the recommended equipment presentation mode, the sales transaction support device 9 simulates (mimics) the usage pattern of the buyer 6's buyer-side equipment 8 for a predetermined period of time in the future (hereinafter referred to as the evaluation period) based on the operation log (hereinafter referred to as the equipment usage log) uploaded by the buyer 6 for a certain period of time (for example, several days to several years) of the equipment 8 currently owned or previously owned by the buyer 6 (hereinafter referred to as the buyer-side equipment).

[0026] In addition, the buying and selling transaction support device 9 simulates and models the operating conditions (actions and states) of each recycled equipment 5, such as the operating costs for each time period, failure probability, and failure duration (hereinafter referred to as failure duration), based on the operation logs of each recycled equipment 5 for a certain period (for example, several days to several years) uploaded by each seller 3.

[0027] Then, based on the simulation results and the model of the operating state of each recycled equipment 5, the buying and selling transaction support device 9 evaluates (simulates) the operating state of each recycled equipment 5 when the corresponding buyer 6 operates the recycled equipment 5 in the same usage pattern as his / her own buyer-side equipment 8 for the above-mentioned specified period.

[0028] Then, based on the evaluation results, the buying and selling transaction support device 9 estimates the impact that the use of each recycled equipment 5 will have on each buyer 6, and calculates the appropriate price of each recycled equipment 5 for that buyer 6 based on the estimation results.

[0029] Here, "the impact of using the recycled equipment 5 on the buyer 6" refers to the benefits (profits) and losses (e.g., operating costs) that the buyer 6 obtains by using the recycled equipment 5, as well as the impact on the environment, such as CO2 emissions (hereinafter referred to as the environmental impact).

[0030] Then, based on the fair prices of each recycled equipment 5 calculated in this manner, the buying and selling transaction support device 9 presents to the buyer 6 a predetermined number of recycled equipment 5 with the most appropriate fair prices for the buyer 6 as recommended equipment.

[0031] Meanwhile, in the sales price range prediction mode, the buying and selling transaction support device 9 simulates and models the operating status of the recycled equipment 5 based on the operation log of the recycled equipment 5 for a certain period of time uploaded by the seller 3 who requested a prediction of the sales price range of the recycled equipment 5.

[0032] In addition, the buying and selling transaction support device 9 simulates the usage patterns of the buyer-side equipment 8 of each buyer 6 for a predetermined future period based on the equipment usage logs of the buyer-side equipment 8 for a certain period uploaded by each buyer 6 who owns or has owned a buyer-side equipment 8 of the same equipment type as the recycled equipment 5.

[0033] Then, based on the simulation results for each buyer 6 and the model of the operating state of the recycled equipment 5, the buying and selling transaction support device 9 simulates the operating state of the recycled equipment 5 for each buyer 6 when the recycled equipment 5 is operated for the above-mentioned specified period in the same usage pattern as the buyer-side equipment 8 of that buyer 6.

[0034] At this time, the buying and selling transaction support device 9 executes two patterns of simulation: a simulation in which the recycled equipment 5 is operated in its current state, and a simulation in which the recycled equipment 5 is operated after being modified as specified in advance by the seller 3.

[0035] Then, based on the results of these simulations, the buying and selling transaction supporting device 9 calculates, for each of these simulations, the impact that the use of the recycled equipment 5 has on each of the buyers 6.

[0036] The buying and selling transaction support device 9 also determines the appropriate price of the recycled equipment 5 for each of these buyers 6 based on the calculation results, and presents these selling price ranges to the seller 3, with the appropriate price range of the recycled equipment 5 in its current state as the selling price range if the modification is not made, and the appropriate price range of the recycled equipment 5 if the modification specified in advance by the seller 3 is made as the selling price range if the modification is made.

[0037] On the other hand, in the same manner as in the recommended sales price presentation mode and the sales price range prediction mode, the sales transaction support device 9 calculates the impact of the use of the recycled equipment 5 on each buyer 6 who owns or has owned a buyer-side equipment 8 of the same equipment type as the recycled equipment 5 of the seller 3 who requested a prediction of the sales price of the recycled equipment 5.

[0038] The buying and selling transaction support device 9 also calculates the fair prices of the recycled equipment 5 for each of these buyers 6 based on the calculation results, and presents the highest predetermined number of fair prices to the seller 3 as the recommended selling price for the recycled equipment 5.

[0039] As a means for realizing the above-described trading transaction support function, the memory device 12 of the trading transaction support device 9 stores an evaluation scenario generation unit 20, an equipment usage simulation unit 21, an equipment operation simulation unit 22, an equipment operation evaluation unit 23, an equipment usage impact estimation unit 24, a fair price estimation unit 25, an equipment usage log database 26, and an operation log database 27, as shown in FIG. 1.

[0040] The equipment usage log database 26 is a database that stores equipment usage logs of the buyer-side equipment 8 of each buyer 6, which are uploaded by each buyer 6. The equipment usage log database 26 is configured with a table 28 shown in FIG. 2 (hereinafter referred to as equipment usage log table) that is created for each buyer 6 and each buyer-side equipment 8 of that buyer 6.

[0041] The equipment usage log table 28 is a table in which equipment usage logs of the corresponding buyer-side equipment 8 uploaded to the sales transaction support device 9 by the corresponding buyer 6 are registered, and as shown in Fig. 2, it is configured with a date column 28A, a day of the week column 28B, a time column 28C, a status column 28D, an effect column 28E, and an operating cost column 28F. In the equipment usage log table 28, one record (row) corresponds to one equipment usage log of the corresponding buyer-side equipment 8 of the corresponding buyer 6.

[0042] The date column 28A stores the date and time when the corresponding device usage log was acquired, and the day of the week column 28B stores that day of the week. The time column 28C stores the time when the device usage log was acquired, and the status column 28D stores the status of the corresponding buyer device 8 at that time. Specifically, the status column 28D stores "OK" if the corresponding buyer device 8 is not malfunctioning, and "NG" if a malfunction has occurred.

[0043] In addition, the efficacy column 28E stores the efficacy (output in this case, and the same applies below) of the buyer-side equipment 8 at the corresponding date and time, and the operating cost column 28F stores the operating cost (electric energy in this case, and the same applies below) of the buyer-side equipment 8 at that date and time.

[0044] Therefore, in the example of Figure 2, at 9:00 on Friday, July 23rd, there was no malfunction in the corresponding buyer-side equipment 8 (the value of the status column 28D is "OK"), and the efficacy (output) of the buyer-side equipment 8 at that time was "120" and the operating cost (amount of electricity) was "30".

[0045] The operation log database 27 is a database that stores operation logs of recycled equipment 5 that each seller 3 intends to put up on the virtual trading market, uploaded to the trading support device 9 by that seller 3. The operation log database 27 has the same configuration as the equipment usage log database except that the stored information is information on the operation logs of each recycled equipment 5, and therefore a description thereof will be omitted here.

[0046] On the other hand, the evaluation scenario generation unit 20 is a program that has the function of notifying the equipment usage simulation unit 21 of the period specified by the buyer 6 (in recommended equipment presentation mode) or the period specified by the seller 3 (in sales price range prediction mode) as the evaluation period, and notifying the equipment operation evaluation unit 23 of the failure response specified in advance by the buyer 6 (in recommended equipment presentation mode) or the modification response specified in advance by the seller 3 (in sales price range prediction mode) as the evaluation condition.

[0047] Here, "failure response" refers to the response that the buyer 6 expects when the recycled equipment 5 breaks down, such as "repair if it breaks" or "repair if the failure probability is x% or higher," and "modification response" refers to the modification that the seller 3 expects to make to the recycled equipment 5 that he plans to put up for sale, such as "increase the effectiveness by y% by spending x yen."

[0048] The equipment usage simulation unit 21 is a program that has the function of simulating, based on the equipment usage logs of each buyer-side equipment 8 stored in the equipment usage log database 26, how much output a buyer 6 who currently owns or has owned the buyer-side equipment 8 will require in each time period within the evaluation period (for example, if the equipment usage logs are in 10-minute increments, then each 10-minute time period).

[0049] Furthermore, the equipment operation simulation unit 22 is a program having a function of modeling the operation state of the recycled equipment 5 during the evaluation period based on the operation log of each recycled equipment 5 stored in the operation log database 27 .

[0050] The equipment operation evaluation unit 23 is a program that has the function of evaluating the operation status of the recycled equipment 5 for each time period during the evaluation period by simulation (calculating operating costs, determining whether there is a malfunction and whether there is a shutdown due to a malfunction, etc.) based on the simulation results of the equipment usage simulation unit 21, the model of the operation status of the recycled equipment 5 generated by the equipment operation simulation unit 22, and the evaluation conditions notified by the evaluation scenario generation unit 20.

[0051] The equipment usage impact estimation unit 24 is a program having a function of estimating the impact that the use of the recycled equipment 5 will have on the buyer 6. The fair price estimation unit 25 is a program having a function of estimating the fair price of the recycled equipment 5 for the buyer 6 based on the estimation result of the equipment usage impact estimation unit 24.

[0052] (1-2-2) Processing flow for trading support functions (1-2-2-1) Flow of the process in the recommended device presentation mode Figure 3 shows the flow of a series of processes executed by the evaluation scenario generation unit 20, equipment usage simulation unit 21, equipment operation simulation unit 22, equipment operation evaluation unit 23, equipment usage impact estimation unit 24, and fair price estimation unit 25 in relation to such buying and selling transaction support function.

[0053] First, we will explain the flow of a series of processes in the recommended equipment presentation mode. After the buyer 6 uploads the equipment usage log of his / her own buyer-side equipment 8 to the trading transaction support device 9, he / she operates the communication terminal device 7 (Fig. 1) to specify the evaluation period and evaluation conditions (here, failure response) and requests the trading transaction support device 9 to present the recommended recycled equipment 5, and the processing of the recommended equipment presentation mode is started in the trading transaction support device 9. Hereinafter, this buyer 6 will be referred to as the target buyer 6.

[0054] First, the evaluation scenario generation unit 20 retrieves the evaluation period specified by the target buyer 6 and notifies the equipment usage simulation unit 21 of the retrieved evaluation period (S1A). The evaluation scenario generation unit 20 also retrieves the evaluation conditions specified by the target buyer 6 and notifies the equipment operation evaluation unit 23 of the retrieved evaluation conditions (S1B).

[0055] The equipment usage simulation unit 21 performs machine learning to learn what output the target buyer 6 operated the buyer-side equipment 8 at each time period, based on the equipment usage log of the buyer-side equipment 8 of the target buyer 6 stored in the equipment usage log database 26. Then, using the learning model obtained by such machine learning (hereinafter referred to as the equipment usage model), the equipment usage simulation unit 21 estimates the efficacy (the output required at each time period on each date or day of the week, hereinafter referred to as the required efficacy) required by the target buyer 6 at each time period within the evaluation period notified by the evaluation scenario generation unit 20, and outputs the estimation results to the equipment operation evaluation unit 23 (S2).

[0056] Furthermore, the equipment operation simulation unit 22 models the operating cost, the duration of a failure (hereinafter referred to as the failure duration), and the failure probability for each target recycled equipment 5 (recycled equipment 5 of the same equipment type as the buyer-side equipment 8 of the target buyer 6) based on the operation log of each recycled equipment 5 stored in the operation log database 27, and outputs each generated model to the equipment operation evaluation unit 23 (S3). Note that, hereinafter, a model related to the operating cost generated by the equipment operation simulation unit 22 will be referred to as an operating cost model, a model related to the failure duration model, and a model related to the failure probability model.

[0057] The equipment operation evaluation unit 23 simulates the operating status of each recycled equipment 5 for each time period during the evaluation period of the target buyer 6, based on the evaluation conditions notified by the evaluation scenario generation unit 20, the required efficacy for each time period during the evaluation period of the target buyer 6 notified by the equipment usage simulation unit 21, and the operating cost model, failure duration model, and failure probability model for each target recycled equipment 5 notified by the equipment operation simulation unit 22, when the recycled equipment 5 is used in the same usage pattern as the buyer-side equipment 8 of the target buyer 6.

[0058] For example, the equipment operation evaluation unit 23 sequentially calculates, based on the operation cost model, the operation costs required to obtain the required efficiency for each time period notified by the equipment usage simulation unit 21. The equipment operation evaluation unit 23 also constantly determines, based on the failure probability model, whether a failure has occurred in the recycled equipment 5 in the simulation, and if it determines that a failure has occurred, determines the failure duration of the failure using the failure duration model. At this time, the equipment operation evaluation unit 23 sets both the efficacy and operation cost of the recycled equipment 5 during the failure duration to "0".

[0059] Furthermore, if the equipment operation evaluation unit 23 decides to repair the malfunction of the recycled equipment 5 in accordance with the malfunction response notified as an evaluation condition by the evaluation scenario generation unit 20, when the recycled equipment 5 is restarted in the simulation after the repair, the elapsed time for calculating the deterioration over time of the recycled equipment 5 is reset to "0."

[0060] The equipment operation evaluation unit 23 then generates logs in the same format as in Figure 2 for each time period within the evaluation period, which show the effectiveness, operating costs, and status of the recycled equipment 5 for each time period calculated in this way, and outputs these generated logs to the equipment usage impact estimation unit 24 as simulated operation logs (S4).

[0061] The equipment usage impact estimation unit 24 estimates, for each target recycled equipment 5, the impact that the use of the recycled equipment 5 will have on the target buyer 6. To achieve this, the equipment usage impact estimation unit 24 is provided in advance with a value conversion model, a breakdown loss model, an equipment shutdown loss model, and an environmental impact model that have been generated in advance by the target buyer 6.

[0062] The value conversion model is a model that converts the benefit to the target buyer 6 obtained from the efficacy of the recycled equipment 5 into monetary value. The value conversion model may be a function with monetary value as the objective variable and efficacy as the explanatory variable, or may be a constant that represents the benefit (monetary value) per unit efficacy. The failure loss model is a model of the loss (cost required for repair) to the target buyer 6 that occurs due to a single failure of the recycled equipment 5, and may be a constant for each recycled equipment 5.

[0063] Furthermore, the equipment shutdown loss model is a model of the loss to the target buyer 6 per hour caused by the shutdown of the recycling equipment 5 (the damage incurred by the target buyer 6 due to the shutdown of the recycling equipment 5), and may be a constant. Furthermore, the environmental impact model is a model that converts the effectiveness or operating cost of the recycling equipment 5 per time period into environmental impact (CO2 emissions, etc.).

[0064] Then, based on the simulated operation log notified by the equipment operation evaluation unit 23, the equipment usage impact estimation unit 24 uses these value conversion model, failure loss model, equipment shutdown loss model and environmental impact model to calculate the impact (benefits, losses and environmental impact) that the use of each recycled equipment 5 will have on the target buyer 6, and outputs the calculation results to the fair price estimation unit 25 (S5).

[0065] The fair price estimation unit 25 estimates the fair price of each of the recycled equipment 5 to the target buyer 6 based on the impact of the recycled equipment 5 on the target buyer 6 estimated by the equipment usage impact estimation unit 24 for each of the target recycled equipment 5.

[0066] As a means for this purpose, the fair price estimation unit 25 is provided with a function that maps the benefits, losses, and environmental impacts output by the equipment usage impact estimation unit 24 to a fair price, and uses this function to calculate the fair price for each recycled equipment 5.

[0067] Such a function can be simply defined as a function that adds up the weighted values of benefits, losses, and environmental impacts, but a more complicated conversion formula can also be applied. Also, since benefits and losses are originally expressed in monetary terms, environmental impacts can be converted into monetary terms using the following formula:

number

[0068] Furthermore, taking into consideration the transportation cost of the recycled equipment 5 to the target buyer 6, the following formula is used:

number

[0069] Then, the fair price estimation unit 25 transmits the fair prices of several recycled devices 5 that are optimal for the target buyer 6, among the fair prices of each recycled device 5 for the target buyer 6 calculated as described above, to the communication terminal device 7 of the target buyer 6 as fair prices of the recommended recycled devices 5 (S6). As a result, the fair prices of these recycled devices 5 for the target buyer 6 are displayed on the communication terminal device 7.

[0070] (1-2-2-2) Flow of the process in sales price range prediction mode Next, a series of processing steps in the sales price range prediction mode will be explained. After a seller 3 uploads the operation log of a recycled device 5 that the seller 3 intends to put up for sale on the virtual trading market (hereinafter referred to as the target recycled device) to the trading transaction support device 9, the seller 3 operates his / her own communication terminal device 4 (FIG. 1) to specify an evaluation period and evaluation conditions (here, modification support) and then requests the trading transaction support device 9 to predict the sales price range of the target recycled device 5. This starts processing in the sales price range prediction mode in the trading transaction support device 9. Hereinafter, this seller 3 will be referred to as the target seller 3.

[0071] First, the evaluation scenario generation unit 20 retrieves the evaluation period specified by the target seller 3 and notifies the equipment usage simulation unit 21 of the retrieved evaluation period (S1A'). The evaluation scenario generation unit 20 also retrieves the evaluation conditions specified by the target seller 3 and notifies the equipment operation evaluation unit 23 of the retrieved evaluation conditions (S1B').

[0072] The equipment usage simulation unit 21 estimates the required efficacy of each buyer 6 for each time period within the evaluation period notified by the evaluation scenario generation unit 20 based on the equipment usage log of each buyer-side device 8 stored in the equipment usage log database 26, in the same manner as in the recommended equipment presentation mode, and outputs the estimation results to the equipment operation evaluation unit 23 (S2'). Note that the "buyer" here refers to the buyer 6 who uploaded the equipment usage log of the buyer-side device 8 of the same equipment type as the target recycled equipment 5, and hereinafter this buyer 6 will be referred to as the specific buyer 6.

[0073] In addition, the equipment operation simulation unit 22 generates an operation cost model, a failure duration model, and a failure probability model based on the operation logs of the recycled equipment 5 that the target seller 3 intends to put up for sale on the virtual trading market, which are stored in the operation log database 27, and outputs the generated operation cost model, failure duration model, and failure probability model to the equipment operation evaluation unit 23 (S3').

[0074] The equipment operation evaluation unit 23 simulates the operation status of the target recycled equipment 5 for each time period during the evaluation period, in the same manner as in the recommended equipment presentation mode, based on the evaluation conditions notified by the evaluation scenario generation unit 20, the required efficacy for each time period during the evaluation period for each specific buyer 6 notified by the equipment usage simulation unit 21, and the operating cost model, failure duration model, and failure probability model for the target recycled equipment 5 notified by the equipment operation simulation unit 22. In this case, the equipment operation evaluation unit 23 executes two simulation patterns: a simulation in which the target recycled equipment 5 is operated in its current state, and a simulation in which the target recycled equipment 5 is operated after undergoing modifications specified by the target seller 3.

[0075] Then, for each simulation, the equipment operation evaluation unit 23 generates a log in the same format as Figure 2 that shows the operating cost for each time period within the calculated evaluation period and the state of the target recycled equipment 5, and outputs these generated logs for each simulation to the equipment usage impact estimation unit 24 as simulated operation logs (S4').

[0076] The equipment usage impact estimation unit 24, similar to the recommended equipment presentation mode, estimates the impact of the use of the target recycled equipment 5 on each specific buyer 6 for each simulation and outputs the estimation results to the fair price estimation unit 25 (S5').

[0077] The fair price estimation unit 25 estimates the fair price of the target recycled equipment 5 for each specific buyer 6 for each specific buyer 6 and for each simulation, similar to the recommended equipment presentation mode, based on the impact that the target recycled equipment 5 has on each specific buyer 6 estimated by the equipment usage impact estimation unit 24.

[0078] Then, based on the estimation result, the fair price estimation unit 25 transmits to the communication terminal device 4 of the target seller 3 the price range of the fair price for each specific buyer 6 when the target recycled equipment 5 is sold in its current state and the price range of the fair price for each specific buyer 6 when the target recycled equipment 5 is modified (S6').

[0079] As a result, the communication terminal device 4 displays the predicted selling price range (the fair price range for each specific buyer 6) when the target recycled equipment 5 is sold in its current state, and the predicted selling price range (the fair price range for each specific buyer 6) when the target recycled equipment 5 is sold after undergoing modifications specified by the target seller 3.

[0080] (1-2-2-3) Flow of the process in the recommended selling price display mode Next, a series of processing steps in the recommended selling price presentation mode will be explained. After the seller 3 uploads the operation log of the recycled equipment 5 that the seller 3 intends to put up for sale on the virtual trading market (hereinafter, this will be referred to as the target recycled equipment) to the trading transaction support device 9, the seller 3 operates his / her own communication terminal device 4 (FIG. 1) to specify an evaluation period and then requests the trading transaction support device 9 to present a recommended selling price for the target recycled equipment 5, and the processing in the recommended selling price presentation mode is started in the trading transaction support device 9. Hereinafter, this seller 3 will be referred to as the target seller 3.

[0081] Thereafter, the same processing as in the sales price range prediction mode is executed in the evaluation scenario generation unit 20, the equipment usage simulation unit 21, the equipment operation simulation unit 22, the equipment operation evaluation unit 23, and the equipment usage impact estimation unit 24.

[0082] However, in the recommended selling price presentation mode, the equipment operation evaluation unit 23 performs a simulation only when the target recycled equipment 5 is operated in its current state, and outputs the simulated operation log thus obtained to the equipment usage impact estimation unit 24.

[0083] The equipment use impact estimation unit 24 also estimates the impact on each specific buyer 6 of the use of the target recycled equipment 5 , and outputs the estimation results to the fair price estimation unit 25 .

[0084] Furthermore, the fair price estimation unit 25 transmits fair prices for a predetermined number of units that are higher than the fair prices for each specified buyer 6 when the target recycled equipment 5 is sold in its current state, based on the impact that the target recycled equipment 5 will have on each specified buyer 6 estimated by the equipment usage impact estimation unit 24. As a result, the fair prices for the predetermined number of units are displayed as recommended selling prices to the communication terminal device 4.

[0085] (1-2-3) Screen layout (1-2-3-1) Configuration of various screens displayed on the buyer's communication terminal 4 shows an example of the configuration of an equipment usage log registration screen that can be displayed on the communication terminal device 7 (FIG. 1) of the buyer 6 by a predetermined first operation. This equipment usage log registration screen 30 is a screen for the buyer 6 of the recycled equipment 5 to upload the equipment usage log of his / her own buyer-side equipment 8 to the buying and selling transaction support device 9, and is configured with an equipment type display field 31A, a manufacturer display field 32A, a model display field 33A, and an equipment usage log file selection field 34.

[0086] A pull-down menu button 31B is provided on the inner right edge of the device type display field 31A, and by clicking this pull-down menu button 31B, a pull-down menu (not shown) listing all device types can be displayed.

[0087] The buyer 6 can then specify the device type of the buyer-side device 8 of the buyer 6 by selecting the device type of the buyer-side device 8 from the device types listed in this pull-down menu. A character string representing the specified device type is then displayed in the device type display field 31A.

[0088] A pull-down menu button 32B is also provided at the inner right end of the manufacturer display field 32A, and by clicking this pull-down menu button 32B, a pull-down menu (not shown) can be displayed that lists the names of all manufacturers that sell equipment of the device type displayed in the device type display field 31A.

[0089] The buyer 6 can then specify the manufacturer of the buyer device 8 by selecting the manufacturer name of the manufacturer of the buyer device 8 of the buyer 6 from the manufacturer names listed in this pull-down menu. Then, a character string representing the manufacturer name of the specified buyer device 8 is displayed in the manufacturer display field 32A.

[0090] Furthermore, a pull-down menu button 33B is provided at the inner right end of the model display field 33A, and by clicking this pull-down menu button 33B, a pull-down menu (not shown) can be displayed that lists the names of all models sold by the manufacturer (not shown) that corresponds to the device type displayed in the device type display field 31A and whose manufacturer name is displayed in the manufacturer display field 32A.

[0091] The buyer 6 can then specify the model of the buyer device 8 by selecting the model name of the buyer device 8 of the buyer 6 from the model names listed in this pull-down menu. At this time, a character string representing the specified model is displayed in the model display field 33A.

[0092] Furthermore, the equipment usage log file selection field 34 is a text box in which the desired character string can be entered, and the equipment usage log file can be specified by entering the file name of the file in which the equipment usage log of the buyer 6's buyer-side equipment 8 is recorded (hereinafter referred to as the equipment usage log file) for the equipment whose type is displayed in the equipment type display field 31A, whose manufacturer name is displayed in the manufacturer display field 32A, and whose model is displayed in the model display field 33A.

[0093] Then, on the equipment usage log registration screen 30, the buyer 6 can specify the equipment type, manufacturer name, model, and file name of the equipment usage log file for the buyer side equipment 8 of the buyer 6, which is the same equipment type as the recycled equipment 5 that the buyer 6 wishes to purchase as described above, and then click the registration button 35 to upload this information to the sales transaction support device 9.

[0094] 5 shows an example of the configuration of a buyer-side evaluation scenario setting screen 40 that can be displayed on the communication terminal device 7 of the buyer 6 by a predetermined second operation. This buyer-side evaluation scenario setting screen 40 is a screen for a buyer to request a fair price proposal for a desired type of recycled equipment 5 that is being put up for sale in the above-mentioned virtual buying and selling market, and is configured with an evaluation period setting area 41 and an evaluation condition setting area 42.

[0095] The evaluation period setting area 41 is provided with a text box 43A for setting the start date of the period and a text box 43B for setting the end date of the period, and the evaluation period can be specified by entering the start date of the evaluation period in text in the text box 43A for setting the start date of the period and the end date of the evaluation period in text in the text box 43B for setting the end date of the period.

[0096] The evaluation condition setting area 42 also displays options for maintenance policies that can be set as evaluation conditions and toggle switch marks 44 corresponding to each of these options. By clicking on the toggle switch mark 44 corresponding to a desired option from among these options, the option corresponding to the toggle switch mark 44 can be selected as the maintenance policy. At this time, the display form of the toggle switch mark 44 corresponding to the selected option changes to a display state that indicates that the option has been selected.

[0097] Some of these options have a text box 45 for inputting the required numerical value, and by inputting the desired numerical value into this text box 45, the buyer 6 can specify that numerical value as part of the maintenance policy.

[0098] Then, on the buyer-side evaluation scenario setting screen 40, by setting the evaluation period and desired evaluation conditions (maintenance policy) as described above and then clicking the execute button 46, it is possible to request the buying and selling transaction support device 9 to calculate the fair price of each recycled device 5 corresponding to the buyer 6 (recycled devices 5 of the same device type as the buyer-side device 8 for which the buyer 6 uploaded the device usage log) under these evaluation period and evaluation conditions, and to display a list of recommended recycled devices 5. Hereinafter, this request will be referred to as a recommended device list display request.

[0099] 6 shows a recommended equipment list screen 50 that is displayed on the communication terminal device 7 of the buyer 6 in place of the buyer-side evaluation scenario setting screen 40 described above with reference to Fig. 6 after a series of processes in the recommended equipment presentation mode (hereinafter referred to as the recommended equipment presentation process) is executed by the buying and selling transaction support device 9 in response to the recommended equipment list display request. This recommended equipment list screen 50 is a screen for displaying the results of the recommended equipment presentation process, and is configured with a maintenance policy display field 51, an equipment type and equipment usage log file name display area 52, and a recommended equipment list display area 53.

[0100] The maintenance policy display field 51 displays a string of characters representing the contents of the evaluation conditions (maintenance policy) set by the buyer 6 in the evaluation condition setting area 42 (Figure 5) of the buyer-side evaluation scenario setting screen 40, and the device type and device usage log file name display area 52 displays the device type of the buyer-side device 8 for which the buyer 6 has registered the device usage log, and the file name of the device usage log file in which the buyer 6 has uploaded the device usage log of the buyer-side device 8 using the device usage log registration screen 30 described above with reference to Figure 4.

[0101] Furthermore, the recommended equipment list display area 53 displays a recommended equipment list 54 in which information about the top predetermined number of recycled equipment 5 with the highest evaluation values, which have been extracted as recommended equipment by the sales transaction support device 9 through the recommended equipment presentation process, is listed in descending order of evaluation value.

[0102] In this case, the recommended equipment list 54 includes the name of the manufacturer ("Manufacturer"), model ("Model"), fair price for the buyer 6 ("Price") of each recommended recycled equipment 5, and the monetary values of the benefits, costs, and environmental impacts that using the recycled equipment 5 will bring to the buyer over a one-year period ("Benefit / Year," "Cost / Year," and "Environment / Year").

[0103] Although various calculation methods can be applied to calculate the "evaluation value of recycled equipment," in FIG. 6, the following formula is used.

number

[0104] The buyer 6 can then click and select the record (row) corresponding to the recycled equipment 5 that he or she wishes to purchase from among the recycled equipment 5 listed in the recommended equipment list 54 on the recommended equipment list screen 50 displayed on his or her own communication terminal device 7, thereby displaying a purchase screen (not shown) for that recycled equipment 5, and can use this purchase screen to carry out the purchase procedure for that recycled equipment 5.

[0105] (1-2-3-2) Screen layout displayed on the seller's communication terminal 7 shows an example of the configuration of an operation log registration screen 60 that can be displayed on the communication terminal device 4 (FIG. 1) of the seller 3 by a predetermined third operation. This operation log registration screen 60 is a screen for the seller 3 of recycled equipment 5 to upload the operation log of that recycled equipment 5 to the buying and selling transaction support device 9, and is configured with a device type display field 61A, a manufacturer display field 62A, a model display field 63A, an operation log file selection field 64, pull-down menu buttons 61B, 62B, 63B displayed at the right ends of the device type display field 61A, the manufacturer display field 62A, and the model display field 63A, respectively, and a registration button 65.

[0106] The seller 3 can then use this operation log registration screen 60 to upload various information, including the operation log of the recycled equipment 5 that the seller 3 intends to put up for sale on the virtual trading market, to the trading support device 9, in the same manner as the equipment usage log registration screen 30 (Figure 4).

[0107] 8 shows an example of the configuration of a seller-side evaluation scenario setting screen 70 that can be displayed on the communication terminal device 4 of the seller 3 by a predetermined fourth operation. This seller-side evaluation scenario setting screen 70 is a screen for the seller 3 who intends to put up recycled equipment 5 on the virtual trading market to set the details of the modifications (modification policy) so that the trading transaction support device 9 can predict the sales price ranges both when the recycled equipment 5 is modified and when it is not modified. As is clear from FIG. 8, the seller-side evaluation scenario setting screen 70 is configured to include an evaluation period setting area 71 and an evaluation condition setting area 72.

[0108] The evaluation period setting area 71 is provided with a text box 73A for setting the start date of the period and a text box 73B for setting the end date of the period, and the evaluation period can be specified by entering the start date of the evaluation period in text in the text box 73A for setting the start date of the period and the end date of the evaluation period in text in the text box 73B for setting the end date of the period.

[0109] The evaluation condition setting area 72 is an area for setting an alteration policy, such as how much alteration cost to spend and how much efficacy to improve, as an evaluation condition, and is provided with a first text box 74 for setting the alteration cost and a second text box 75 for setting the desired efficacy improvement rate. The seller 3 can set the alteration policy by inputting the alteration cost he or she is considering at that time in the first text box 74 and the desired efficacy improvement rate in the second text box 75.

[0110] Then, on the seller-side evaluation scenario setting screen 70, by setting the evaluation period and evaluation conditions (modification policy) as described above and then clicking the execute button 76, it is possible to request the buying and selling transaction support device 9 to calculate and display the expected sales price ranges for the recycled equipment 5 both when modified and when not modified under these evaluation period and evaluation conditions. Hereinafter, this request will be referred to as an expected sales price range display request.

[0111] Figure 9 shows an example of the configuration of a predicted sales price range display screen 80 on which the results of a predetermined process (hereinafter referred to as the sales price range prediction process) executed by the sales transaction support device 9 in response to a request to display the expected sales price range are displayed.

[0112] This predicted sales price range display screen 80 is a screen that displays the predicted sales price range if the recycled equipment 5 that the seller 3 is trying to put up for sale is modified in accordance with the evaluation conditions (modification policy) set by the seller 3 using the seller-side evaluation scenario setting screen 70 described above with reference to Figure 8, and the predicted sales price range if the recycled equipment 5 is not modified, and is configured with a modification content display area 81, a current sales price range prediction display area 82, and a post-modification sales price range display area 83.

[0113] The modification content display area 81 displays the modification content that the buying and selling transaction support device determines will result in the highest sales price range among the modifications that can be performed in accordance with the modification policy set by the seller 3 using the seller-side evaluation scenario setting screen 70. Note that this modification content may also be set in advance by the seller 3 on the seller-side evaluation scenario setting screen 70 described above with reference to FIG.

[0114] Incidentally, in the case of a configuration in which the seller 3 specifies only the modification cost and the expected improvement rate of efficacy, as shown in Figure 8, the sales transaction support device 9 selects all modification contents that satisfy the specified modification cost and the expected improvement rate of efficacy, and the modification content that the sales transaction support device 9 determines will result in the highest sales price range among the predicted sales price ranges if each of the selected modification contents is made is displayed in the modification content display area 81.

[0115] The current sales price range prediction display area 82 displays a graph 82A that shows a predicted sales price range (a fair price range for each buyer 6) for the corresponding recycled equipment 5 if the corresponding seller 3 puts the recycled equipment 5 up for sale in its current state without modifying it. The post-modification sales price range display area 83 displays a graph 83A that shows a predicted sales price range for the recycled equipment 5 if the corresponding seller 3 makes the modification displayed in the modification content display area 81 to the corresponding recycled equipment 5.

[0116] Furthermore, FIG. 10 shows an example of the configuration of a recommended selling price display screen 90 that can be displayed on the communication terminal device 4 of the seller 3 by performing a predetermined fifth operation after the seller 3 uploads the operation log of the recycled equipment 5 that he or she wishes to put up for sale on the virtual trading market to the trading transaction support device 9 using the operation log registration screen 60 described above with reference to FIG. 7.

[0117] This recommended selling price display screen 90 is a screen for presenting the recommended selling price of the recycled equipment 5 that the seller 3 is planning to put up on the virtual trading market, and is configured with a predicted selling price range display area 91 and a top buyer list display area 92.

[0118] In the predicted sales price range display area 91, a graph 91A is displayed that indicates the predicted sales price range of the corresponding recycled equipment 5 in the case where the corresponding seller 3 puts up the corresponding recycled equipment 5 in its current state without modifying it, similar to the graph 82A displayed in the current sales price range prediction display area 82 of the predicted sales price range display screen 80 described above with reference to FIG.

[0119] Furthermore, the top buyer list display area 92 displays a top buyer list 92A in which the fair prices for a predetermined number of buyers out of the fair prices for each buyer 6 and the degree of environmental impact when these buyers 6 use the recycled equipment 5 are listed in order from highest to lowest fair price. In the example of Fig. 10, the "degree of environmental impact" is displayed as "○" when the environmental impact is small, "△" when the environmental impact is second small, and "×" when the environmental impact is greatest.

[0120] In addition, in the list of top buyers 92A, a check box 92AA is provided for each record (row), and if the seller 3 does not want to sell his / her recycled equipment 5 to any of the buyers 6 whose fair prices are listed in the list of top buyers 92A because of reasons such as a large environmental impact, the seller can click the check box 92AA of the record corresponding to that buyer 6 to display a check mark 92AB in that check box 92AA.

[0121] When a check mark 92AB is displayed in the check box 92AA, the recycled equipment 5 put up by the seller 3 is not listed in the recommended equipment list 54 of the recommended equipment list screen 50 (FIG. 6) described above, which is displayed on the communication terminal device 7 of the buyer 6 corresponding to that check box 92AA, thereby preventing the buyer 6 from purchasing the recycled equipment 5.

[0122] (1-3) Effects of this embodiment As described above, in the buying and selling transaction support system 1 of this embodiment, the buying and selling transaction support device 9 calculates the fair price of each recycled device 5 for the buyer 6 in response to a request from the buyer 6, and presents the calculated fair price to the buyer 6. Therefore, the buyer 6 can recognize the fair price for each recycled device 5, and can purchase the recycled device 5 at the fair price for the buyer 6. This reduces the risk that the buyer 6 will purchase the recycled device 5 at a price that does not match the value to the buyer 6.

[0123] Furthermore, in this sales transaction support system 1, in response to a request from a seller 3, the sales transaction support device 9 predicts the current selling price range of the recycled equipment 5 that the seller intends to put up on the virtual sales transaction market and the selling price range after modification, and presents the predicted results to the seller 3, thereby providing the seller 3 with information to help him or her decide whether or not to modify the recycled equipment 5 when putting up for sale. Furthermore, in this sales transaction support system 1, the sales transaction support device 9 also presents a recommended selling price for the recycled equipment 5 of the seller 3, allowing the seller 3 to smoothly set the selling price of the recycled equipment 5.

[0124] Therefore, according to this sales transaction system 1, a sales transaction can be conducted that satisfies both the seller 3 and the buyer 6 in terms of price, thereby making the sales transaction of recycled equipment 5 more active and allowing the sales transaction to be conducted with peace of mind.

[0125] (2) Second embodiment 11, in which the same reference numerals are assigned to parts corresponding to those in FIG. 1, shows a trading transaction support system 100 according to the second embodiment. This trading transaction support system 100 differs from the trading transaction support system 1 according to the first embodiment in that it is able to present to the seller 3 the expected selling price when recycled equipment 5 is sold at the parts or material level, in addition to the selling price range when the equipment is reused.

[0126] In practice, the sales transaction support system 100 of this embodiment is configured in the same way as the sales transaction support device of the first embodiment, except that a parts level reuse evaluation unit 102 and a material level reuse evaluation unit 103 are additionally stored in the memory device 12 of the sales transaction support device 101, and that some functions of the fair price estimation unit 104 differ from those of the fair price estimation unit 25 (Figure 1) of the first embodiment.

[0127] The component-level reuse evaluation unit 102 is a program having a function of predicting the benefit (profit) of the seller 3 when the recycled equipment 5 is disassembled into components and sold, and the cost and environmental impact of recovering recoverable components from the recycled equipment 5. The material-level reuse evaluation unit 103 is a program having a function of predicting the benefit of the seller 3 when the recycled equipment 5 is disassembled into materials and sold, and the cost and environmental impact of recovering recoverable materials from the recycled equipment 5.

[0128] Figure 12, in which the same symbols are used for parts corresponding to Figure 3, shows the flow of a series of processes executed by the evaluation scenario generation unit 20, equipment usage simulation unit 21, equipment operation simulation unit 22, equipment operation evaluation unit 23, equipment usage impact estimation unit 24, and fair price estimation unit 104, as well as the parts level reuse evaluation unit 102 and material level reuse evaluation unit 103, in connection with the sales transaction support function according to the second embodiment installed in the sales transaction support device 101 of this sales transaction support system 100.

[0129] In the sales transaction support device 101 of this embodiment, in the recommended equipment presentation mode and the sales price range prediction mode, the evaluation scenario generation unit 20, the equipment usage simulation unit 21, the equipment operation simulation unit 22, the equipment operation evaluation unit 23, the equipment usage impact estimation unit 24 and the fair price estimation unit 25 execute processing similar to the processing in the recommended equipment presentation mode and the sales price range prediction mode of the first embodiment.

[0130] In addition, in this sales transaction support device 101, when in the recommended sales price presentation mode, the evaluation scenario generation unit 20, the equipment usage simulation unit 21, the equipment operation simulation unit 22, the equipment operation evaluation unit 23, and the equipment usage impact estimation unit 24 execute processing similar to the processing executed in the recommended machine sales price presentation mode in the first embodiment.

[0131] In parallel with this, in the buying and selling transaction supporting device 101, the part level reuse evaluation unit 102 and the material level reuse evaluation unit 103 evaluate the recycled equipment 5 at the part level and material level, respectively.

[0132] In practice, in this sales transaction support device 101, the seller (hereinafter also referred to as the target seller) 3 of the recycled equipment 5 registers the information on the equipment type, manufacturer, and model of the recycled equipment (hereinafter also referred to as the target recycled equipment) 5 in the sales transaction support device 101 using the operation log registration screen 60 described above with reference to Figure 7, and the information is provided to the parts level reuse evaluation unit 102.

[0133] The component-level reuse evaluation unit 102 then calculates the benefits to the seller 3, such as how many and what types of components can be recovered from the target recyclable equipment 5 and how much each recovered component can be sold for, the cost of recovering these components, and the environmental impact of each recoverable component, such as the degree of impact on the environment when recovering these components.The component-level reuse evaluation unit 102 also outputs the calculated information to the fair price estimation unit 104 as component-level reuse evaluation information (S7).

[0134] Various methods can be applied to predict the selling price of recoverable parts. For example, the part-level reuse evaluation unit 102 may store in advance a list of expected selling prices for each part installed in equipment from each manufacturer and for each number of years of use of the part, and may predict the selling price of each recoverable part by referring to this list based on information on the type, manufacturer, and model of the given target recycled equipment. Furthermore, the off method disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 5806978 can be applied to calculate the cost and environmental impact of recovering each part from the target recycled equipment 5, for example.

[0135] Similarly, in this sales transaction support device 101, information on the equipment type, manufacturer, and model of the target recycled equipment 5 registered in the sales transaction support device 101 by the target seller 3 using the operation log registration screen 60 is also provided to the material level reuse evaluation unit 103.

[0136] The material level reuse evaluation unit 103 then calculates the benefit to the target seller 3, such as what kind of material and how much of each can be recovered from the target recyclable equipment 5, the cost for recovering these materials, and the environmental impact for each material, such as the degree of impact on the environment when recovering these materials.The material level reuse evaluation unit 103 also outputs the calculated information to the fair price estimation unit 104 as material level reuse evaluation information (S7).

[0137] The benefits to the target seller 3 and the costs and environmental impacts involved in recovering each material from the target recyclable equipment 5 can be calculated using, for example, the method disclosed in the specification of Patent No. 5806978, based on the given information on the type, manufacturer, and model of the target recyclable equipment 5.

[0138] The fair price estimation unit 104 transmits to the communication terminal device 4 of the target seller 3 fair prices for a predetermined number of units that are higher than the fair prices for each specific buyer 6 when the target recycled equipment 5 is sold in its current state, based on the impact that the target recycled equipment 5 will have on each specific buyer 6 estimated by the equipment usage impact estimation unit 24 in the same manner as in the first embodiment. The fair price estimation unit 104 also transmits to the communication terminal device 4 of the target seller 3 the estimated part sales price information provided by the part level reuse evaluation unit 102 and the estimated material sales price information provided by the material level reuse evaluation unit 103.

[0139] As a result, based on this information, a recommended selling price display screen 110 according to the second embodiment as shown in FIG. 13, in which the same reference numerals are used for parts corresponding to those in FIG. 10, is displayed on the communication terminal device 4.

[0140] This recommended selling price display screen 110 is a screen for presenting the recommended selling price of the target recycled equipment 5 that the target seller 3 is trying to put up on the virtual buying and selling market, as well as the amount of parts and materials that can be recovered from the target recycled equipment 5, and is configured with a predicted selling price range display area 111, a top buyer list display area 112, a predicted parts selling price display area 113, and a predicted materials selling price display area 114.

[0141] The predicted sales price range display area 111 and the top sales customer list display area 112 each display information similar to the information displayed in the predicted sales price range display area 91 and the top sales customer list display area 92 of the recommended sales price display screen 90 of the first embodiment described above with reference to Figure 10.

[0142] Furthermore, the estimated parts sales price display area 113 displays a list of estimated parts sales prices 113A that lists various information about each part that can be recovered from the target recycled equipment 5. Specifically, the list of estimated parts sales prices 113A lists, for each recoverable part, the name ("part name"), the estimated unit price (estimated unit price), the number that can be recovered from the target recycled equipment ("number"), and the impact on the environment when recovering these parts ("environmental impact").

[0143] Furthermore, the estimated material sales price display area 114 displays a material sales price list 114A that lists various information about each material that can be recovered from the target recycling equipment 5. Specifically, the material sales price list 114A lists, for each material, the name ("material name"), the estimated unit price (estimated unit price), the amount ("amount") that can be recovered from the target recycling equipment 5, and the impact on the environment when recovering the material ("environmental impact").

[0144] According to the buying and selling transaction support system 100 of this embodiment having the above-described configuration, by referring to the recommended selling price display screen 110, the target seller 3 can easily recognize whether it is more profitable to sell his / her target recycled equipment 5 as is or to disassemble it into parts or materials and sell them.

[0145] Therefore, in addition to the effects obtained by the sales transaction support system 1 of the first embodiment, the sales transaction support system 100 can also provide the effect of further improving convenience for the seller 3.

[0146] (3) Other embodiments In the first and second embodiments described above, the buyer 6 uses uploading to register the equipment usage log of the buyer device 8 in the equipment usage log database 26, but the present invention is not limited to this and various other methods can be widely applied. For example, if the buyer device 8 is connected to the network 2 (FIGS. 3 and 12), the buying and selling transaction support device 9, 101 may collect the equipment usage log from the device via the network 2 and register it in the equipment usage log database 26.

[0147] Similarly, in the above-described first and second embodiments, the operation log of each recycled device 5 is registered in the operation log database 27 (FIGS. 3 and 12) by uploading, but the present invention is not limited to this and various other methods can be widely applied. For example, when the recycled device 5 is connected to the network 2, the buying and selling transaction support device 9, 101 may collect the operation log from the recycled device 5 via the network 2 and register it in the operation log database 27.

[0148] Furthermore, in the above-mentioned first and second embodiments, the evaluation scenario generation unit 20, the equipment usage simulation unit 21, the equipment operation simulation unit 22, the equipment operation evaluation unit 23, the equipment usage impact estimation unit 24, and the fair price estimation unit 25 (104), as well as the parts level reuse evaluation unit 102 and the material level reuse evaluation unit 103, are described as being installed on the same computer device (sales transaction support device 9, 101), but the present invention is not limited to this, and these programs may be distributed and installed on multiple computer devices that make up a distributed computing system. [Industrial Applicability]

[0149] The present invention can be applied to, for example, a trading transaction support device that supports the trading of recycled equipment. [Explanation of symbols]

[0150] 1,100...Buying and selling transaction support system, 2...Network, 3...Seller, 4,7...Communication terminal device, 5...Recycled equipment, 6...Buyer, 8...Equipment, 9,101...Buying and selling transaction support device, 10...CPU, 20...Evaluation scenario generation unit, 21...Equipment usage simulation unit, 22...Equipment operation simulation unit, 23...Equipment operation evaluation unit, 24...Equipment usage impact estimation unit, 25,104...Fair price estimation unit, 26...Equipment usage log database, 27...Operation log database, 30...Equipment usage log registration screen, 40...Buyer-side evaluation scenario setting screen, 50...Recommended equipment list screen, 60...Operation log registration screen, 70...Seller-side evaluation scenario setting screen, 80...Predicted sales price range display screen, 90,110...Recommended sales price display screen, 102...Parts level reuse evaluation unit, 103...Material level reuse evaluation unit.

Claims

1. A trading support device for supporting trading of recycled equipment, a device usage simulation unit that simulates a past device usage pattern of a buyer of the recycled device; a device operation simulation unit that simulates an operation state of the recycled device based on an operation log of the recycled device; an equipment operation evaluation unit that evaluates an operation state of the recycled equipment when the buyer uses the recycled equipment based on a simulation result of the equipment usage simulation unit and a simulation result of the equipment operation simulation unit; an equipment usage impact estimation unit that estimates an impact that use of the recycled equipment will have on the buyer based on an evaluation result of the equipment operation evaluation unit; a fair price estimation unit that estimates a fair price of the recycled equipment for the buyer based on the estimation result of the equipment usage impact estimation unit and presents the estimation result to the buyer; A trading support device comprising:

2. There are a plurality of the recycled devices, At the request of the buyer, The equipment operation simulation unit includes: Evaluating the operating status of each of the recycled devices; The equipment usage impact estimation unit Estimating the impact of use of the recycled equipment on the buyer for each of the recycled equipment; The fair price estimation unit A fair price for each of the recycled devices to the buyer is estimated, and the estimated result is presented to the buyer.

2. The buying and selling transaction support device according to claim 1.

3. an evaluation scenario generation unit that incorporates a preset evaluation condition for evaluating the operating state of the recycled device; The equipment operation evaluation unit The operating state of the recycled equipment when the buyer uses the recycled equipment is evaluated, taking into consideration the evaluation conditions acquired by the evaluation scenario generation unit in addition to the simulation results of the equipment usage simulation unit and the equipment operation simulation unit.

2. The buying and selling transaction support device according to claim 1.

4. The evaluation conditions are: A policy regarding the maintenance of the recycled equipment established by the buyer or a policy regarding the modification of the recycled equipment established by the seller of the recycled equipment.

4. A trading support device according to claim 3.

5. There are a plurality of buyers, At the request of the seller of said recycled equipment, The device usage simulation unit Simulating the past device usage patterns of each of the buyers; The equipment operation simulation unit includes: simulating the operation and state of the seller's recycled equipment; The equipment operation evaluation unit evaluating the operating status of the recycled equipment for each of the buyers when the recycled equipment is used by each of the buyers; The equipment usage impact estimation unit Estimating the impact of the use of the recycled equipment on each of the buyers; The fair price estimation unit A fair price of the recycled equipment for each of the buyers is estimated, and a price range of the fair price of the recycled equipment for each of the buyers is presented to the seller.

2. The buying and selling transaction support device according to claim 1.

6. There are a plurality of buyers, At the request of the seller of said recycled equipment, The device usage simulation unit Simulating the past device usage patterns of each of the buyers; The equipment operation simulation unit includes: Simulating the operating state of the recycled equipment of the seller; The equipment operation evaluation unit evaluating the operating status of the recycled equipment for each of the buyers when the recycled equipment is used by each of the buyers; The equipment usage impact estimation unit Estimating the impact of the use of the recycled equipment on each of the buyers; The fair price estimation unit A fair price of the recycled equipment for each of the buyers is estimated, and a part of the estimated fair price of the recycled equipment for each of the buyers is presented to the seller as a recommended selling price of the recycled equipment.

2. The buying and selling transaction support device according to claim 1.

7. the recycling system includes at least one of a part level reuse evaluation unit that calculates a benefit to the seller when the recycled equipment is disassembled into parts and sold, and a material level reuse evaluation unit that calculates a benefit to the seller when the recycled equipment is disassembled into materials and sold, The fair price estimation unit presenting to the seller the benefit to the seller calculated by the component level reuse evaluation unit and / or the material level reuse evaluation unit in addition to the recommended selling price of the recycled device; 7. A trading support device according to claim 6.

8. A trading transaction support method executed by a trading transaction support device that supports a trading transaction of recycled equipment, comprising: a first step of simulating a past device usage pattern of a buyer of the recycled device and simulating an operating state of the recycled device based on an operation log of the recycled device; a second step of evaluating an operating state of the recycled equipment when the buyer uses the recycled equipment based on the simulation results of each simulation in the first step; a third step of estimating the impact of use of the recycled equipment on the buyer based on the evaluation result of the second step; a fourth step of estimating a fair price for the recycled equipment to the buyer based on the estimation result of the third step and presenting the estimation result to the buyer; A trading transaction support method comprising:

9. There are a plurality of the recycled devices, In response to a request from the buyer, the buying and selling transaction support device In the first step, an operating state of each of the recycled devices is evaluated; In the third step, an impact of the use of the recycled equipment on the buyer is estimated for each of the recycled equipment; In the fourth step, a fair price for each of the recycled devices to the buyer is estimated, and the estimated result is presented to the buyer.

9. The method for supporting buying and selling transactions according to claim 8.

10. The buying and selling transaction support device In the first step, a preset evaluation condition for evaluating the operation and state of the recycled device is input; In the second step, the operation and state of the recycled equipment when the buyer uses each of the recycled equipment are evaluated, taking into consideration the evaluation conditions in addition to the simulation results of the first step.

9. The method for supporting buying and selling transactions according to claim 8.

11. The evaluation conditions are: A policy regarding the maintenance of the recycled equipment set by the buyer or a policy regarding the modification of the recycled equipment set by the seller of the recycled equipment.

11. The method for supporting a buying and selling transaction according to claim 10.

12. There are a plurality of buyers, In response to a request from the seller of the recycled equipment, the buying and selling transaction support device In the first step, the past device usage patterns of each of the buyers are simulated, and the operating status of the recycled devices of the seller is simulated; In the second step, the operating state of the recycled equipment when each of the buyers uses the recycled equipment is evaluated for each of the buyers; In the third step, an impact of the use of the recycled equipment on each of the buyers is estimated, and In the fourth step, a fair price of the recycled equipment for each of the buyers is estimated, and a price range of the estimated fair price of the recycled equipment for each of the buyers is presented to the seller.

9. The method for supporting buying and selling transactions according to claim 8.

13. There are a plurality of buyers, In response to a request from the seller of the recycled equipment, the buying and selling transaction support device In the first step, the past device usage patterns of each of the buyers are simulated, and the operating status of the recycled devices of the seller is simulated; In the second step, the operating state of the recycled equipment when each of the buyers uses the recycled equipment is evaluated for each of the buyers; In the third step, an impact of the use of the recycled equipment on each of the buyers is estimated, and In the fourth step, a fair price of the recycled equipment for each of the buyers is estimated, and a part or all of the estimated fair price of the recycled equipment for each of the buyers is presented to the seller as a recommended selling price of the recycled equipment.

9. The method for supporting buying and selling transactions according to claim 8.

14. The buying and selling transaction support device In the first to third steps, at least one of a first process of calculating a benefit to the seller when the recycled equipment is disassembled into parts and sold, and a second process of calculating a benefit to the seller when the recycled equipment is disassembled into materials and sold, is executed; In the fourth step, the benefit to the seller calculated by the first and / or second process is presented to the seller in addition to the recommended selling price of the recycled device.

14. The method for supporting buying and selling transactions according to claim 13.

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