Content switching device, information processing device, information processing method, and information processing program

Abstract

To provide a content switching device and an information processing device, capable of flexibly providing content for a facility user.SOLUTION: A content switching device 12 is connected between a content output device 11 and a display device 7 in a facility providing a service accompanied with an accommodation, and comprises: a first content acquisition part 40; a second content acquisition part 34; and a switching part 36. The first content acquisition part 40 acquires first content from the content output device 11. The second content acquisition part 34 acquires second content as content for a service provided in the facility via a network of the facility. The switching part 36 selectively switches the first content acquired by the first content acquisition part 40 and the second content acquired by the second content acquisition part 34 to output it to the display device 7.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The disclosed embodiments relate to a content switching device and an information processing device. [Background technology]

[0002] In facilities that provide lodging services, such as medical facilities, welfare facilities, and accommodation facilities, content provision services may be provided to facility users through built-in display devices such as televisions. Such content provision services use content output devices, such as set-top boxes, that output content to the display devices.

[0003] Since conventional content provision services require large-scale construction and equipment, which are relatively expensive and time-consuming, there is a need to reduce the cost and time required to introduce content provision services, and to lower the barriers to introducing content provision services. Accordingly, Patent Document 1 proposes a technology in which a small computer device is connected to a television and linked to a content provision device via a network, thereby using the small computer device as a content output device.

[0004] The small computer device described in Patent Document 1 requests video distribution from a content server that provides video services installed on the Internet, and outputs the video content streamed from the content server to a display device such as a television for display. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2020-144825 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] In the technology described in Patent Document 1, the content output to the display device is limited to Internet content output from a content output device, and therefore it may not be possible to flexibly provide content to facility users.

[0007] One aspect of the embodiment has been made in view of the above, and aims to provide a content switching device and an information processing device that can flexibly provide content to facility users. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] A content switching device according to one aspect of the embodiment is connected between a content output device and a display device in a facility that provides services involving lodging, and includes a first content acquisition unit, a second content acquisition unit, and a switching unit. The first content acquisition unit acquires a first content from the content output device. The second content acquisition unit acquires a first content according to the services provided at the facility. Seki The first content acquisition unit acquires second content, which is content to be displayed, via a facility network. The switching unit selectively switches between the first content acquired by the first content acquisition unit and the second content acquired by the second content acquisition unit, and outputs the selected content to the display device. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to one aspect of the embodiment, it is possible to provide a content switching device and an information processing device that can flexibly provide content to users of a facility. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a content providing system according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of the information processing device according to the embodiment. [Figure 3]FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of menu content displayed on the display device according to the embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of the content switching device according to the embodiment. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a content output device according to the embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing by the processing unit of the content switching device according to the embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing by the processing unit of the content output device according to the embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of the information processing device according to the embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] Hereinafter, embodiments of a content switching device and an information processing device disclosed in the present application will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments.

[0012] 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a content providing system according to an embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the content providing system 100 according to an embodiment includes servers 11-1 n , 2, an identifier information transmitting device 3, wireless LAN (Local Area Network) access points 41 and 42, a gateway 5, networks 61 and 62, a display device 7, and an information processing device 10. n is an integer of 2 or more.

[0013] Server 11~1 n The servers 11-1 provide content via a network 8. The network 8 is the Internet, but may be a WAN (Wide Area Network) other than the Internet. nThe content provided by the service includes, for example, web page content, video content, game content, news content, video call content, advertising content, radio content, and book content.

[0014] Server 11~1 n The content distributed by the servers 11 to 1 is an example of the first content. n When referring to each of these servers without distinguishing them individually, they may be referred to as Server 1, and Servers 11 to 1 n Content provided by may be referred to as net content.

[0015] The server 2, identifier information transmission device 3, wireless LAN access points 41 and 42, gateway 5, networks 61 and 62, display device 7, and information processing device 10 are located in a facility 9. The facility 9 is, for example, a medical facility, a welfare facility, or a lodging facility that provides services involving lodging.

[0016] The facility 9 is provided with a room for each of one or more users U, and in each room, a bed 90, an identifier information transmission device 3, a display device 7, an information processing device 10, etc. are placed for each user U of the facility 9. The bed 90 is a bed for the user to sleep in. Note that the identifier information transmission device 3 may be placed across multiple rooms. In the following, the facility 9 is described as being a medical facility, but as mentioned above, the facility 9 is not limited to a medical facility. If the facility 9 is a medical facility, the rooms are hospital rooms.

[0017] The server 2 distributes facility-related content, which is content related to services provided at the facility 9, to the information processing device 10 via the network 62. The facility-related content is, for example, user-exclusive content, examination explanation content, meal guide content, or questionnaire content.

[0018] The user-specific content includes, for example, information such as the user U's schedule and clinical path. The test explanation content includes information to explain to the user U, such as test explanations, surgery explanations, medication explanations, instrument explanations, nutrition explanations, and exercise explanations. The meal guide content includes information on meal menu schedules to be provided to the user U. The questionnaire content is content for conducting a questionnaire for the user U. Such questionnaire content includes, for example, information on input boxes for the user U to enter answers to each question item.

[0019] The identifier information transmission device 3 stores identifier information internally and transmits the identifier information to the information processing device 10 by wireless communication such as Bluetooth (registered trademark) or RFID. Such an identifier information transmission device 3 is provided, for example, for each room of a user U or for each user U. Note that the identifier information differs for each identifier information transmission device 3.

[0020] The wireless LAN access point 41 is connected to a network 61 and transmits and receives information to and from the information processing device 10 via wireless LAN communication. The wireless LAN access point 42 is connected to a network 62 and transmits and receives information to and from the information processing device 10 via wireless LAN communication. The networks 61 and 62 are, for example, LANs and constitute mutually different networks. The networks 61 and 62 are physically different networks, but may also be physically the same but virtually different networks. Hereinafter, when the networks 61 and 62 are referred to without being individually distinguished, they may be referred to as networks 6.

[0021] The information processing device 10 selectively switches between online content provided by the server 1 and facility-related content provided by the server 2 and outputs the content to the display device 7. The display device 7 is, for example, a television or a monitor, and displays the content output from the information processing device 10 in a display area. The user U can switch the content to be displayed on the display device 7 by operating an input device such as a remote controller or touch panel (not shown).

[0022] This allows the user U to check the online content and facility-related content displayed on the display device 7. The online content and facility-related content may include images such as moving images and still images, or text, and may also include sounds such as voice, and the user U can check the content through the images, text, or sound.

[0023] Furthermore, the information processing device 10 receives identifier information transmitted by wireless communication from the identifier information transmitting device 3, and generates account information unique to the user U based on the received identifier information. The information processing device 10 then outputs facility-related content according to the account information to the display device 7. This allows the content unique to the user U from among the content related to the facility 9 to be provided to the user U.

[0024] 2 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of an information processing device according to an embodiment. As shown in FIG. 2, the information processing device 10 includes a content output device 11 and a content switching device 12. The content output device 11 acquires online content from the server 1 via the network 8, the gateway 5, the network 61, and the wireless LAN access point 41.

[0025] The content output device 11 outputs online content acquired from the server 1 to the content switching device 12. The content output device 11 has preset menu content and can output the menu content to the content switching device 12. The menu content includes icons of multiple online content items and icons of multiple facility-related content items, and these icons are selected by the user U.

[0026] The content switching device 12 acquires facility-related content corresponding to the account information from the server 2 via the network 62 and the wireless LAN access point 42. The content switching device 12 selectively switches between the facility-related content and the online content and outputs the content to the display device 7. The network 62 is physically or virtually separated from the network 61, which prevents unauthorized access to the server 2 via the network 8.

[0027] The content switching device 12 outputs the menu content output from the content output device 11 to the display device 7. Fig. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the menu content displayed on the display device according to the embodiment. In the example shown in Fig. 3, the menu content 70 displayed on the display device 7 includes icons 711 to 718.

[0028] Icon 711 is an icon for selecting user-exclusive content, icon 712 is an icon for selecting hospital guide content, icon 713 is an icon for selecting test explanation content, and icon 714 is an icon for selecting online appointment content.

[0029] The hospital guide content is, for example, web page content including information showing a guide to the facility 9. The online visit content is, for example, content provided by an online visit service, and includes, for example, content of video images of the person being visited.

[0030] Icon 715 is an icon for selecting meal guide content, icon 716 is an icon for selecting survey content, icon 717 is an icon for selecting local content, and icon 718 is an icon for selecting internet content.

[0031] The local content is, for example, web page content including information about the local area including the facility 9 or information about the local government of the local area including the facility 9. The internet content is, for example, web page content for performing a web search, but may also be video content, etc.

[0032] The hospital guide content, online appointment content, local content, and internet content are contents provided by server 1. The user-specific content, examination explanation content, dietary guide content, and questionnaire content are contents provided by server 2.

[0033] With the menu content 70 displayed on the display device 7, the user U can select any icon from among the icons 711 to 718 via an input device such as a remote controller or a touch panel (not shown). Hereinafter, when the icons 711 to 718 are referred to without being individually distinguished, they may be referred to as icon 71.

[0034] When an icon 71 is selected by the user U, selection information indicating the selected icon, which is the selected icon 71, is transmitted to the content switching device 12. When the menu content 70 is displayed on the display device 7, the display device 7 and the content output device 11 are connected to each other so as to be able to communicate with each other via the content switching device 12. Therefore, the selection information transmitted from the display device 7 to the content switching device 12 is transmitted to the content output device 11 via the content switching device 12.

[0035] When the content output device 11 acquires selection information via the content switching device 12, if the selection icon indicated by the acquired selection information is an icon for selecting online content provided by the server 1, the content output device 11 acquires online content corresponding to the selected icon 71 from the server 1.

[0036] The content output device 11 outputs the online content acquired from the server 1 to the content switching device 12. The content switching device 12 outputs the online content output from the content output device 11 to the display device 7. As a result, the display device 7 displays the online content from the server 1 in place of the menu content 70.

[0037] Furthermore, the content switching device 12 determines whether it is time to output facility-related content while the menu content 70 or the online content is being displayed on the display device 7. If it determines that it is time to output the facility-related content, the content switching device 12 switches the content to be output to the display device 7 from the menu content 70 or the online content to the facility-related content.

[0038] If the selection icon indicated by the selection information is an icon for selecting content provided by the server 2, the content output device 11 transmits the selection information to the content switching device 12 via the network 62. When the content switching device 12 receives the selection information from the content output device 11, it determines that it is time to output the facility-related content, and obtains the facility-related content corresponding to the selected icon 71 from the server 2.

[0039] Then, the content switching device 12 outputs the facility-related content corresponding to the selected icon 71 to the display device 7, instead of the menu content 70 output from the content output device 11. As a result, the facility-related content from the server 2 is displayed on the display device 7, instead of the menu content 70.

[0040] The content switching device 12 also acquires output status information indicating the output status of the network content by the content output device 11 via the network 62, and determines whether or not it is time to output the facility-related content based on the output status information.

[0041] For example, assume that the content output by the content output device 11 to the display device 7 is video content or music content. In this case, the content switching device 12 can determine that it is time to output facility-related content when playback of the video content or music content is interrupted. This allows the content switching device 12 to provide the facility-related content to the user U during a period when the user U is not viewing the video content or music content.

[0042] Also, assume that the content being output by the content output device 11 to the display device 7 is online content. In this case, the content switching device 12 can determine that it is time to output facility-related content if the user U does not operate the online content within a preset period of time.

[0043] Furthermore, the information processing device 10 can be relocated to a location other than the facility 9, for example, to a home. In this case, when the information processing device 10 is relocated from the facility 9 to a home, the content switching device 12 detects that it cannot connect to the network 62, and determines that the information processing device 10 has been relocated to a location other than the facility 9.

[0044] When the content switching device 12 determines that the information processing device 10 has been relocated to a location other than the facility 9, it can acquire advertising content from an advertising server (not shown) and output the acquired advertising content to the display device 7 instead of the content output from the content output device 11. The output timing of the advertising content is based on, for example, the output state of online content by the content output device 11, similar to the output timing of facility-related content.

[0045] When the content switching device 12 determines that the information processing device 10 has been relocated to a location other than the facility 9, it transmits information indicating the determination result to the content output device 11. When the content output device 11 acquires information indicating that the information processing device 10 has been relocated to a location other than the facility 9 from the content switching device 12, it outputs to the content switching device 12 menu content 70 that does not include an icon 71 for selecting facility-related content.

[0046] The following describes in more detail the content switching device 12 and the content output device 11 of the information processing device 10. Fig. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the content switching device according to the embodiment.

[0047] 4, the content switching device 12 includes a communication unit 20, a wireless communication unit 21, a storage unit 22, communication terminals 23 and 24, and a processing unit 25. The communication unit 20 is connected to a wireless LAN access point 42 of a network 62 by wireless communication, and transmits and receives information to and from the server 2 via the network 62.

[0048] The wireless communication unit 21 receives identifier information transmitted by wireless communication such as Bluetooth or RFID from the identifier information transmission device 3. Such identifier information includes, for example, area X, area Y, and area Z. For example, area X includes identifier information unique to each facility 9, area Y includes identifier information unique to a floor of the facility 9, and area Z includes identifier information unique to a room in the facility 9.

[0049] In addition, when the identifier information transmitted from the identifier information transmitting device 3 is Bluetooth LE (Low Energy) identifier information, area X is "UUID (organization)", area Y is "major (grouping)", and area Z is "minor (individual identification)".

[0050] The storage unit 22 stores account information assigned to each user U of the facility 9. The account information is generated by the processing unit 25 or the server 2 based on identifier information received by the wireless communication unit 21, as will be described later.

[0051] The communication terminal 23 is connected to the content output device 11 via a communication cable (not shown), and the communication terminal 24 is connected to the display device 7 via a communication cable (not shown). The communication cable is, for example, an HDMI (registered trademark) (High-Definition Multimedia Interface) cable or a DisplayPort cable, and the communication terminals 23 and 24 are, for example, an HDMI terminal or a DisplayPort terminal.

[0052] The processing unit 25 can receive a transmission signal including video data, audio data, and control data from the content output device 11 via a communication cable and communication terminal 23 (not shown), and can transmit a transmission signal including a control signal transmitted from the display device 7 to the content output device 11.

[0053] The processing unit 25 includes an input / output unit 30, an account generation processing unit 31, an information acquisition unit 32, a determination unit 33, a second content acquisition unit 34, a second content output unit 35, a switching unit 36, and an output control unit 37.

[0054] The input / output unit 30 has a first content acquisition unit 40 that acquires content transmitted from the content output device 11, acquires a transmission signal transmitted from the content output device 11 via a communication cable and communication terminal 23 (not shown), and outputs the acquired transmission signal to the switching unit 36. The input / output unit 30 also outputs a transmission signal output from the display device 7 via the switching unit 36 ​​to the content output device 11 via a communication cable and communication terminal 23 (not shown).

[0055] The account generation processing unit 31 generates account information for the user U based on the identifier information received from the identifier information transmission device 3 by the wireless communication unit 21. For example, the account generation processing unit 31 generates account information including the identifier information received from the identifier information transmission device 3, a user ID including information indicating the date and time the identifier information was received, and a password common to all users U. The account generation processing unit 31 stores the generated account information in the storage unit 22.

[0056] The account generation processing unit 31 can also transmit the identifier information received from the identifier information transmission device 3 to the server 2 via the communication unit 20 and the network 62. In this case, the server 2 generates a user ID including the identifier information based on the identifier information transmitted from the content switching device 12. This user ID is information that is different for each user U. The server 2 transmits account information including the user ID and a common password to the content switching device 12 via the network 62. The account generation processing unit 31 stores the account information transmitted from the server 2 in the storage unit 22.

[0057] The information acquisition unit 32 acquires information transmitted from the content output device 11 via the communication unit 20 and the network 62. The information transmitted from the content output device 11 includes, for example, selection information indicating the selected icon 71 and output status information indicating the output status of the menu content 70 or the net content of the content output device 11.

[0058] The determination unit 33 determines whether it is time to output facility-related content to the display device 7. The determination unit 33 determines that it is time to output the facility-related content when the information acquisition unit 32 acquires selection information from the content output device 11.

[0059] Furthermore, the determination unit 33 determines, based on the output state information acquired by the information acquisition unit 32 from the content output device 11, whether or not it is time to output facility-related content to the display device 7.

[0060] For example, the determination unit 33 determines that it is time to output facility-related content when the output state information indicates that playback of video content or music content has been interrupted on the display device 7. Furthermore, the determination unit 33 determines that it is time to output facility-related content when the output state information indicates that the user U has not operated the online content within a preset period.

[0061] When the determination unit 33 determines that it is time to output facility-related content, it outputs a first switching request to the switching unit 36. The first switching request is a request to switch the communication connection with the display device 7 from the content output device 11 side to the second content output unit 35 side.

[0062] Furthermore, in a state where the display device 7 and the second content output unit 35 are communicably connected via the switching unit 36, the determination unit 33 acquires operation information transmitted from the display device 7 via the switching unit 36. The operation information is information indicating an operation by the user U on an input device such as a remote controller or a touch panel (not shown).

[0063] When the operation information from the display device 7 is a request to stop the facility-related content, the determination unit 33 outputs a second switching request to the switching unit 36. The second switching request is a request to switch the communication connection destination with the display device 7 from the second content output unit 35 side to the content output device 11 side.

[0064] When the determination unit 33 determines that it is time to output facility-related content, the second content acquisition unit 34 acquires facility-related content corresponding to the account information stored in the storage unit 22 from the server 2 via the communication unit 20 and the network 62. The facility-related content corresponding to the account information is, for example, user-specific content unique to each user U, examination explanation content, meal guide content, and questionnaire content.

[0065] The second content acquisition unit 34 acquires facility-related content corresponding to the account information from the server 2 by transmitting a content transmission request including the account information and the content type information to the server 2 via the communication unit 20 and the network 62. The content type information is information indicating the type of facility-related content, and is the type of selection icon indicated by the selection information acquired by the information acquisition unit 32.

[0066] For example, when the selection information includes information indicating that icon 711 shown in FIG. 3 has been selected, the second content acquisition unit 34 acquires user-specific content for user U from the server 2. When the selection information includes information indicating that icon 713 shown in FIG. 3 has been selected, the second content acquisition unit 34 acquires examination explanation content for user U from the server 2.

[0067] Furthermore, the second content acquisition unit 34 acquires facility-related content from the server 2 in accordance with operation information from the display device 7, with the display device 7 and the second content output unit 35 connected so as to be able to communicate with each other via the switching unit 36. For example, when the operation information from the display device 7 includes link information for facility-related content, the second content acquisition unit 34 acquires facility-related content corresponding to the link information from the server 2 via the communication unit 20 and the network 62.

[0068] Furthermore, the second content acquisition unit 34 determines whether the information processing device 10 has been relocated to a location other than the facility 9 and whether the communication unit 20 is connected to a network other than the network 62. When the second content acquisition unit 34 determines that the communication unit 20 is connected to a network other than the network 62, it receives advertising content from the server 1 via the communication unit 20, instead of the facility-related content, at the output timing described above based on the output state information.

[0069] The second content output unit 35 outputs the second content acquired by the second content acquisition unit 34 to the switching unit 36. Note that the second content output unit 35 may be configured to be included in the second content acquisition unit 34.

[0070] When the information processing device 10 is started up, the switching unit 36 ​​connects the display device 7 and the content output device 11 so that they can communicate with each other. Then, menu content 70 output from the content output device 11 is output to the display device 7 via the communication terminal 23, the input / output unit 30, the switching unit 36, and the communication terminal 24, and operation information is output from the display device 7 to the content output device 11 via the communication terminal 24, the switching unit 36, the input / output unit 30, and the communication terminal 23.

[0071] When the determination unit 33 outputs a first switching request while the display device 7 and the content output device 11 are communicatively connected, the switching unit 36 ​​switches the communication connection destination of the display device 7 from the content output device 11 side to the second content output unit 35 side. As a result, the display device 7 and the second content output unit 35 are communicatively connected via the switching unit 36, facility-related content output from the second content output unit 35 is output to the display device 7 via the switching unit 36, and operation information is output from the display device 7 to the determination unit 33 and the second content acquisition unit 34 via the switching unit 36.

[0072] Furthermore, when a second switching request is output from the determination unit 33 while the display device 7 and the content output device 11 are communicatively connected via the switching unit 36, the switching unit 36 ​​switches the communication connection destination of the display device 7 from the second content output unit 35 side to the content output device 11 side. As a result, the display device 7 and the content output device 11 are communicatively connected via the switching unit 36, and the information processing device 10 returns to the state it was in when it was started up.

[0073] When the determination unit 33 determines that the output timing has arrived based on the output state information, the output control unit 37 outputs a control signal to the content output device 11 via the communication unit 20 and the network 62 to stop the output of the content from the content output device 11 to the content switching device 12. This stops the output of the content from the content output device 11 to the content switching device 12.

[0074] Furthermore, when the determination unit 33 transmits the second switching request to the switching unit 36, the output control unit 37 outputs a control signal to the content output device 11 via the communication unit 20 and the network 62 to resume output of the content from the content output device 11 to the content switching device 12. This causes output of the content from the content output device 11 to the content switching device 12 to resume.

[0075] Next, a description will be given of the configuration of the content output device 11. Fig. 5 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the content output device according to the embodiment. As shown in Fig. 5, the content output device 11 includes a communication terminal 50, a communication unit 51, a storage unit 52, and a processing unit 53.

[0076] The communication terminal 50 is an HDMI terminal or a DisplayPort terminal connected to the content switching device 12 via a communication cable (not shown). The processing unit 53 transmits a transmission signal including video data, audio data, and control data to the content switching device 12 via the communication terminal 50 and a communication cable (not shown), and receives a transmission signal including a control signal transmitted from the display device 7 from the content switching device 12 via the communication cable (not shown) and the communication terminal 50.

[0077] The communication unit 51 transmits and receives information to and from the server 1 via the network 61, and transmits and receives information to and from the server 2 via the network 62. When the networks 61 and 62 are physically the same but virtually different networks, the communication unit 51 transmits and receives information to and from the server 1 using a network address for the network 61, and transmits and receives information to and from the server 2 using a network address for the network 62.

[0078] The storage unit 52 stores menu information 60, which is information about the menu content 70. The processing unit 53 acquires the menu information 60 from the storage unit 52, and outputs the menu content 70 to the content switching device 12 via the communication terminal 50 based on the acquired menu information 60.

[0079] Furthermore, the processing unit 53 acquires, from the communication terminal 50, operation information output from the display device 7 via the content switching device 12. The operation information is, for example, selection information indicating the type of the selected icon 71, or link information of online content. If the operation information is selection information and the selection icon indicated by the selection information is an icon for selecting online content, the processing unit 53 acquires the online content corresponding to the selected icon from the server 1 via the communication unit 51. Then, the processing unit 53 outputs the acquired online content to the content switching device 12 via the communication terminal 50.

[0080] In addition, if the operation information is selection information and the selection icon indicated by the selection information is an icon for selecting facility-related content, the processing unit 53 transmits the selection information to the content switching device 12 via the communication unit 51.

[0081] Furthermore, when the operation information is link information of online content, the processing unit 53 transmits a transmission request including the link information to the server 1 via the communication unit 51, and acquires the online content corresponding to the link information from the server 1 via the communication unit 51. Then, the processing unit 53 outputs the acquired online content to the content switching device 12 via the communication terminal 50.

[0082] Furthermore, when the processing unit 53 receives a control signal via the communication terminal 50 or the communication unit 51, the processing unit 53 performs control based on the control signal. For example, when the processing unit 53 receives a control signal to stop the output of content to the content switching device 12, the processing unit 53 stops the output of content to the content switching device 12. When the processing unit 53 receives a control signal to resume the output of content to the content switching device 12, the processing unit 53 resumes the output of content to the content switching device 12.

[0083] Next, processing by the processing unit 25 of the content switching device 12 will be described. Fig. 6 is a flowchart showing an example of processing by the processing unit of the content switching device according to the embodiment. As shown in Fig. 6, the processing unit 25 of the content switching device 12 sets the switching unit 36 ​​to a first state (step S10). The first state is a state in which the communication connection destination of the display device 7 is the content output device 11 side.

[0084] Next, the processing unit 25 determines whether or not selection information has been acquired from the content output device 11 (step S11). If the processing unit 25 determines that selection information has been acquired (step S11: Yes), it acquires facility-related content from the server 2 (step S12) and sets the switching unit 36 ​​to the second state (step S13). The second state is a state in which the communication connection destination of the display device 7 is the second content output unit 35 side. Then, the processing unit 25 outputs the facility-related content acquired in step S12 to the display device 7 (step S14).

[0085] When the processing of step S14 is completed or when it is determined that selection information has not been acquired (step S11: No), the processing unit 25 determines whether or not operation information has been acquired from the display device 7 (step S15). When it is determined that operation information has been acquired (step S15: Yes), the processing unit 25 determines whether or not the operation information is a stop request (step S16).

[0086] If the processing unit 25 determines that the operation information is a stop request (step S16: Yes), it stops output of the facility-related content (step S17) and sets the switching unit 36 ​​to the first state (step S18).If the processing unit 25 determines that the operation information is not a stop request (step S16: No), it acquires the facility-related content from the server 2 and outputs the acquired facility-related content to the display device 7 (step S19).

[0087] When the processing of step S18 is completed, when the processing of step S19 is completed, or when it is determined that operation information has not been acquired (step S15: No), the processing unit 25 determines whether or not an operation to end the operation has been performed (step S20). When the processing unit 25 determines that an operation to end the operation has not been performed (step S20: No), the processing unit 25 shifts the processing to step S11. When the processing unit 25 determines that an operation to end the operation has been performed (step S20: Yes), the processing unit 25 terminates the processing shown in FIG.

[0088] Next, a process performed by the processing unit 53 of the content output device 11 will be described. Fig. 7 is a flowchart showing an example of a process performed by the processing unit of the content output device according to the embodiment. As shown in Fig. 7, the processing unit 53 of the content output device 11 outputs menu content 70 to the content switching device 12 (step S30).

[0089] Next, the processing unit 53 determines whether or not operation information has been acquired from the display device 7 via the content switching device 12 (step S31). If the processing unit 53 determines that operation information has been acquired (step S31: Yes), the processing unit 53 determines whether or not the operation information is selection information (step S32). In the processing of step S32, if the operation information is link information, the processing unit 53 determines that the operation information is not selection information.

[0090] If the processing unit 53 determines that the operation information is selection information (step S32: Yes), it determines whether the selection information indicates selection of the online content icon 71 (step S33). If the processing unit 53 determines that the operation information is not selection information (step S32: No), or if it determines that the selection information indicates selection of the online content icon 71 (step S33: Yes), it acquires the online content from the server 1 and outputs the acquired online content to the content switching device 12 (step S34).

[0091] If the processing unit 53 determines that the selection information does not indicate selection of the icon 71 of the online content (step S33: No), it outputs the selection information to the content switching device 12 via the communication unit 51 (step S35). If the processing of step S34 is completed, if the processing of step S35 is completed, or if it determines that operation information has not been acquired (step S31: No), the processing unit 53 determines whether a control signal has been acquired from the content switching device 12 via the communication unit 51 (step S36).

[0092] When the processing unit 53 determines that a control signal has been acquired (step S36: Yes), it executes control in accordance with the control signal (step S37). When the processing of step S37 ends or when the processing unit 53 determines that a control signal has not been acquired (step S36: No), it determines whether an operation to end the operation has been performed (step S38). When the processing unit 53 determines that an operation to end the operation has not been performed (step S38: No), it transitions the processing to step S31. When the processing unit 53 determines that an operation to end the operation has been performed (step S38: Yes), it terminates the processing shown in FIG. 7.

[0093] Fig. 8 is a diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of an information processing device according to an embodiment. As shown in Fig. 8, a content output device 11 of the information processing device 10 includes an HDMI terminal 201, a microprocessor 202, and a communication circuit 203. Furthermore, a content switching device 12 of the information processing device 10 includes HDMI terminals 101 and 102, an HDMI switch LSI (Large Scale Integration) 103, a microprocessor 104, a communication circuit 105, and an input / output interface 106.

[0094] The input / output unit 30 and the switching unit 36 ​​described above are realized by, for example, an HDMI switch LSI 103. The storage unit 22, account generation processing unit 31, information acquisition unit 32, determination unit 33, second content acquisition unit 34, second content output unit 35, and output control unit 37 described above are realized by, for example, a microprocessor 104. The communication terminals 23 and 24 described above are realized by HDMI terminals 101 and 102. The communication unit 20 and wireless communication unit 21 described above are realized by a communication circuit 105. The input / output interface 106 is, for example, a USB (Universal Serial Bus) interface.

[0095] The communication terminal 50 is implemented by an HDMI terminal 201, the communication unit 51 is implemented by a communication circuit 203, and the storage unit 52 and processing unit 53 are implemented by a microprocessor 202. The microprocessors 104 and 202 include, for example, a processor, a memory, and an interface circuit. The processor includes, for example, one or more of a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a DSP (Digital Signal Processor), and a system LSI (Large Scale Integration). The memory includes one or more of a RAM (Random Access Memory), a ROM (Read Only Memory), a flash memory, an EPROM (Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory), and an EEPROM (registered trademark) (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory).

[0096] As described above, the content switching device 12 according to the embodiment is connected between the content output device 11 and the display device 7 in a facility that provides services involving lodging, and includes the first content acquisition unit 40, the second content acquisition unit 34, and the switching unit 36. The first content acquisition unit 40 acquires the first content from the content output device 11. The first content is, for example, menu content 70 or online content. The second content acquisition unit 34 ... service provided in the facility 9. Seki The content switching device 12 acquires second content, which is content related to the facility 9, via the network of the facility 9. The second content is, for example, facility-related content. The switching unit 36 ​​selectively switches between the first content acquired by the first content acquisition unit 40 and the second content acquired by the second content acquisition unit 34 and outputs the content to the display device 7. This allows the content switching device 12 to flexibly provide content to the user U of the facility 9.

[0097] The content switching device 12 also includes a storage unit 22 that stores account information assigned to each user U of the facility 9. The second content acquisition unit 34 acquires content corresponding to the account information as second content. This allows the content switching device 12 to provide the content corresponding to the user U to the user U.

[0098] The content switching device 12 also includes a determination unit 33 that determines whether it is time to output facility-related content to the display device 7. When the determination unit 33 determines that the output timing has arrived while the first content is being output to the display device 7, the switching unit 36 ​​switches the content to be output to the display device 7 from the first content to the second content. This allows the content switching device 12 to provide the facility-related content to the user U.

[0099] The content switching device 12 also includes an information acquisition unit 32. The first content includes an icon 71 for selecting the second content, and when the icon 71 is selected, the information acquisition unit 32 acquires selection information indicating that the icon 71 has been selected from the content output device 11 via the network 62. The determination unit 33 determines that the output timing has arrived when the selection information is acquired by the information acquisition unit 32. This allows the content switching device 12 to provide facility-related content to the user U even when the first content is being output to the display device 7 by the switching unit 36.

[0100] Furthermore, when the icon 71 is selected, the content output device 11 stops outputting the first content to the content switching device 12. This allows the content output device 11 to prevent the first content, such as video content, from being continuously played when facility-related content is provided to the user U.

[0101] Furthermore, the information acquisition unit 32 acquires output state information indicating the output state of the first content of the content output device 11 via the network 62. The determination unit 33 determines whether or not the output timing has arrived based on the output state information acquired by the information acquisition unit 32. This allows the content switching device 12 to automatically switch the content to be displayed on the display device 7 to facility-related content according to the output state of the first content.

[0102] The content switching device 12 also includes an output control unit 37. When the determination unit 33 determines that the output timing has arrived based on the output state information, the output control unit 37 outputs a control signal to the content output device 11 via the network to stop output of the first content from the content output device 11 to the content switching device 12. In this way, when the first content is video content, the content switching device 12 can prevent the playback of the first content from continuing while facility-related content is being provided to the user U.

[0103] The content switching device 12 also includes a wireless communication unit 21 and an account generation processing unit 31. The wireless communication unit 21 receives identifier information wirelessly transmitted from an identifier information transmission device 3 installed in the facility 9. The account generation processing unit 31 generates account information based on the identifier information received by the wireless communication unit 21. This allows the content switching device 12 to automatically set account information by simply placing it in the location where the identifier information transmission device 3 is installed.

[0104] Further advantages and modifications will readily occur to those skilled in the art. Therefore, the invention in its broader aspects is not limited to the specific details and representative embodiments shown and described above. Accordingly, various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the general inventive concept as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents. [Explanation of symbols]

[0105] 1,11~1 n ,2 servers 3. Identifier information transmission device 6,61,62,8 Network 7 Display device 9 Facilities 10. Information processing equipment 11 Content output device 12 Content switching device 20,51 Communications Department 21 Radio Communication Department 22,52 Storage part 25,53 Processing section 31 Account generation processing unit 32 Information Acquisition Department 33 Judgment section 34 Second Content Acquisition Unit 35 Second content output unit 36 Switching section 37 Output control section 40 First Content Acquisition Unit 100 Content Provision System

Claims

1. A content switching device connected between a content output device and a display device in a facility that provides accommodation services, a first content acquisition unit that acquires, from the content output device, content selectively output from the content output device as first content, menu content including a first icon for selecting net content, which is content provided via the Internet, and a second icon for selecting second content, which is content related to the service; and a second content acquisition unit that acquires the second content via a network of the facility; a switching unit that selectively switches between the first content acquired by the first content acquisition unit and the second content acquired by the second content acquisition unit and outputs the content to the display device; an information acquisition unit that acquires output status information indicating an output status of the network content of the content output device via the network; a determination unit that determines whether or not it is time to output the second content to the display device based on the output state information acquired by the information acquisition unit, The switching unit is When the determination unit determines that the output timing has come while the online content is being output to the display device, the content to be output to the display device is switched from the online content to the second content. A content switching device characterized by:

2. The determination unit When the output status information indicates that the reproduction of the online content on the display device has been interrupted, or when the output status information indicates that the user has not operated the online content within a predetermined period, it is determined that the output timing has arrived.

2. The content switching device according to claim 1.

3. The information acquisition unit When the second icon is selected, selection information indicating that the second icon has been selected is acquired from the content output device via the network; The determination unit When the selection information is acquired by the information acquisition unit, it is determined that the output timing has arrived.

3. The content switching device according to claim 1 or 2.

4. an output control unit that outputs, to the content output device via the network, a control signal for stopping output of the first content from the content output device to the content switching device when the determination unit determines that the output timing has arrived based on the output state information; 4. The content switching device according to claim 1, wherein:

5. a storage unit for storing account information assigned to each user of the facility; The second content acquisition unit The content corresponding to the account information is acquired as the second content.

5. The content switching device according to claim 1, wherein the content switching device is a content switching device.

6. a wireless communication unit that receives identifier information wirelessly transmitted from an identifier information transmitting device installed in the facility; an account generation processing unit that generates the account information based on the identifier information received by the wireless communication unit.

6. The content switching device according to claim 5.

7. The second content is Content provided by a server connected to the network 7. The content switching device according to claim 1, wherein:

8. A content switching device according to any one of claims 1 to 7; the content output device; 1. An information processing device comprising:

9. 1. A computer-implemented information processing method, comprising: a first content acquisition step of acquiring, from a content output device in a facility that provides a service involving lodging, menu content including a first icon for selecting online content, which is content provided via the Internet, and a second icon for selecting second content, which is content related to the service, and content selectively output from the content output device as first content; a second content acquisition step of acquiring the second content via a network of the facility; a switching step of selectively switching between the first content acquired in the first content acquisition step and the second content acquired in the second content acquisition step as content to be output to a display device; an information acquisition step of acquiring output status information indicating an output status of the network content of the content output device via the network; a determining step of determining whether or not it is time to output the second content to the display device based on the output state information acquired by the information acquiring step, The switching step includes: When it is determined in the determination step that the output timing has come while the online content is being output to the display device, the content to be output to the display device is switched from the online content to the second content.

1. An information processing method comprising:

10. a first content acquisition step of acquiring, from a content output device in a facility that provides a service involving lodging, menu content including a first icon for selecting online content, which is content provided via the Internet, and a second icon for selecting second content, which is content related to the service, and content selectively output from the content output device as first content; a second content acquisition step of acquiring the second content via a network of the facility; a switching step of selectively switching between the first content acquired in the first content acquisition step and the second content acquired in the second content acquisition step as content to be output to a display device; an information acquisition step of acquiring output status information indicating an output status of the network content of the content output device via the network; a determination step of determining whether or not it is time to output the second content to the display device based on the output state information acquired by the information acquisition step; The switching procedure includes: When it is determined by the determination procedure that the output timing has come while the online content is being output to the display device, the content to be output to the display device is switched from the online content to the second content. An information processing program characterized by:

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