Information processing device and program

Abstract

To provide an information processing apparatus and a program capable of providing order support for products sold at an online supermarket.SOLUTION: The information processing apparatus is provided with: accepting means for accepting a budget and a product category designated by a user; extracting means for, based on data associated with the category belonging to a plurality of products for each of the products and a price of the product, extracting products with a total price thereof within the budget accepted by the accepting means from among those belonging to the respective categories accepted by the accepting means; and presenting means for presenting the products extracted by the extracting means as candidate products to be purchased.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 10

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] An embodiment of the present invention relates to an information processing device and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] A sales method (EC: Electronic Commerce) for selling products via the Internet is becoming popular. Also, stores such as supermarkets are using a sales method called an online supermarket, in which products sold in the store are sold via the Internet (for example, Patent Document 1). In an online supermarket, when a product purchase order is received from a customer via the Internet, the ordered product is collected from the store and delivered to the customer's home.

[0003] In the above-mentioned online supermarket, customers select and order products via the Internet, but for customers who are unfamiliar with the operation, the operation is complicated and burdensome. In addition, customers have to search for the product they want to purchase from a large number of products displayed on a menu, which results in a time-consuming selection process. One technique that attempts to solve this problem is disclosed in Patent Document 2, for example, but there is still much room for further improvement. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide an information processing device and a program capable of supporting the ordering of products sold at online supermarkets. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] The information processing apparatus of the embodiment includes a receiving unit that receives a budget and a product category specification from a user, and a receiving unit that receives, for each of a plurality of products, a category to which the product belongs and a price of the product. A quantitative value that indicates the characteristics of the productand a presentation means for presenting the products extracted by the extraction means as candidate products to be purchased, from among the products belonging to each of the categories accepted by the acceptance means, based on data associating the above items. The extraction means extracts, from among the products belonging to each of the categories accepted by the acceptance means, products that meet the conditions of the preference information and whose total price falls within the budget accepted by the acceptance means, based on preference information that indicates the user's preference regarding the products in quantitative values. do. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0006] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the entire system of the embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the hardware configuration of the network supermarket server. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a data configuration of the product master. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the data structure of the additional information file. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of the data configuration of the customer master. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of the data configuration of the purchase history file. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of the functional configuration of the network supermarket server. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of the new registration screen. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of the top screen. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of the condition input screen. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of the extraction result screen. [Figure 12] FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of the confirmation screen. [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing an example of processing executed by the network supermarket server. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0007] Hereinafter, a server and a program according to an embodiment will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described below.

[0008] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the entire system 1 of this embodiment. In FIG. 1, a store system 2 and a headquarters system 3 are connected, for example, by a dedicated line 4. The store system 2 is also connected to an online supermarket system 5, which is a server, via a network 7. The online supermarket system 5 is also connected to a customer terminal 6 via the network 7.

[0009] The headquarters system 3 is a system installed, for example, in a headquarters that operates a store. The headquarters system 3 has a headquarters server 20. The headquarters server 20 holds a product master that stores and manages product information for products sold in the store, and a customer master that stores and manages customer information for customers (users) who use the store. The headquarters server 20 also stores a purchase history file that stores and manages the purchase history of customers who use the store. The product master, customer master, and purchase history file have the same data structure as the product master Da, customer master Dc, and purchase history file Dd, which are stored in the online supermarket system 5 and will be described later. The headquarters server 20 transmits the product information in the product master and the customer information in the customer master to the store server 12 of each store via a dedicated line 4.

[0010] In this embodiment, the product master, customer master, and purchase history file stored by the headquarters server 20 are assumed to hold information about products sold at physical stores and customers who use the physical stores. Also, the product master Da, customer master Dc, and purchase history file Dd, which will be described later and stored by the online supermarket system 5, are assumed to hold information about products sold at the online supermarket and customers who use the online supermarket. However, this is not limited to this form, and various data stored in both devices may be integrated and stored in either or both devices.

[0011] The store system 2 is a system installed in a store. The store system 2 includes a POS (Point Of Sales) terminal 11, a store server 12, an access point 13, and an online supermarket management server 14. The devices in the store system 2 are connected to each other via a LAN (Local Area Network) line 15 so that they can communicate with each other.

[0012] Here, the POS terminal 11 processes data on products sold in the store. The store server 12 collects data processed by the POS terminal 11. The store server 12 also transmits information and commands from the headquarters server 20 to the POS terminal 11 and the online supermarket server 18.

[0013] The online supermarket management server 14 processes data for picking and packing the products purchased at the online supermarket based on the product purchase information sent from the online supermarket server 18. Product packing is carried out by inputting product information into the handy terminal 16, and the input product information is sent to the online supermarket management server 14 via the access point 13. When the online supermarket management server 14 has finished packing the products, it outputs the data for a delivery slip to the printer 17, and the printer 17 prints the delivery slip.

[0014] The online supermarket system 5 is a system that manages online supermarket services. The online supermarket system 5 may be installed in, for example, a data center. The online supermarket system 5 may also be installed in the headquarters system 3 or the store system 2.

[0015] The online supermarket system 5 has an online supermarket server 18. The online supermarket server 18 has various functions and data related to the provision of online supermarket services. The online supermarket server 18 may be configured as a single server device, or may be configured as multiple server devices. In the latter case, the online supermarket server 18 may be configured as, for example, a web server that publishes an e-commerce site for the online supermarket on the network 7, a database server that stores a customer database including a customer master and a product database including a product master, and a distribution server that distributes emails and the like to customers. Note that, for the sake of convenience, this embodiment describes an example in which the online supermarket server 18 is configured as a single server device, but the present invention is not limited to this.

[0016] The online supermarket server 18 is an example of an information processing device. The online supermarket server 18 is communicatively connected to the store's store system 2 and customer terminal 6 via the network 7. The online supermarket server 18 stores information about customers and information about products sold at the online supermarket, and when accessed by the customer terminal 6, it provides the customer terminal 6 with a web screen on which products sold at the store can be purchased, and accepts ordering operations related to product purchases from the customer terminal 6. The online supermarket server 18 also transmits product purchase information indicating the details of the ordered products to the store's store system 2 (online supermarket management server 14).

[0017] The customer terminal 6 is a terminal device operated by a user (customer) who uses a store or an online supermarket. The customer terminal 6 may be, for example, a stationary terminal device such as a PC, or a portable terminal device such as a smartphone or a tablet terminal.

[0018] Specifically, the customer terminal 6 includes a computer-configured control unit (not shown) that includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), etc. The customer terminal 6 also includes a communication unit for connecting to the network 7, an operation unit such as a keyboard, a display unit, and a storage unit such as a hard disk drive (none of which are shown).

[0019] The control unit of the customer terminal 6 executes various processes and functions in cooperation with the programs stored in the memory unit. For example, the control unit of the customer terminal 6 accesses the online supermarket server 18 in response to a customer's operation via the operation unit, and causes the display unit to display a purchase screen provided by the online supermarket server 18.

[0020] Next, the configuration of the above-mentioned network supermarket server 18 will be described.

[0021] 2 is a diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of the online supermarket server 18. As shown in FIG.

[0022] The CPU 1801 is an example of a processor and controls the overall operation of the network super server 18. The ROM 1802 stores various programs. The RAM 1803 is a workspace where programs and various data are deployed. The CPU 1801, the ROM 1802, and the RAM 1803 are connected via a bus or the like to form a control unit 1810 of the computer configuration. In the control unit 1810, the CPU 1801 operates in accordance with the programs stored in the ROM 1802 or the memory unit 1805 and deployed in the RAM 1803, thereby executing various processes.

[0023] The control unit 1810 is connected to the communication unit 1804 and the storage unit 1805 via a bus or the like. The communication unit 1804 is a communication interface connectable to the network 7. The communication unit 1804 communicates with external devices such as the store system 2, the headquarters system 3, and the customer terminal 6 via the network 7.

[0024] The storage unit 1805 is configured with a storage device such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or flash memory, and maintains its stored contents even when power is cut off. The storage unit 1805 stores various programs that can be executed by the CPU 1801. The storage unit 1805 also stores, for example, a product master file Da, an additional information file Db, a customer master file Dc, and a purchase history file Dd.

[0025] The product master Da stores product information for products sold at the online supermarket. Specifically, the product master Da stores product information for products sold at the online supermarket by associating each store with an identifiable identifier (hereinafter referred to as a store ID).

[0026] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the data configuration of the product master Da. As shown in FIG. 3, the product master Da stores product IDs and product information for each product to be sold in association with each other. The product ID is an identifier capable of identifying a product, and may be, for example, a product code such as a JAN code. The product information includes the product name, category, price, product image, and characteristic information of the product corresponding to the product ID. Here, the characteristic information is information indicating the characteristics of the product corresponding to the product ID. For example, if the product is a food product, the characteristic information may quantitatively represent various characteristics of the food product, such as its flavor intensity, spiciness, and sweetness, using index values ​​that can be compared with other food products. For example, in FIG. 3, various characteristics, such as its flavor intensity, spiciness, and sweetness, are indicated using a 10-point scale.

[0027] The additional information file Db stores additional information about products sold at the online supermarket. In this embodiment, the additional information stored is information that can be used to support product ordering. As an example, the additional information stores information indicating the sales ranking of the products. In this case, the additional information may be compiled by the headquarters server 20 based on the sales results of products purchased at each store, or may be compiled by the control unit 1810 based on the sales results of products purchased at the online supermarket.

[0028] Fig. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the data structure of the additional information file Db. As shown in Fig. 4, the additional information file Db stores, for each product category, the product IDs of products belonging to that category and the sales ranking of those products in association with each other. Note that Fig. 4 shows an example in which the top sales rankings are displayed.

[0029] It should be noted that the information stored in the additional information file Db is not limited to the example shown in FIG. 4. For example, the additional information file Db may store, for each product category, information indicating the order in which products belonging to that category have been recently arrived. Furthermore, the additional information file Db may store, for each product category, product IDs of products that are the subject of sales promotion (hereinafter also referred to as recommended products) among the products belonging to that category. Furthermore, the additional information file Db may be prepared for each type of additional information.

[0030] The customer master Dc stores information about customers who use the online supermarket. Specifically, the customer master Dc associates each customer with an identifiable customer ID and stores the customer information of the customer corresponding to the customer ID.

[0031] Fig. 5 is a diagram showing an example of the data configuration of the customer master Dc. As shown in Fig. 5, the customer master Dc stores customer information in association with a customer ID. Here, the customer ID is an example of an identifier capable of identifying each customer. The customer ID may be, for example, a unique ID assigned to each customer, an email address, or a telephone number. The customer information includes basic information such as the customer's name, address, and contact information (telephone number, email address, etc.), as well as preference information.

[0032] The preference information includes information indicating the customer's preferences. For example, the preference information includes values ​​(hereinafter also referred to as preference values) that quantitatively indicate the customer's taste preferences, such as the strength of flavor and their preference for spiciness and sweetness, as taste preferences. The preference information may be entered when registering the basic information, or may be automatically extracted based on the history information described below. The customer information (basic information) may also include a password that is set when registering a customer ID, etc.

[0033] The purchase history file Dd stores the history information of products purchased by customers who use the online supermarket. Specifically, the purchase history file Dd stores the history information of the customer corresponding to the customer ID in association with the customer ID.

[0034] Fig. 6 is a diagram showing an example of the data structure of the purchase history file Dd. As shown in Fig. 6, the purchase history file Dd stores history information in association with a customer ID. The history information includes, for example, the product ID, product name, category, etc. of the purchased product, as well as the purchase date, etc. Here, the purchase date is information indicating the date and time when the product was purchased.

[0035] The history information stored in the purchase history file Dd is not limited to purchases made at online supermarkets, but may also include purchases made at stores. In this case, the history information for store purchases may be obtained from the headquarters server 20 or directly from each store. The history information may also include purchase source information indicating the purchase source. In this case, for example, the history information for store purchases would include information indicating the purchase store (such as a store ID).

[0036] In the configuration of the above-mentioned online supermarket server 18, the control unit 1810 cooperates with various programs to realize a functional unit for executing various processes. Figure 7 is a diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the online supermarket server 18.

[0037] As shown in Figure 7, the control unit 1810 of the online supermarket server 18 executes various programs stored in the memory unit 1805, etc., thereby realizing an information providing unit 181, a user registration unit 182, an order support unit 183, and an order processing unit 184.

[0038] Here, the order support unit 183 is an example of a receiving means and an extraction means, and the information providing unit 181 is an example of a presentation means. As an example of a receiving means, the order support unit 183 receives a budget and a product category specification from a user. Furthermore, as an example of an extraction means, the order support unit 183 extracts (selects) products whose total price falls within the budget accepted by the information providing unit 181 from among products belonging to each category accepted by the information providing unit 181, based on data associating the category to which each product belongs with the price of the product for each of a plurality of products. Furthermore, as an example of a presentation means, the information providing unit 181 presents the products extracted by the extraction means as candidate products to be purchased.

[0039] The information providing unit 181 provides various information related to the use of the online supermarket to the customer terminal 6 that has accessed the online supermarket server 18. Here, the information provided by the information providing unit 181 includes various operation screens (GUI) including the purchase screen described above, as well as content generated based on the product master Da, etc.

[0040] The user registration unit 182 executes a process of registering customer information of customers who use the online supermarket in the customer master Dc by working together with the information provision unit 181. Specifically, the user registration unit 182 registers the customer information entered on the operation screen provided to the customer terminal 6 by the information provision unit 181 in the customer master Dc.

[0041] The order support unit 183 executes processing to support product ordering at the online supermarket by working in cooperation with the information provision unit 181. Specifically, the order support unit 183 extracts products that are candidates for purchase (hereinafter also referred to as candidate products) from the products registered in the product master Da, and presents the extracted candidate products to the customer at the customer terminal 6.

[0042] More specifically, when a customer specifies a category and a budget, the order support unit 183 extracts candidate products that can be purchased within the budget from the specified category. Various methods can be used to extract candidate products.

[0043] For example, the order support unit 183 may preferentially extract products that match the customer's preferences from the specified category based on the preference information included in the customer information of the corresponding customer stored in the customer master Dc. Also, the order support unit 183 may preferentially extract products that have been purchased in the past from the specified category based on the purchase history of the corresponding customer stored in the purchase history file Dd. Also, the order support unit 183 may preferentially extract products with high sales rankings (best sellers) or recommended products from the specified category based on the additional information file Db. Note that, although in this embodiment, one candidate product is extracted from each category, multiple products may be extracted.

[0044] The order support unit 183 extracts candidate products using the extraction method described above, but the extraction method to be used is not particularly limited. For example, the order support unit 183 may extract candidate products using one preset extraction method. Alternatively, the order support unit 183 may extract candidate products using an extraction method designated by the customer. Alternatively, the order support unit 183 may extract candidate products by combining multiple extraction methods. Also, the method of extracting candidate products is not limited to the above example.

[0045] Furthermore, the number of categories that can be specified at one time is not limited to one, and may be multiple. When multiple categories are specified, the order support unit 183 allocates the budget based on the number of categories, etc., and extracts candidate products for each category within the allocated budget. For example, when a budget of "3,000 yen" is specified and three categories, "A," "B," and "C," are specified, the order support unit 183 divides the budget into three equal parts (pro rata) according to the number of categories, and extracts candidate products within a 1,000 yen limit from each category. Note that the budget allocation method is not limited to this example. For example, the order support unit 183 may determine the proportion of the budget to be allocated to each category based on the average price of products belonging to each category, etc. Furthermore, the order support unit 183 may analyze the purchase history of the corresponding customer to calculate the average price of purchased products for each category, and determine the proportion of the budget to be allocated to each category based on the calculation result.

[0046] Note that when the above extraction method is used, there is a possibility that almost the same products will be presented each time. For example, if a customer purchases the same product every time, or if the product is popular, the same product may be presented each time.

[0047] Therefore, the order support unit 183 has a function for presenting alternative products (hereinafter, similar products) to the candidate products extracted by the above-described extraction method, or in addition to the candidate products.

[0048] Specifically, the order support unit 183 extracts, from among the products belonging to the specified category, products other than the candidate products extracted from the category and that fall within the budget, as similar products. There is no particular restriction on the method for extracting similar products, and various methods can be adopted.

[0049] For example, the order support unit 183 may randomly extract similar products that meet the above conditions. Alternatively, the order support unit 183 may extract similar products that meet the above conditions based on sales rankings or recommended products stored in the additional information file Db. Alternatively, the order support unit 183 may extract similar products that meet the above conditions based on the purchase history of the relevant customer stored in the purchase history file Dd. Note that, although in this embodiment, one similar product is extracted from each category, multiple similar products may be extracted.

[0050] The order processing unit 184 executes processing related to ordering a product that has been selected for purchase (hereinafter also referred to as order processing). Specifically, when a customer operating the customer terminal 6 confirms the product to be purchased, the order processing unit 184 associates the product ID and product information of the target product with the purchase quantity, and transmits this to the online supermarket server 18 as product purchase information together with the customer information of the customer.

[0051] Furthermore, when the order processing is completed, the order processing unit 184 stores the purchase history of the customer who placed the order in the purchase history file Dd based on the product purchase information. Specifically, the order processing unit 184 stores the product ID, product name, price, purchase quantity, etc. of the product ordered by the customer in association with the customer ID of the customer who placed the order in the purchase history file Dd.

[0052] The store of the online supermarket server 18 that is the destination of the data is not particularly limited, but it is preferable to select a store that is close to the customer's address. For example, the order processing unit 184 may select a store that is located within a predetermined range from the address included in the customer information of the relevant customer. Also, for example, the order processing unit 184 may select a store that the customer frequently uses based on the history information of the relevant customer stored in the headquarters server 20.

[0053] Furthermore, when payment for a product is made through the online supermarket server 18, the order processing unit 184 may also perform payment processing for the product to be purchased. In this case, there is no particular restriction on the payment method, and well-known methods such as credit card payment or electronic payment can be used.

[0054] Hereinafter, the operations of the information providing unit 181, the user registration unit 182, the order support unit 183, and the order processing unit 184 will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0055] For example, the information providing unit 181 provides a new registration screen for using the online supermarket to the customer terminal 6 for a customer who is using the online supermarket for the first time.

[0056] Fig. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a new registration screen Ga. As shown in Fig. 8, the new registration screen Ga includes an input field 81 for inputting basic information about the customer (such as name, address, and contact information), as well as an input field 82 for inputting preference information.

[0057] FIG. 8 shows an example of an input field 82 for inputting preferences for flavor strength and spiciness / sweetness as taste preferences. This input field 82 shows an example in which preference values ​​for flavor strength and spiciness / sweetness are input using volume sliders 83 and 84, respectively. A customer can input preference values ​​related to taste by operating the volume sliders 83 and 84. Note that the content input as preference information is not limited to the example in FIG. 8, and a configuration in which preference information other than taste can be input may also be used.

[0058] When the basic information and preference information are input to the new registration screen Ga and an instruction to register is received, the user registration unit 182 registers the input basic information and preference information in the customer master Dc as customer information of the new customer.

[0059] The customer ID may be explicitly entered by the customer, or may be automatically assigned by the user registration unit 182. Furthermore, if a customer ID has already been assigned to the same customer through membership registration at a store, it is preferable to register the same customer ID as the customer ID used at the store. This allows the purchase history of products purchased at a store by the same customer to be managed in association with the purchase history of products purchased at the online supermarket, thereby enabling efficient data management.

[0060] The information providing unit 181 also provides the customer terminal 6 with a top screen (top page) that serves as the entrance to the online supermarket.

[0061] FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of the top screen Gb. As shown in FIG. 9, the top screen Gb includes a category display field 91, a product search bar 92, a product information display field 93, and an automatic selection button 94. The top screen Gb may also include an operator (e.g., a new registration button) that instructs the display of the new registration screen Ga described above. The top screen Gb may also include a login form for inputting the customer ID (and password) of the customer. In the following description, it is assumed that the customer has logged in by inputting the customer ID registered in the customer master Dc.

[0062] The category display field 91 displays the categories of products sold at the online supermarket. For example, the information providing unit 181 displays a list of categories registered in the product master Da in the category display field 91. Furthermore, when a specific category is selected, the information providing unit 181 displays a list of products belonging to the selected category in the category display field 91. Furthermore, when a specific product is selected, the information providing unit 181 reads out product information of the selected product from the product master Da and displays it in the product information display field 93.

[0063] The product search bar 92 is used to input search criteria for searching for products. The search criteria can be, for example, a product code or part or all of a product name. When the search criteria are input into the product search bar 92, the information providing unit 181 searches the product master Da for products that match the input search criteria. Then, the information providing unit 181 displays product information of the searched products in the product information display field 93.

[0064] The product information display field 93 is an area for displaying product information. For example, the information providing unit 181 displays product information of products narrowed down by operating the category display field 91 or the product search bar 92 in the product information display field 93. Note that the product information displayed in the product information display field 93 is not limited to one item, and may be multiple items. Also, the information displayed in the product information display field 93 is not limited to product information. For example, the product information display field 93 may display an operator or the like for making a product corresponding to the displayed product information a candidate for purchase.

[0065] The automatic selection button 94 is an operator for instructing automatic selection of candidate products. When the automatic selection button 94 is operated, the information providing unit 181 provides the customer terminal 6 with a condition input screen for inputting budget and category conditions.

[0066] 10 is a diagram showing an example of the condition input screen Gc. As shown in FIG. 10, the condition input screen Gc includes a budget input field 101, a category selection field 102, and an OK button 103.

[0067] The budget input field 101 is an input field for inputting the budget amount. A customer operating the customer terminal 6 inputs a desired budget into the budget input field 101. FIG. 10 shows an example in which "1000 yen" has been input as the budget.

[0068] The category selection field 102 is provided with options from which the category of the product to be purchased can be selected. The customer operating the customer terminal 6 selects the category of the product to be purchased by checking the desired category from the options provided in the category selection field 102. Figure 10 shows an example in which three categories, "Salad vegetables", "Sweet bread / Savory bread", and "Pork", have been entered as categories.

[0069] The decision button 103 is an operator for instructing automatic extraction of candidate products based on the conditions entered in the budget input field 101 and the category selection field 102. When the decision button 103 is operated, the order support unit 183 executes a process of extracting candidate products based on the conditions entered in the budget input field 101 and the category selection field 102. For example, in the example of FIG. 10 , the order support unit 183 extracts one candidate product each from each of the categories of "Salad Vegetables," "Sweet Buns / Savory Buns," and "Pork" so that the total amount is less than the budgeted amount of "1,000 yen." The order support unit 183 may also extract similar products for any or all of the extracted candidate products.

[0070] When the order support unit 183 extracts candidate products, the information providing unit 181 provides the customer terminal 6 with an extraction result screen showing the extraction results.

[0071] 11 is a diagram showing an example of the extraction result screen Gd. As shown in Fig. 11, the extraction result screen Gd includes a candidate product display field 111, a total price display field 112, a similar product display field 113, and an order button 114.

[0072] The candidate product display field 111 is an area for displaying information about candidate products extracted by the order support unit 183. Specifically, the information providing unit 181 reads out product names from the product information corresponding to the candidate products extracted by the order support unit 183, and displays the product names in the candidate product display field 111.

[0073] Figure 11 shows an example in which "cut vegetables," "melon bread," and "pork MA" are displayed as candidate products. Here, "cut vegetables" is a candidate product extracted from products belonging to the category "salad vegetables." "Melon bread" is a candidate product extracted from products belonging to the category "sweet breads and savory breads." "pork MA" is a candidate product extracted from products belonging to the category "pork."

[0074] 11, the candidate product display field 111 displays the purchase quantity of the candidate product in association with the product name of the candidate product. Here, the purchase quantity can be increased or decreased by the customer's operation. In other words, the customer at the customer terminal 6 can specify the purchase quantity of the candidate product. The initial value of the purchase quantity is "1," and the order support unit 183 extracts candidate products so that the total price of one candidate product extracted from each category falls within the specified budget.

[0075] 11 shows a form in which the product names of the candidate products are displayed in the candidate product display field 111, but this is not limiting. For example, other information such as the price and category of the candidate products may also be displayed in the candidate product display field 111. Also, an operator for deleting (erasing) the candidate products may be displayed. In this case, the operator is displayed in association with each candidate product, and when the operator is operated, the information providing unit 181 deletes the candidate product that was the target of the operation from the candidate product display field 111.

[0076] The candidate product display field 111 may also display an operator for displaying similar products. In this case, the operator may be displayed in association with each candidate product, and when the operator is operated, the candidate product display field 111 may extract similar products for the operated category. The extracted similar products may be displayed in the candidate product display field 111 or in the similar product display field 113.

[0077] The total amount display field 112 is an area for displaying the total amount of the candidate products displayed in the candidate product display field 111. When the information providing unit 181 calculates the total amount of the candidate products based on the prices of the candidate products displayed in the candidate product display field 111, the information providing unit 181 displays the calculated total amount in the total amount display field 112. Specifically, the information providing unit 181 calculates the total amount by adding up the values ​​obtained by multiplying the prices of the candidate products by the number of items purchased.

[0078] FIG. 11 shows an example in which "980 yen" is displayed in the total amount display field 112. The budget amount specified on the condition input screen Gc may be displayed in the total amount display field 112 in a form that allows comparison with the total amount in the total amount display field 112. By displaying the budget and the total amount related to the prices of the candidate products in a manner that allows comparison, the customer can easily check the difference between the budget and the total amount, thereby improving convenience.

[0079] The similar product display field 113 is an area for displaying similar products extracted by the order support unit 183. Specifically, the information providing unit 181 reads out product names and the like from the product information corresponding to the similar products extracted by the order support unit 183, and displays them in the similar product display field 113.

[0080] 11 shows an example in which "Pork MB" is displayed as a similar product in the category "Pork" in the similar product display field 113. Also, as a difference between "Pork MA" and a candidate product in the same category, information indicating that "Pork MB" is a domestic product and is 500 yen more expensive than "Pork MA" is displayed.

[0081] For example, when a customer operating the customer terminal 6 wishes to purchase a similar product displayed in the similar product display field 113, the customer performs an operation to select the similar product. When the information providing unit 181 receives the selection operation of the similar product, the information providing unit 181 adds the selected similar product to the candidate products to be purchased by displaying the selected similar product in the candidate product display field 111. When adding the similar product to the candidate product display field 111, the information providing unit 181 may delete candidate products in the same category as the similar product displayed in the candidate product display field 111 from the candidate product display field 111, or may leave them as they are.

[0082] The order button 114 is an operator for instructing the purchase of a product (candidate product, similar product) displayed in the candidate product display field 111. When the information providing unit 181 accepts the operation of the order button 114, it provides the customer terminal 6 with a confirmation screen for confirming the order details.

[0083] 12 is a diagram showing an example of the confirmation screen Ge. As shown in FIG. 12, the confirmation screen Ge includes an order content confirmation field 121 and an order confirmation button 122.

[0084] The order content confirmation field 121 displays the products that were displayed in the candidate product display field 111 when the order button 114 was operated on the extraction result screen Gd. Specifically, the information providing unit 181 displays the product name, price, and purchase quantity of each product that was displayed in the candidate product display field 111 in the order content confirmation field 121. In addition, the order content confirmation field 121 displays a delete button 1211 and a change button 1212 associated with each product.

[0085] Here, the delete button 1211 is an operator for instructing the deletion of the corresponding product. When the information providing unit 181 receives an operation of the delete button 1211, the information providing unit 181 deletes the product corresponding to the operated delete button 1211, thereby excluding the product from the items to be purchased.

[0086] Furthermore, the change button 1212 is an operator for instructing a change of the corresponding product. When the information providing unit 181 accepts the operation of the change button 1212, the information providing unit 181 cooperates with the order support unit 183 to provide the customer terminal 6 with an operation screen (not shown) (hereinafter also referred to as a change screen) for changing the product corresponding to the operated change button 1212 to another product.

[0087] The change screen may be, for example, a screen on which the product to be purchased can be selected from similar products in the same category as the product targeted by the change button 1212, among similar products extracted by the order support unit 183. The change screen may also be a screen on which the product to be purchased can be selected from, for example, a list of products in the same category as the product targeted by the change button 1212. When the product is changed, the information providing unit 181 replaces the product with the changed product and displays the product name etc. of the changed product in the candidate product display field 111.

[0088] The order confirmation button 122 is an operator for instructing to confirm the purchase of a product. Specifically, it is an operator for instructing to confirm the product displayed in the order content confirmation field 121 as the product to be purchased, that is, as the product to be ordered at the online supermarket.

[0089] When the order processing unit 184 accepts the operation of the order confirmation button 122, it associates the product ID, product information, and purchase quantity for each product displayed in the order confirmation field 121, and transmits this information to the online supermarket server 18 as product purchase information together with the name, address, contact information, etc. included in the customer information of the logged-in customer.

[0090] This allows the customer at the customer terminal 6 to place an order for a product based on the product extracted by the order support unit 183. Therefore, the online supermarket system 5 of this embodiment can reduce the burden on the customer in selecting a product and support the customer in ordering the product.

[0091] It should be noted that the products to be ordered are not limited to the products extracted by the order support unit 183. For example, products selected as purchase targets from the category display field 91 or the product information display field 93 on the top screen Gb may also be included in the products to be ordered.

[0092] Next, an example of the processing executed by the online supermarket server 18 will be described with reference to Fig. 13. Fig. 13 is a flowchart showing an example of the processing executed by the online supermarket server 18.

[0093] As a prerequisite for this process, it is assumed that the customer information of customers using the online supermarket has already been registered in the customer master Dc. It is also assumed that the top screen Gb has been provided to the customer terminal 6 from the online supermarket server 18, and that the customer operating the customer terminal 6 is logged in.

[0094] First, when the information providing unit 181 accepts operation of the automatic selection button 94 (step S11), it provides a screen for inputting the budget and category (for example, a condition input screen Gc) to the customer terminal 6, thereby causing the screen to be displayed on the display unit of the customer terminal 6 (step S12).

[0095] Next, the order support unit 183 waits until the budget and category conditions are determined via the decision button 103 or the like (step S13; No). When the decision of the conditions is instructed (step S13; Yes), the order support unit 183 accepts the input budget and category conditions (receiving means), and extracts candidate products from the product master Da based on the conditions (extracting means) (step S14).

[0096] Next, the information providing unit 181 provides a screen (e.g., extraction result screen Gd, confirmation screen Ge) displaying the product name, etc. of the candidate product to the customer terminal 6, thereby displaying the screen on the display unit of the customer terminal 6 (presentation means) (step S15).

[0097] Next, the information providing unit 181 determines whether a change operation has been performed to instruct a change of the candidate product (step S16). Here, if a change operation has been received (step S16; Yes), the information providing unit 181 changes the candidate product to another product in accordance with the customer's operation (step S17). Then, if the information providing unit 181 sets the changed product as the candidate product, the process returns to step S15. Also, if an instruction to delete the candidate product has been given in step S16, the information providing unit 181 deletes the display of the instructed candidate product in step S17, and the process returns to step S15.

[0098] In the process of step S17, the information providing unit 181 provides the customer terminal 6 with a screen on which a candidate product for change, such as a similar product extracted by the order support unit 183, can be selected.

[0099] On the other hand, if a change operation is not performed in step S16 (step S16; No), the information providing unit 181 determines whether an order confirmation operation to instruct confirmation of the order has been performed (step S18). Here, if an order confirmation operation is not performed (step S18; No), the information providing unit 181 returns the process to step S16.

[0100] Also, if an order confirmation operation is performed (step S18; Yes), the order processing unit 184 generates product purchase information based on the customer information of the logged-in customer, along with the product ID, purchase quantity, etc. of the candidate products, and executes order processing to send the generated product purchase information to the online supermarket management server 14 (step S19).

[0101] Then, the order processing unit 184 stores (records) the purchase history, which associates the time information when the order processing was executed, the customer ID of the logged-in customer, the product ID of each product ordered this time, the purchase quantity, etc., in the purchase history file Dd (step S20), and ends this processing.

[0102] As described above, the online supermarket server 18 of this embodiment can reduce the burden on customers in selecting products and support product ordering. In other words, according to this embodiment, even if the customer does not select each product to be purchased, appropriate candidate products can be extracted and presented based on the customer's preferences and purchase history, or the store's best-selling and promotional products, in accordance with the customer's specified budget and category.

[0103] The above-described embodiment can be modified as needed by partially changing the configuration or functions of each of the above-described devices. Therefore, several modifications of the above-described embodiment will be described below as other embodiments. Differences from the above-described embodiment will be mainly described below. Specifically, the same reference numerals will be used to designate commonalities with the contents already described, and detailed description will be omitted. The modifications described below may be implemented individually or in appropriate combination.

[0104] (Variation 1) In the above embodiment, the online supermarket server 18 has been described as automatically extracting products (candidate products) based on the specified conditions when a budget and category are specified, and presenting them to the customer at the customer terminal 6. However, it is not necessary to apply automatic product extraction to all specified categories, and automatic product extraction may be applied to some categories.

[0105] For example, there are customers who order the same products every time for a particular category. In such cases, from the viewpoint of processing load, it is preferable to present the products that are ordered every time for that particular category without automatically extracting products. This can be realized, for example, by configuring the online supermarket server 18 as follows.

[0106] First, the online supermarket server 18 stores a list of popular products in the storage unit 1805, etc., in which the product IDs of products that a customer purchases each time and the category to which the products with the product IDs belong are associated with the customer ID of the customer. For example, the popular product list may be stored in a form that is incorporated into the customer master Dc.

[0107] The standard product list is prepared for each customer, but the method of generating and managing it is not particularly limited. For example, an operator (such as a check button) that can be set to associate a product with each category displayed on the operation screen described above and designate the product as a standard product may be provided, and products may be added or deleted from the standard product list depending on the operation of the operator. In this case, the information providing unit 181 may generate and manage the standard product list, or another functional unit may generate and manage the standard product list.

[0108] Furthermore, when a customer operating the customer terminal 6 specifies a budget and a category as conditions for automatic product extraction, the order support unit 183 checks whether a product of the specified category is registered in the standard product list corresponding to the customer ID of the customer. If a product of the specified category is registered in the standard product list, the order support unit 183 suppresses automatic extraction of candidate products for the corresponding category, and preferentially extracts products of the corresponding category registered in the standard product list as candidate products.

[0109] The order support unit 183 automatically extracts candidate products for the remaining specified categories based on the remaining amount obtained by subtracting the prices of the products extracted from the standard product list from the budget.

[0110] As a result, the online supermarket server 18 of this modified example can suppress the automatic extraction function of candidate products for categories preset by the customer, and prioritize the presentation of standard products that the customer usually purchases. Therefore, by specifying a budget and category, the customer at the customer terminal 6 can check the automatically extracted products and can also order the products that the customer regularly purchases, thereby improving convenience.

[0111] The programs executed by each device in the above-described embodiments (and variations) are provided in a state where they are pre-installed in a ROM, a storage unit, etc. The programs executed by each device in the above-described embodiments may be provided by being recorded in an installable or executable file format on a computer-readable recording medium such as a CD-ROM, a flexible disk (FD), a CD-R, or a DVD (Digital Versatile Disk).

[0112] Furthermore, the programs executed by each device in the above-described embodiments may be stored on a computer connected to a network such as the Internet and provided by being downloaded via the network. Also, the programs executed by each device in the above-described embodiments may be provided or distributed via a network such as the Internet.

[0113] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, these embodiments are presented as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These novel embodiments and their modifications can be embodied in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, changes, and combinations can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. These embodiments and their modifications are included within the scope and spirit of the invention, and are also included in the inventions and their equivalents as defined in the claims. [Explanation of symbols]

[0114] 1... Entire system, 2... Store system, 3... Headquarters system, 4... Dedicated line, 5...Net supermarket system, 6...Customer terminal, 7...Network, 11...POS terminal, 12...store server, 13...access point, 14...Net supermarket management server, 15...LAN line, 16...Handy terminal, 17...Printer, 18...Net Super Server, 20...Headquarters server, 81, 82...input field, 83...volume slider, 91...Category display column, 92...Product search bar, 93...Product information display field, 94...Automatic selection button, 101...Budget input field, 102...Category selection field, 103...Confirmation button, 111...Candidate product display field, 112...Total price display field, 113... Similar products display column, 114... Order button, 121...Order confirmation field, 1211...Delete button, 1212...Change button, 122...Order confirmation button, 181...information providing unit (an example of a presentation means), 182...user registration unit, 183... order support unit (an example of a receiving means and an extracting means), 184... order processing unit, 1801...CPU, 1802...ROM, 1803...RAM, 1804...communication unit, 1805...storage unit, 1810...control unit. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0115] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2017-059139 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2013-152681

Claims

1. A receiving means for receiving a budget and a product category specification from a user; an extraction means for extracting, from among the products belonging to each of the categories accepted by the accepting means, products whose total price falls within the budget accepted by the accepting means, based on data associating, for each of a plurality of products, a category to which the product belongs, the price of the product, and a value quantitatively indicating the feature of the product; a presentation means for presenting the products extracted by the extraction means as candidate products to be purchased; Equipped with The extraction means extracts, from among the products belonging to each of the categories accepted by the acceptance means, products that meet the conditions of the preference information and whose total price falls within the budget accepted by the acceptance means, based on preference information that indicates the user's preference regarding the products in quantitative values. Information processing device.

2. the extraction means extracts, from among the products belonging to each of the categories accepted by the acceptance means, products that are recorded in the purchase history, which records products purchased in the past by the user, and whose total price falls within the budget accepted by the acceptance means; The information processing device according to claim 1 .

3. The extraction means extracts, in response to an instruction to change the candidate product, a product in the same category as the candidate product but different from the candidate product as a similar product; The presentation means presents the similar product in place of the candidate product for which a change instruction has been given.

3. The information processing device according to claim 1 or 2.

4. the extraction means extracts, as similar products, products in the same category as the candidate products but different from the candidate products; The presentation means presents the similar products in a manner that allows an operation to select the similar products as the candidate products to be accepted.

3. The information processing device according to claim 1 or 2.

5. The computer of the information processing device, A receiving means for receiving a budget and a product category specification from a user; an extraction means for extracting, from among the products belonging to each of the categories accepted by the accepting means, products whose total price falls within the budget accepted by the accepting means, based on data associating, for each of a plurality of products, a category to which the product belongs, the price of the product, and a value quantitatively indicating the feature of the product; a presentation means for presenting the products extracted by the extraction means as candidates for purchase; and make it work, The extraction means extracts, from among the products belonging to each of the categories accepted by the acceptance means, products that meet the conditions of the preference information and whose total price falls within the budget accepted by the acceptance means, based on preference information that indicates the user's preference regarding the products in quantitative values. Program for.

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