Information processing device and program

Abstract

To provide an information processing device and program for providing information on whether a conference can be held, which is acquired as a result of referring to a history of conversations using a messenger application of scheduled participants in the conference.SOLUTION: In an in-company system 1, a schedule management device 10 includes a schedule management part 13 for setting a schedule in accordance with a creation instruction of a conference guide from a user using a PC 3, and a schedule adjustment part 131 which can set a schedule of a conference at a desired holding time by analyzing history information on conversations of scheduled participants acquired from a chat system 2 by a conversation acquisition part 11 in the case where the conference cannot be held at the holding time designated by the creation instruction as long as reference is made to schedule information managed by a schedule management application, and by adjusting the schedule of the scheduled participants in the case where the schedule of the scheduled participants at the desired holding time is determined to be adjustable.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing device and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] Many companies use schedule management apps, such as Outlook (registered trademark), to manage the schedules of their employees, etc. When using a schedule management app to schedule a meeting, the user who is setting up the meeting checks the schedules of the participants already set up in the schedule management app and sets up the meeting for an available date and time, i.e., a date and time that is not set up for any of the participants.

[0003] Conventionally, when the meeting conditions are set by the meeting organizer, a technology has been proposed in which the schedule management agent of each person requesting attendance is queried to obtain free schedules for the set date and time range, and the optimal meeting schedule is determined based on the free schedules of each person requesting attendance (for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 09-91341 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] When a user wants to hold a new conference, as described above, the user who schedules the conference checks the schedules of the people who will be attending the conference, i.e., their free time, and then schedules the conference. If there is a free time that is common to all the people who will be attending, the conference can be held without any problems by setting the conference at that time. In this case, information is provided that the conference can be held.

[0006] However, as long as you refer to the schedules of the participants, it is not always possible to find a free time that is common to all participants within the desired deadline. If you cannot find a free time, you will have to inform the other party that the meeting cannot be held.

[0007] Recently, computer users often exchange information by using messenger applications on computer systems to exchange messages, or in other words, by having conversations. Similarly, meeting participants may also use messenger applications to have conversations, and in these conversations, they may exchange messages about their schedules.

[0008] The present invention aims to provide information regarding whether or not a conference can be held, obtained by referring to the conversation history of participants who plan to attend the conference using a messenger app. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] An information processing device according to the present invention includes a processor, Meeting The system receives an instruction to create a meeting guide, acquires the schedules of the people who will be attending the meeting at the time set for the meeting, and, if the people who will be attending have plans at the time, acquires the schedules of the people who will be attending using a messenger app. Contains Get history information and Record History information The contents of the conversation included in By analyzing Depending on the result of the judgment whether the schedule of the said participants can be adjusted and displaying information about whether the conference can be held at the scheduled time.

[0010] Furthermore, if the conference can be held at the opening time, the processor displays at least the content of the conversation that is the basis for determining that the conference can be held, from the conversation history information.

[0011] Furthermore, if the processor determines that the conference cannot be held at the scheduled time based on the schedules of the participants, and then analyzes the historical information and determines that the schedules of the participants can be adjusted to accommodate the scheduled time, the processor displays a message indicating that the conference can be held at the scheduled time.

[0012] The processor may also adjust the schedules of the prospective participants that are determined to be adjustable, and set the conference to the scheduled time.

[0013] Furthermore, if the processor finds, as a result of analyzing the history information, a schedule of a prospective participant that will not be carried out as set at the opening time, it deletes the schedule.

[0014] Furthermore, if the processor finds a schedule of a prospective participant whose scheduled start time can be changed during the event time as a result of analyzing the history information, the processor changes the scheduled start time of that schedule.

[0015] Furthermore, if the processor finds a schedule of a prospective participant for which the duration of the event can be shortened during the event time as a result of analyzing the history information, the processor shortens the duration of the schedule.

[0016] Furthermore, if the processor finds that the conference cannot be held at the scheduled time even after analyzing the history information, it displays an alternative time at which the conference can be held.

[0017] Furthermore, if the processor determines that the conference cannot be held at the scheduled time based on the schedules of the prospective participants, and that the conference can be held at the scheduled time if the holding conditions specified in the instruction to create the conference guide are changed, it displays a message indicating that the conference can be held.

[0018] Furthermore, when it is determined as a result of analyzing the history information that the duration of the conference can be shortened, the processor shortens the duration of the conference.

[0019] Furthermore, when it is determined that the planned attendees can be changed as a result of analyzing the history information, the processor changes the planned attendees of the conference.

[0020] Furthermore, even if the conference can be held at the specified time based on the schedules of the prospective participants, the processor adjusts the conference time if, as a result of analyzing the history information, it finds the schedules of the prospective participants that are scheduled to hold the conference at the specified time.

[0021] The program according to the present invention is executed by a computer. Meeting A function to receive instructions to create a meeting guide, a function to obtain the schedules of the participants of the meeting at the time set for the meeting, and a function to obtain the schedules of the participants using a messenger app when the participants have plans at the time of the meeting. Contains Ability to obtain historical information, previous Record History information The contents of the conversation included in By analyzing Depending on the result of the judgment whether the schedule of the said participants can be adjusted and a function of displaying information on whether the conference can be held at the scheduled time. [Effects of the Invention]

[0022] According to the invention described in claim 1, it is possible to provide information regarding whether or not a meeting can be held, which is obtained by referring to the conversation history using the messenger app of those who plan to attend the meeting.

[0023] According to the invention as set forth in claim 2, it is possible to present a conversation that is the basis for determining whether a conference can be held.

[0024] According to the invention as set forth in claim 3, it is possible to notify the person who has instructed the creation of the conference guide that the conference can be held at the scheduled time.

[0025] According to the invention as set forth in claim 4, by changing the schedules of the adjustable participants, the conference can be held at the desired time.

[0026] According to the invention as set forth in claim 5, it is possible to schedule a meeting in the free time created by deleting a schedule.

[0027] According to the invention as set forth in claim 6, it is possible to set up a conference in the free time that is created by changing the scheduled time of the conference.

[0028] According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, it is possible to set up a conference in the free time that is created by shortening the duration of the scheduled meeting.

[0029] According to the invention of claim 8, if an alternative meeting time is available, the person who instructed the creation of the meeting guide can be notified that the meeting will be held.

[0030] According to the invention as set forth in claim 9, it is possible to inform the person who has instructed to create the conference guide that the conference can be held without changing the existing schedules of the prospective participants.

[0031] According to the invention as set forth in claim 10, it is possible to hold a conference by shortening the duration of the conference.

[0032] According to the invention of claim 11, it is possible to hold a conference by excluding potential participants who cannot attend the conference.

[0033] According to the invention as set forth in claim 12, cancellation of a meeting due to overlapping schedules can be prevented in advance.

[0034] According to the invention described in claim 13, it is possible to provide information regarding whether or not a meeting can be held, which is obtained by referring to the conversation history using the messenger app of the people who plan to attend the meeting. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0035] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram showing a block configuration of a schedule management system and a schedule management device according to a first embodiment. [Figure 2] 10 is a flowchart showing a conference setting process according to the first embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a schedule setting screen according to the first embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of setting schedules of prospective participants in the first embodiment. [Figure 5] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a part of conversation history information acquired from a chat system in the first embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a schedule after the schedules of the prospective participants shown in FIG. 4 have been adjusted. [Figure 7] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of setting schedules of prospective participants in the second embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a part of conversation history information acquired from a chat system in the second embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a schedule after the schedules of the prospective participants shown in FIG. 7 have been adjusted. [Figure 10] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of setting schedules of prospective participants in the third embodiment. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a part of conversation history information acquired from a chat system in the third embodiment. [Figure 12] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a schedule after the schedules of the prospective participants shown in FIG. 10 have been adjusted. [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of setting schedules of prospective participants in the fourth embodiment. [Figure 14] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a part of conversation history information acquired from a chat system in the fourth embodiment. [Figure 15] FIG. 14 is a diagram showing a schedule after the schedules of the prospective participants shown in FIG. 13 have been adjusted. [Figure 16] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of setting schedules of prospective participants in the fifth embodiment. [Figure 17] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a part of conversation history information acquired from a chat system in the fifth embodiment. [Figure 18] FIG. 17 is a diagram showing a schedule after the schedules of the prospective participants shown in FIG. 16 have been adjusted. [Figure 19] 19 is a flowchart showing a conference setting process according to the sixth embodiment. [Figure 20] FIG. 23 is a diagram showing an example of setting schedules of prospective participants in the sixth embodiment. [Figure 21] FIG. 23 is a diagram showing a part of conversation history information acquired from a chat system in the sixth embodiment. [Figure 22] FIG. 21 is a diagram showing a schedule after schedules have been incorporated into the schedules of the prospective participants shown in FIG. 20 by analyzing the conversation history information. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0036] Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0037] Embodiment 1 Fig. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a schedule management system and a schedule management device according to the present embodiment. Fig. 1 shows a system configuration in which an in-house system 1 and a chat system 2 of a certain company are connected via a network 3 such as the Internet.

[0038] "Chat" is defined as a system for real-time conversation over the Internet, for example, and chat system 2 provides a chat service to users who use computers on which a chat application that enables chat is installed. A general-purpose system can be used as chat system 2 in this embodiment.

[0039] Furthermore, the term "messenger app" is a general term for applications that provide messaging functions, such as exchanging text messages or messages via free IP phone calls. In this embodiment, we will use an example of using a chat app as the messenger app to provide the messaging function to the user, but other messenger apps that provide messaging functions may also be used.

[0040] The in-house system 1 is a LAN (Local Area Network) system built within the facilities of a certain company. The in-house system 1 is configured by a schedule management device 10, a personal computer (hereinafter referred to as "PC") 3, and a gateway (GW) 4, all of which are connected to a LAN 5. Note that FIG. 1 shows only the components necessary for explanation, and the other components are omitted. The schedule management device 10 and PC 3 can communicate with a chat system 2 via the gateway 4.

[0041] PC 3 is an information processing device used by employees (hereinafter referred to as "users") who use the in-house system 1 in a company. PC 3 can be realized with a conventional general-purpose hardware configuration. That is, PC 3 is configured with a CPU, ROM, RAM, storage such as a hard disk drive (HDD), a network interface as a communication means, input means such as a mouse and keyboard, and a user interface including a display means such as a display. A chat application is installed on PC 3, and messages are exchanged via chat system 2 with PCs 3 used by other users and with schedule management device 10. Furthermore, a schedule management application is installed on PC 3, and users adjust their work schedules and manage their personal plans under the management of schedule management device 10.

[0042] For the sake of simplicity, FIG. 1 only shows a PC 3 installed within the company, but a user can exchange messages with other users using chat via the network 3 from a PC outside the company, such as at home, and can also access the schedule management device 10 in the same way as from a PC 3 located within the company.

[0043] The schedule management device 10 is an information processing device that manages a user's schedule. The schedule management device 10 in this embodiment can be realized by a general-purpose hardware configuration that has existed for some time, such as a server computer. That is, the schedule management device 10 is configured to include at least a CPU, ROM, RAM, storage such as a hard disk drive (HDD), and a network interface as a communication means. A chat application is installed in the schedule management device 10. Furthermore, the schedule management performed by the schedule management device 10 may be realized by software developed in-house, or may utilize a schedule management function provided by a product such as Outlook (registered trademark), which adjusts work schedules and manages personal schedules.

[0044] The schedule management device 10 includes a conversation acquisition unit 11, a user interface (UI) unit 12, a schedule management unit 13, a conversation history information storage unit 14, and a schedule information storage unit 15. Note that components not used in the description of this embodiment are omitted from the drawing.

[0045] The conversation acquisition unit 11 acquires conversation history information between users from the chat system 2. More precisely, the conversation acquisition unit 11 acquires messages posted to a web page (hereinafter referred to as a "chat room") provided by the chat system 2 as a place for exchanging messages in a specific group, and the commonly used term "conversation" will be used to refer to the exchange of posted messages. The conversation acquisition unit 11 stores the acquired conversation history information in the conversation history information storage unit 14.

[0046] The user interface unit 12 allows the user to exchange information with the PC 3 via a screen. The user interface unit 12 includes an information acquisition unit 121 and a display control unit 122. A schedule set for each user is stored in the schedule information storage unit 15 and managed by the schedule management unit 13. The information acquisition unit 121 receives a conference guide creation instruction from the person who set up the conference. This creation instruction includes desired conference information for a conference that has not yet been set up, i.e., a conference that the person wants to hold. The desired conference information includes general information items such as the name of the desired conference, the expected participants, the holding time, location, and purpose, which indicate information about the holding time, such as the date and time and duration of the holding. In this embodiment, the information must at least include the expected participants and the holding time. The information acquisition unit 121 acquires information through a schedule setting screen displayed on the PC 3, while the display control unit 122 controls the display of the PC 3, particularly the display of the schedule setting screen.

[0047] The schedule management unit 13 manages the user's schedule. In the present embodiment, functions of the schedule management unit 13 other than those provided by the schedule adjustment unit 131 can be realized by an existing schedule management application. The schedule adjustment unit 131 included in the schedule management unit 13 acquires at least the planned attendees and the holding time specified by the person who set up the conference from the PC 3, acquires the schedules of the planned attendees of the conference, and adjusts the schedules if the planned attendees have plans during the holding time. Then, as a result of adjusting the schedule, the schedule adjustment unit 131 determines again whether the conference can be held at the desired holding time, and provides information by having the display control unit 122 display the determination result on the PC 3 used by the person who set up the conference.

[0048] The term "meeting" as used herein refers to a type of gathering for a specific purpose, and refers to a meeting for which a schedule is to be set. As illustrated in FIG. 3, in this embodiment, the "opening time" is expressed by the opening date and time and the start and end times of the meeting, but it may also be specified by a time period and duration, such as "one hour in the morning." There is no need to limit the format for specifying the opening time. The schedule to be adjusted may be a schedule that has already been set in the schedule management device 10, or it may be the settings in the desired holding information of the meeting for which a schedule is to be set (i.e., the holding conditions for the meeting). In this embodiment, the former case will be described.

[0049] The conversation history information storage unit 14 accumulates the contents of conversations between users using the chat application as conversation history information. The conversation history information includes the date and time of the conversation (i.e., when the message was posted), information that can identify the chat room to which the message was posted, identification information of the user who posted the message, and the contents of the conversation (i.e., the contents of the posted message). Note that in this embodiment, an example will be described in which a message is posted as text, but audio or the like may be used instead of text, and in this case, the contents of the conversation are recorded as data such as audio.

[0050] The schedule of each user is stored in the schedule information storage unit 15. The schedule includes general settings such as the event time and schedule details, as in the past.

[0051] Each of the components 11 to 13 in the schedule management device 10 is realized by the cooperative operation of the computer that constitutes the schedule management device 10 and a program running on a CPU installed in the computer. Also, each of the storage units 14 and 15 is realized by an HDD installed in the schedule management device 10. Alternatively, RAM or external storage means may be used via a network.

[0052] Furthermore, the programs used in the present embodiment can be provided not only by communication means, but also by being stored in a computer-readable recording medium such as a CD-ROM or USB memory. The programs provided from the communication means or recording medium are installed in a computer, and various processes are realized by the computer's CPU sequentially executing the programs.

[0053] Although the schedule management device 10 in this embodiment is described as using an external chat system 2, it may also be configured to have a chat system within the in-house system 1, for example by developing it in-house. This configuration allows customization of the data structure of the conversation history information and makes it easier to obtain the conversation history information. On the other hand, the schedule management device 10 in this embodiment may also be configured to use an external schedule management function such as a cloud.

[0054] Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described.

[0055] In this embodiment, even if the scheduled meeting cannot be set as desired based on the schedules of the prospective participants, if the analysis of chat conversation history information indicates that the scheduled meeting of the prospective participants can be adjusted, the scheduled meeting can be held at the desired time. While factors such as the location of the meeting, availability of the conference room, and travel time of the prospective participants may be considered to determine whether the meeting can actually be held, the following embodiment assumes that all conditions for holding the meeting are met except for the conditions related to the prospective participants and the holding time. Here, project F is an example of a group including multiple users. When a user A belonging to project F wishes to hold a meeting with all or some of the users belonging to project F, the following example will be described, taking as an example a case in which user A belonging to project F instructs the schedule management device 10 to create a meeting guide for the prospective participants. The following describes the meeting setting process when a new meeting schedule is set in the schedule management device 10, using the flowchart shown in FIG. 2.

[0056] When user A wants to set a new meeting schedule, he logs in to PC 3, starts the schedule management application, and performs a predetermined screen display operation. In response to this user operation, the display control unit 122 in the schedule management device 10 causes a predetermined schedule setting screen page to be displayed on user A's PC 3 (step 110).

[0057] 3 is a diagram showing an example of the schedule setting screen 20. The schedule setting screen 20 includes an input area 21 for inputting information required for setting a conference schedule, and a result display area 22 for displaying information on whether the conference can be held at the scheduled time, i.e., the result of processing performed by the schedule management device 10 in accordance with the settings made in the input area 21.

[0058] User A wants to hold a meeting (named "Meeting F" in this embodiment) for Project F to which he / she belongs, so he / she inputs and specifies the necessary items in input area 21 of schedule setting screen 20, specifically the name to be displayed when scheduled (the above-mentioned "Meeting F"), the expected participants, the desired date and time for the meeting, and the desired start and end times, and then selects send button 23 to instruct the creation of a meeting guide. In response to user A's selection of send button 23, the schedule management app installed on PC 3 transmits desired meeting information, including the specified name, expected participants, and desired time information, to schedule management device 10. By specifying the start and end times, user A has also specified the duration of the meeting.

[0059] When the desired holding information is sent from the PC 3 of the user A as an instruction to create a meeting guide, the information acquisition unit 121 in the schedule management device 10 receives the desired holding information (step 120).

[0060] Next, the schedule management unit 13 refers to the schedule information storage unit 15 to acquire the scheduled holding time set for conference F, i.e., the schedules of the planners of conference F included in the desired holding information (step 130). The schedule management unit 13 refers to the schedules of the acquired planners, i.e., users A to E according to the setting example shown in FIG. 3, to confirm whether the planner can schedule the conference at the specified holding time. Note that "being able to schedule the conference" means that the schedule of the conference is set and registered in the schedule information storage unit 15, and is synonymous with being able to hold the conference. In addition, the schedules to be acquired are basically all planners included in the desired holding information. However, for example, if the planners can be classified into levels, such as users who are required to participate and users who are not, based on the number of participants in the conference and the agenda (i.e., the content of the conference, for example, report only, decisions to be made, etc.), and if the level of each planner can be determined, the schedules of planners of a specific level (in this example, users who are required to participate) may be selectively acquired.

[0061] If none of the prospective participants have scheduled appointments at the scheduled time, the conference can be held as planned, i.e., as desired (Y in step 140), and the schedule management unit 13 then sets and registers the conference schedule in the schedule information storage unit 15 in the same manner as before, thereby reflecting conference F in the schedules of the prospective participants (step 190).The schedule management unit 13 then notifies the person who inputs the schedule and the prospective participants that the schedule for conference F has been set, thereby announcing the holding of conference F (step 200).

[0062] On the other hand, if any of the prospective participants has plans at the time the meeting is to be held, it is not possible to set the schedule for holding meeting F at the specified time. In other words, if things remain as they are, meeting F cannot be held at the time the meeting is to be held. In this way, if it is determined that meeting F cannot be held at the time the meeting is to be held based on the schedule information (N in step 140), schedule management device 10 executes the characteristic processing of this embodiment, which will be described below.

[0063] That is, the conversation acquisition unit 11 acquires conversation history information of the prospective participants from the chat system 2 (step 150) and stores it in the conversation history information storage unit 14. The time range to be acquired does not need to be particularly limited, but it is acquired as far back as possible from the most recent conversation. The acquisition target is at least the conversation between the prospective participants, in this example, the history of conversations between the project members who used the chat room of project F. Of course, this does not need to be limited to this, and for example, the history of conversations that the prospective participants have with individual users other than the project members may also be acquired. Here, for convenience of explanation, it will be explained that the history of conversations between the project members who used the chat room of project F is acquired.

[0064] Next, the schedule adjustment unit 131 analyzes the schedule information set in the schedule information storage unit 15 of the prospective participants and the conversation history information stored in the conversation history information storage unit 14 (step 160) to determine whether the conference can be held at the scheduled time.

[0065] 4 is a diagram showing an example of schedule information settings for participants for a time period including the event time. As shown in the example of FIG. 4, it can be seen that users B and D have plans for the desired event time (10:00-11:00) on the desired event date (December 8, 2021).

[0066] FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a portion of conversation history information acquired from the chat system 2. The schedule adjustment unit 131 interprets the content of the conversation by performing natural language processing. By analyzing the conversation history information illustrated in FIG. 5, it is determined that User B's scheduled meeting 1 starting at 10:00 has been canceled. It is also determined that User D's planned outing starting at 9:00 has been postponed. That is, the schedule adjustment unit 131 determines that although both User B and User D's schedules during the meeting time have been changed, these changes have not been reflected in the schedule information managed by the schedule management unit 13 using the schedule information storage unit 15. In this way, the schedule adjustment unit 131 determines that it is possible to schedule Meeting F at the desired meeting time by deleting the schedules of Users B and D that remain set even though they will not be held as scheduled at the meeting time.

[0067] As described above, in response to an instruction from user A to create a conference guide, schedule management device 10 determines whether conference F can be held at the desired holding time. In this example, it can be determined that the schedules of users B and D set in schedule information storage unit 15 can be adjusted, and therefore it is determined that conference F can be held at the holding time by adjusting the schedules. In this case (Y in step 170), display control unit 122 notifies user A of the determination result, i.e., information 24 indicating that the conference can be held, in result display area 22 of schedule setting screen 20 as information regarding whether the conference can be held at the holding time (step 180). Note that adjusting the schedule in this embodiment refers to deleting the schedule.

[0068] On the other hand, if the conference cannot be held at the scheduled time even after adjusting the schedules of the prospective participants (N in step 170), the display control unit 122 notifies user A by displaying information to that effect in the result display area 22 of the schedule setting screen 20 as information regarding whether the conference can be held at the scheduled time (step 210). Information 25 regarding an alternative conference time will be described later.

[0069] When user A wants to confirm the schedule of conference F because the schedule management device 10 determines that the conference can be held at the desired time, user A selects radio button 26 displayed in correspondence with information 24 indicating that the conference can be held, and then selects decision button 27.

[0070] In this embodiment, it is not determined that all of the scheduled participants had free time at the scheduled time based on the schedule information alone, but rather that free time can be provided by analyzing the conversation history information. User A visually recognizes the phrase "According to the chat" or the hyperlink "chat URL" included in the information 24 indicating that the conference can be held, and learns that while the schedule information indicated that the conference could not be held at the scheduled time, by referencing the conversation history information, the schedule has been adjusted so that the conference can be held at the scheduled time. At this time, User A may want to know the reason for the schedule adjustment. Therefore, in this embodiment, a conversation history can be presented to User A, including at least the content of the conversation that served as the basis for the schedule adjustment.

[0071] That is, when user A selects the hyperlink "chat URL" 28 included in the information 24, the schedule management unit 13 extracts the conversation history that serves as the basis for schedule adjustment from the conversation history information storage unit 14. Then, the display control unit 122 displays the conversation history on the screen. Specifically, the conversation history information exemplified in FIG. 5 is presented to user A. The display format for presenting the conversation history information may be a table format as exemplified in FIG. 5, or may be displayed in the form of a chat room.

[0072] In this embodiment, the hyperlink 28 is displayed on the screen to display the conversation history information that serves as the basis for adjusting the schedule in response to a selection operation by user A, but this is not limited to this. For example, if an analysis of the conversation history information indicates that a conference can be held at the scheduled time, the conversation history information may be automatically displayed. For example, the display control unit 122 may display both the schedule setting screen 20 and the conversation history information display screen side by side on the screen.

[0073] In response to user A's selection of the confirm button 27, the schedule management unit 13 reflects conference F in the schedules of the prospective participants at the time specified by the information corresponding to the selected radio button 26 (step 190). That is, the schedule management unit 13 sets and registers the conference F schedule in the schedule information storage unit 15. Then, the schedule management unit 13 notifies the prospective participants that the conference schedule has been set (step 200). This notification may be made, for example, by a chatbot posting a message in the chat room for project F. Alternatively, the prospective participants may be notified individually by email.

[0074] Figure 6 is a diagram showing the schedules of the prospective participants after the schedules have been adjusted by the above process compared to the schedules of the prospective participants shown in Figure 4. As can be seen from Figure 6, the schedules of users B and D at the opening time have been deleted by the above process from the schedules of prospective participants users A to E, and the schedule of conference F has been incorporated into the opening time.

[0075] As described above, in this embodiment, if it is determined that the schedules of the participants can be adjusted at the meeting time as a result of analyzing the conversation history information, specifically, if it is determined that the schedules of users B and D can be deleted, it is determined that the meeting can be held at the meeting time, and information 24 indicating that the meeting can be held is displayed. Furthermore, by setting a hyperlink 28, it is possible to present the conversation history information that is the basis for determining that the schedules can be adjusted. However, it may be necessary to confirm with users B and D whether it is actually okay to delete the schedules that have been selected for deletion.

[0076] Therefore, the schedule management unit 13 analyzes the schedule information and the conference history information to also consider whether the conference can be scheduled at a time other than the scheduled time. If an alternative conference time is found as a result, the schedule management unit 13 displays information 25 about the alternative conference time together with information 24 indicating that the conference can be held. In the above description, conversation history information is acquired when conference F cannot be held as desired (N, 150 in step 140). However, conversation history information may be acquired regardless of whether the conference can be held as desired, in order to provide information 25 about an alternative conference time or for other purposes (e.g., embodiment 6). In this way, information 25 about the alternative conference time may be provided as additional information.

[0077] If user A is okay with the alternative holding time presented in each piece of information 25, he or she selects the corresponding radio button 29 to hold the conference at the alternative holding time. In the above explanation, if conference F cannot be held at the desired holding time (N in step 170), user A is notified that the setting is not possible (step 210). However, even in this case, the schedule management unit 13 may cause the display control unit 122 to display information 25 regarding the alternative holding time shown in FIG. 3 in the result display area 22 as information indicating that the setting is not possible. In this way, when conference F cannot be held at the desired holding time, user A does not need to refer to the schedules of the prospective participants and search for an alternative holding time himself or herself.

[0078] In this embodiment, if it is determined that conference F can be held at the scheduled time, user A is notified and the decision on whether to schedule conference F is left to user A, but the schedule for conference F may also be automatically set and registered in the schedule information storage unit 15.

[0079] Embodiment 2 In the above-mentioned embodiment 1, even if conference F cannot be held at the desired time as far as the schedules of the prospective participants are concerned, if, as a result of analyzing the conversation history information, it is determined that the schedules of the prospective participants can be adjusted at the desired time, specifically, if there are schedules set in the schedules of users B and D that will not be implemented, the schedules are set so that conference F can be held at the desired time by deleting those schedules.

[0080] In this embodiment, even if conference F cannot be held at the scheduled time based on the schedules of the prospective participants, if the analysis of the conversation history information determines that the schedules of the prospective participants can be adjusted at the scheduled time, and if a schedule of a prospective participant that can be changed is found, the scheduled time of the schedule is changed so that the conference can be held at the scheduled time.

[0081] The system configuration (FIG. 1) and conference setting process (FIG. 2) in this embodiment may be the same as those in the first embodiment.

[0082] The process of setting up a conference in this embodiment will be described below.

[0083] First, the process from user A selecting send button 23 on schedule setting screen 20 to instructing a conference invitation (steps 110 to 130) and the process when the schedule information indicates that the conference can be held at the desired time (Y in step 140) are the same as those in embodiment 1, and therefore descriptions thereof will be omitted. Also, when the schedule information indicates that the conference cannot be held at the desired time, the process from schedule adjustment unit 131 analyzing the schedules and conversation history information of the prospective participants to determining whether the conference can be held at the desired time is also the same as that in embodiment 1, and therefore descriptions thereof will be omitted (N, 150, 160 in steps 140).

[0084] Fig. 7 is a diagram showing an example of setting schedule information of prospective participants for a time period including the time of the event, acquired in this embodiment, and corresponds to Fig. 4 in Embodiment 1. Fig. 8 is a diagram showing part of conversation history information acquired from chat system 2 in this embodiment, and corresponds to Fig. 5 in Embodiment 1.

[0085] 8, it is determined that the meeting 1 scheduled for users B and D from 10:00 is not urgent and can be rescheduled to another day. In other words, the schedule adjustment unit 131 determines that it is possible to schedule meeting F at a desired time by changing the scheduled time of meeting 1.

[0086] In this way, the processing after it is determined that conference F can be held at the scheduled time by adjusting the existing schedule (Y in step 170, 180 to 200) is the same as in the first embodiment, and therefore a description thereof will be omitted.

[0087] Figure 9 is a diagram showing the schedules of the prospective participants after the schedules shown in Figure 7 have been adjusted by the above process. As shown in Figure 9, the schedules of prospective participants, users A to E, have been adjusted by the above process to include the schedules of users B and D at the scheduled time of meeting 1, that is, the scheduled time of meeting 1, on a different day or at a different time, and the schedule of meeting F has been incorporated into the scheduled time of meeting F as desired. Note that the rescheduling of meeting 1 is performed separately by the prospective participants of meeting 1 and will not be discussed here.

[0088] Embodiment 3 In each of the above embodiments, even if conference F cannot be held at the desired time as far as the schedules of the prospective participants are concerned, if analysis of the conversation history information determines that the schedules of the prospective participants can be adjusted at the desired time, the schedule is set so that conference F can be held at the desired time by, for example, deleting schedules that will not be held from the schedule information or moving schedules whose scheduled times can be changed.

[0089] In this embodiment, even if conference F cannot be held at the scheduled time based on the schedules of the prospective participants, if the analysis of the conversation history information determines that the schedules of the prospective participants can be adjusted at the scheduled time, and a schedule of a prospective participant whose meeting duration can be shortened is found, the meeting duration of that schedule is shortened, and the schedule is set so that conference F can be held at the scheduled time.

[0090] The system configuration (FIG. 1) and conference setting process (FIG. 2) in this embodiment may be the same as those in the first embodiment.

[0091] The process of setting up a conference in this embodiment will be described below.

[0092] First, the process from user A selecting send button 23 on schedule setting screen 20 to instructing a conference invitation (steps 110 to 130) and the process when the schedule information indicates that the conference can be held at the desired time (Y in step 140) are the same as those in embodiment 1, and therefore descriptions thereof will be omitted. Also, when the schedule information indicates that the conference cannot be held at the desired time, the process from schedule adjustment unit 131 analyzing the schedules and conversation history information of the prospective participants to determining whether the conference can be held at the desired time is also the same as that in embodiment 1, and therefore descriptions thereof will be omitted (N, 150, 160 in steps 140).

[0093] Fig. 10 is a diagram showing an example of setting schedule information of prospective participants for a time period including the event time, acquired in this embodiment, and corresponds to Fig. 4 in Embodiment 1. Fig. 11 is a diagram showing part of conversation history information acquired from chat system 2 in this embodiment, and corresponds to Fig. 5 in Embodiment 1.

[0094] 11, it is found that the function X conference scheduled for users C and E for two hours from 10:00 can be shortened to one hour. Specifically, the schedule adjustment unit 131 determines that it is possible to set conference F at the desired time by changing the scheduled time of the function X conference from the two-hour slot from 10:00 to the one-hour slot from 11:00.

[0095] In this way, if the schedule adjustment unit 131 finds a schedule of a prospective participant whose holding time can be shortened at the opening time, it shortens the holding time of that schedule. Note that the processing after determining that conference F can be held at the opening time by adjusting the existing schedule (Y in step 170, 180 to 200) is the same as in the first embodiment, and therefore a description thereof will be omitted.

[0096] Figure 12 is a diagram showing the schedules of the prospective participants after the schedules have been adjusted by the above process for the schedules of the prospective participants shown in Figure 10. As shown in Figure 12, the schedule of users C and E at the opening time, which is the subject of adjustment by the above process, i.e., the length of the function X conference, has been changed from 2 hours to 1 hour in the schedules of users A to E, who are prospective participants, and the schedule of conference F has been incorporated into the opening time.

[0097] Embodiment 4 In the above-described first to third embodiments, if conference F cannot be held at the desired time based on the schedules of the prospective participants, the schedules of the prospective participants that have already been set are adjusted so that the conference can be held at the desired time. In this embodiment, if it is determined that the conference can be held at the desired time by changing the holding conditions specified in the instruction to create a conference guide for the conference to be set, rather than the set schedule, the conference holding conditions are changed to set the conference schedule. The "holding conditions" correspond to the desired holding information required to set the conference schedule from the schedule setting screen 20 when giving an instruction to create a conference guide for the conference, and specifically, are information input and specified from the input field 21 shown in FIG. 3.

[0098] The system configuration (FIG. 1) and conference setting process (FIG. 2) in this embodiment may be the same as those in the first embodiment.

[0099] The process of setting up a conference in this embodiment will be described below.

[0100] First, the process from user A selecting send button 23 on schedule setting screen 20 to instructing a conference invitation (steps 110 to 130) and the process when the schedule information indicates that the conference can be held at the desired time (Y in step 140) are the same as those in embodiment 1, and therefore descriptions thereof will be omitted. Also, when the schedule information indicates that the conference cannot be held at the desired time, the process from schedule adjustment unit 131 analyzing the schedules and conversation history information of the prospective participants to determining whether the conference can be held at the desired time is also the same as that in embodiment 1, and therefore descriptions thereof will be omitted (N, 150, 160 in steps 140).

[0101] Fig. 13 is a diagram showing an example of setting schedule information of prospective participants for a time period including the time of the event, acquired in this embodiment, and corresponds to Fig. 4 in Embodiment 1. Fig. 14 is a diagram showing part of conversation history information acquired from chat system 2 in this embodiment, and corresponds to Fig. 5 in Embodiment 1.

[0102] By analyzing the conversation history information shown in Figure 14, it is found that the function Y conference scheduled for users B and D from 10:00 for one hour can be held for 30 minutes. It is also found that the duration of conference F can be shortened to 30 minutes.

[0103] When it is determined that conference F can be held by changing the holding conditions of conference F, i.e., by shortening the holding time (Y in step 170), the schedule management device 10 notifies user A by causing the display control unit 122 to display information 24 indicating that the conference can be held in the result display area 22 as information regarding whether the conference can be held at the holding time (step 180). Note that user A may also be notified by, for example, stating that the holding time has been shortened in the information 24 indicating that the conference can be held.

[0104] If conference F can be held for the shortened duration, user A selects radio button 26 displayed corresponding to information 24 as described above, and then selects decision button 27. In response to user A's selection of decision button 27, schedule management unit 13 reflects conference F in the schedules of the prospective participants for the duration specified by information 24 corresponding to the selected radio button 26 (step 190). Then, schedule management unit 13 notifies the prospective participants that the schedule for conference F has been set (step 200).

[0105] If user A thinks that 30 minutes is too short, he or she may select the radio button 29 displayed in association with the information 25 about the alternative holding time.

[0106] Fig. 15 is a diagram showing the schedules of the prospective participants after the schedules have been adjusted by the above process for the schedules of the prospective participants shown in Fig. 13. As shown in Fig. 15, the schedules of prospective participants, users A to E, are adjusted by the above process for the schedules of users B and D at the time of the meeting, that is, by changing the duration of the function Y meeting from 1 hour to 30 minutes and shortening the duration of meeting F to 30 minutes, and it can be seen that the schedule of meeting F has been incorporated into the 30-minute slot between 10:30 and 11:00. Note that the order in which function Y meeting and meeting F are held may be reversed.

[0107] Embodiment 5. In the above-mentioned fourth embodiment, even if conference F cannot be held at the desired time as far as the schedules of the prospective participants are concerned, if analysis of the conversation history information reveals that the conference duration can be shortened as a condition for holding conference F, conference F is scheduled within the desired time by shortening the conference duration.

[0108] In this embodiment, if, as a result of analyzing the conversation history information, it is determined that the planned participants can be changed as a condition for holding Conference F, the schedule is set so that the conference can be held at the scheduled time by changing the planned participants.

[0109] The system configuration (FIG. 1) and conference setting process (FIG. 2) in this embodiment may be the same as those in the first embodiment.

[0110] The process of setting up a conference in this embodiment will be described below.

[0111] First, the process from user A selecting send button 23 on schedule setting screen 20 to instructing a conference invitation (steps 110 to 130) and the process when the schedule information indicates that the conference can be held at the desired time (Y in step 140) are the same as those in embodiment 1, and therefore descriptions thereof will be omitted. Also, when the schedule information indicates that the conference cannot be held at the desired time, the process from schedule adjustment unit 131 analyzing the schedules and conversation history information of the prospective participants to determining whether the conference can be held at the desired time is also the same as that in embodiment 1, and therefore descriptions thereof will be omitted (N, 150, 160 in steps 140).

[0112] Fig. 16 is a diagram showing an example of setting schedule information of prospective participants for a time period including the event time, acquired in this embodiment, and corresponds to Fig. 4 in Embodiment 1. Fig. 17 is a diagram showing part of conversation history information acquired from chat system 2 in this embodiment, and corresponds to Fig. 5 in Embodiment 1.

[0113] 17, it is found that user B, whose schedule "function Y meeting" is set at the scheduled opening time, does not need to attend the scheduled meeting F. In other words, the schedule adjustment unit 131 determines that it is possible to schedule meeting F at the desired opening time by changing the participants of meeting F.

[0114] In this way, by changing the holding conditions of the meeting F to be set, specifically by changing the planned participants in meeting F, the processing after determining that meeting F can be held at the opening time (Y in step 170, 180 to 200) is the same as in embodiment 1, and therefore will not be explained again.

[0115] In this embodiment, the example of changing the participants scheduled to attend conference F is described as deleting a participant scheduled to attend conference F, i.e., removing user B from the list of participants scheduled to attend. However, the present invention is not limited to deletion, and may also be addressed by, for example, replacing the participants scheduled to attend.

[0116] Furthermore, as the holding conditions for conference F, the length of the conference in the fourth embodiment and the expected participants in the fifth embodiment have been described as being changeable, but the conference duration itself may also be changed.

[0117] In each of the above embodiments, the event is deleted, moved, or the duration is shortened depending on the schedule status of the prospective participants, which is determined by analyzing the conversation history information, but each embodiment may also be applied in combination. In this case, since it is possible that multiple adjustment methods can be applied, the schedule adjustment methods may be prioritized and applied.

[0118] Embodiment 6 In each of the above embodiments, even if conference F cannot be held at the desired time as far as the schedules of the prospective participants are concerned, if an analysis of the conversation history information determines that the set schedule or the conditions for holding conference F can be changed, the schedule is set so that conference F can be held by making those changes.

[0119] Conversely, in this embodiment, even if conference F can be held at the desired time based on the schedules of the prospective participants, if an analysis of the conversation history information reveals that the schedules of the prospective participants are scheduled to meet at the desired time, the time of conference F is adjusted.

[0120] The system configuration (FIG. 1) in this embodiment may be the same as in embodiment 1. The process of setting up a conference in this embodiment will be described below with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. 19. Note that the same process steps as in embodiment 1 are assigned the same step numbers, and descriptions thereof will be omitted where appropriate.

[0121] First, the process (steps 110 to 130) from when user A selects send button 23 on schedule setting screen 20 to issue a conference invitation instruction may be the same as in embodiment 1, and therefore a description thereof will be omitted. Also, in each of the above embodiments, conversation history information is acquired if conference F cannot be held at the scheduled time, but in this embodiment, conversation history information is acquired before determining whether or not the conference can be held (step 150). Also, when schedule information is referenced and conference F cannot be held at the desired time (N in step 140), subsequent processes may be the same as in each of the above embodiments, and therefore a description thereof will be omitted.

[0122] Here, if it is possible to hold conference F at the desired time based on the schedule information (Y in step 140), the schedule adjustment unit 131 analyzes the conversation history information (step 220) to check whether there is a possibility that the participants will have schedules available at the time the conference is to be held.

[0123] Fig. 20 is a diagram showing an example of setting schedule information of prospective participants for a time period including the time of the event, acquired in this embodiment, and corresponds to Fig. 4 in Embodiment 1. Fig. 21 is a diagram showing part of conversation history information acquired from chat system 2 in this embodiment, and corresponds to Fig. 5 in Embodiment 1.

[0124] By analyzing the conversation history information shown in Fig. 21, it becomes clear that although this has not yet been set in the schedule information, User B and User E are planning to schedule a one-hour meeting starting at 10:00. Although this meeting has not actually been scheduled yet, Fig. 22 shows the schedule information assuming that it will be scheduled.

[0125] In this way, if the analysis of the conversation history information indicates that there are any prospective participants who may have other plans during the meeting time (Y in step 230), the schedule adjustment unit 131 determines that it is not possible to schedule the meeting F at the desired meeting time, and proceeds to step 160. On the other hand, if the analysis of the conversation history information indicates that there are no prospective participants who may have other plans during the meeting time (N in step 230), the schedule adjustment unit 131 proceeds to step 190.

[0126] According to this embodiment, even if a schedule has not yet been set in the schedule information, if there is a possibility that a schedule will be set by referring to the conversation history information, the schedule for Conference F is not set for that time, thereby preventing cancellation of the conference due to schedule overlaps.

[0127] In the above embodiments, the term "processor" refers to a processor in a broad sense, and includes general-purpose processors (e.g., CPU: Central Processing Unit, etc.) and dedicated processors (e.g., GPU: Graphics Processing Unit, ASIC: Application Specific Integrated Circuit, FPGA: Field Programmable Gate Array, programmable logic device, etc.).

[0128] Furthermore, the operations of the processors in the above embodiments may not only be performed by a single processor, but may also be performed by multiple processors located at physically separate locations working together. Furthermore, the order of the operations of the processors is not limited to the order described in the above embodiments, and may be changed as appropriate. [Explanation of symbols]

[0129] 1 in-house system, 2 chat system, 3 network, 4 gateway (GW), 10 schedule management device, 11 conversation acquisition unit, 12 user interface (UI) unit, 13 schedule management unit, 14 conversation history information storage unit, 15 schedule information storage unit, 121 information acquisition unit, 122 display control unit, 131 schedule adjustment unit.

Claims

1. a processor; The processor: Accept instructions to create meeting information, Obtaining the schedules of the people who will be attending the conference at the scheduled time of the conference; If the prospective attendees have plans during the event, history information including the contents of conversations using a messenger app by the prospective attendees is acquired; By analyzing the contents of the conversations included in the history information, it is determined whether or not the schedules of the prospective participants can be adjusted, and as a result of this determination, information regarding whether or not the conference can be held at the scheduled time is displayed.

1. An information processing device comprising:

2. 2. The information processing device according to claim 1, wherein, if the conference can be held at the holding time, the processor displays at least the content of the conversation that is the basis for determining that the conference can be held, from the conversation history information.

3. The information processing device according to claim 1, characterized in that if the conference cannot be held at the scheduled time based on the schedules of the participants, and if, as a result of analyzing the history information, the processor determines that the schedules of the participants can be adjusted at the scheduled time, it displays a message that the conference can be held at the scheduled time.

4. 4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the processor adjusts the schedules of the prospective participants who have been determined to be able to adjust, and sets the conference to the opening time.

5. 5. The information processing device according to claim 4, wherein, when the processor finds, as a result of analyzing the history information, a schedule of the person who will be attending that will not be carried out as set at the event time, the processor deletes the schedule.

6. 5. The information processing device according to claim 4, wherein, when the processor finds a schedule of a prospective participant for which the scheduled start time can be changed during the event time as a result of analyzing the history information, the processor changes the scheduled start time of the schedule.

7. The information processing device according to claim 4, wherein, when the processor finds a schedule of the prospective participants whose event duration can be shortened during the event time as a result of analyzing the history information, the processor shortens the event duration of the schedule.

8. 4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein, when the conference cannot be held at the designated time even after analyzing the history information, the processor displays an alternative time at which the conference can be held.

9. The information processing device described in claim 1, characterized in that if the processor determines that the conference cannot be held at the specified time based on the schedules of the prospective participants, and that the conference can be held at the specified time if the holding conditions specified in the conference guide creation instruction are changed, it displays that the conference can be held.

10. 10. The information processing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the processor, when it is determined as a result of analyzing the history information that the duration of the conference can be shortened, shortens the duration of the conference.

11. 10. The information processing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the processor changes the scheduled participants of the conference when it is determined that the scheduled participants can be changed as a result of analyzing the history information.

12. The information processing device described in claim 1, characterized in that the processor adjusts the time of the conference if, as a result of analyzing the history information, it finds a schedule of one of the planned participants that is scheduled to hold the conference at the planned time, even if the conference can be held at the planned time as far as the schedule of the planned participants is concerned.

13. On the computer, A function to accept instructions to create meeting information, A function of acquiring the schedules of the people who will be attending the conference at the scheduled time of the conference; A function to acquire history information including the content of conversations using a messenger app of the scheduled participants when the scheduled participants have plans during the event; a function of displaying information on whether the conference can be held at the scheduled time based on a determination result of whether the schedules of the participants can be adjusted by analyzing the content of the conversations included in the history information; A program to achieve this.

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