Information processing device, information processing system, control method, and control program

Abstract

An information processing device (100) collects inquiry information on the basis of user input information entered by a user who is receiving maintenance service for a device (400). An information collection unit (160) collects inquiry content information included in the user input information, as inquiry information. An information analysis unit (150) analyzes the inquiry content information included in the user input information. On the basis of the analysis result of the inquiry content information, the information collection unit (160) collects inquiry content additional information, which is information corresponding to the inquiry content indicated by the inquiry content information, as inquiry information.

Description

Information processing device, information processing system, control method, and control program

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an information processing device, an information processing system, a control method, and a control program.

[0002] A user receiving maintenance service for a device makes inquiries to the maintenance company providing the maintenance service using communication means such as telephone, email, chat, or SNS (Social Networking Service) that are available on the terminal operated by the user. In order for the user to receive appropriate maintenance service, appropriate information sharing is required between the user making the inquiry and the maintenance company to which the inquiry is made.

[0003] As an example of an information processing device that supports information sharing at the time of an inquiry, Patent Document 1 discloses an inquiry support device that transmits inquiry data to an inquiry destination based on input information entered by a user. The inquiry support device in Patent Document 1 determines an inquiry destination based on the inquiry content included in the input information received from the user, and creates inquiry data including the inquiry content so as to conform to a format corresponding to the inquiry destination and transmits the inquiry data to the inquiry destination.

[0004] JP 2013-161312 A

[0005] The inquiry support device disclosed in Patent Document 1 simply creates and transmits inquiry data by converting the inquiry content entered by the user into the format of the inquiry recipient, but does not attach or transmit other materials required for each inquiry content. As a result, the inquiry recipient must obtain the necessary materials for each inquiry content, which leads to a problem of insufficient information sharing between the user and the inquiry recipient.

[0006] The present disclosure has been made in consideration of the above-described circumstances, and aims to facilitate appropriate information sharing between an inquiry source and an inquiry destination.

[0007] To achieve the above object, an information processing device according to the present disclosure collects inquiry information, which is information related to an inquiry, based on user input information, which is information entered by a user receiving maintenance service for the device. The information processing device according to the present disclosure includes an information collection unit that collects inquiry content information, which is information indicating the inquiry content included in the user input information, as inquiry information, and an information analysis unit that analyzes the inquiry content information, which is information indicating the inquiry content included in the user input information, and the information collection unit collects inquiry content additional information, which is information corresponding to the inquiry content indicated by the inquiry content information, as inquiry information, based on a result of analyzing the inquiry content information.

[0008] According to the present disclosure, an information processing device collects not only inquiry content information as inquiry information but also additional inquiry content information corresponding to the inquiry content indicated by the inquiry content information. Therefore, the information processing device according to the present disclosure facilitates appropriate information sharing between the user who made the inquiry and the provider who received the inquiry, compared to an information processing device that does not collect the additional inquiry content information. As a result, the information processing device according to the present disclosure can improve the work efficiency of the maintenance service provided by the provider who received the inquiry in response to an inquiry from the user who made the inquiry, and can shorten the time from the inquiry to the completion of the service.

[0009] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the overall configuration of an information processing system according to an embodiment; FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the functional configuration of an information processing system according to an embodiment; FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating the hardware configuration of an information processing device, a user terminal, an external terminal, and an apparatus according to an embodiment; FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a first display example of an inquiry form screen according to an embodiment; FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a second display example of an inquiry form screen according to an embodiment; FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a third display example of an inquiry form screen according to an embodiment;

[0010] Hereinafter, an information processing device, an information processing system, a control method, and a control program according to embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that the same or corresponding parts in the drawings are denoted by the same reference numerals.

[0011] (Regarding Information Processing System 1 According to an Embodiment) The information processing system 1 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is a system for processing information shared between a user of a device receiving maintenance service and requesting maintenance, and a provider of the maintenance service, such as a maintenance company to which the inquiry is directed. As shown in FIG. 1 , the information processing system 1 includes an information processing device 100 that collects inquiry information related to inquiries from users, a user terminal 200 used by the user, an external terminal 300 used by those involved in the maintenance service, such as a maintenance company, manufacturer, or administrator of the device 100, and a device 400 to be maintained. The information processing device 100, the user terminal 200, the external terminal 300, and the device 400 are capable of sending and receiving information via the Internet 500, which is an example of a communications network.

[0012] In the information processing system 1, when a user makes an inquiry about the device 400, the user inputs information entered using the user terminal 200 and transmits it to the information processing device 100. When an inquiry is received from the user, the information processing device 100 collects the inquiry information based on the received user input information and transmits the collected inquiry information to an external terminal 300 used by a maintenance service provider. Thus, the provider can provide maintenance service for the device 400 to be maintained based on the inquiry information received by the external terminal 300.

[0013] (Regarding the Information Processing Device 100 According to the Embodiment) The information processing device 100 is, for example, a server computer device operating on a cloud, a so-called cloud server. The information processing device 100 is provided in a network environment of the Internet 500 and is capable of transmitting and receiving information related to inquiries from a user terminal 200, for example, via a WEB-API (Web Application Programming Interface). As shown in FIG. 2 , the information processing device 100 includes an information generation unit 110 that generates information, an information transmission unit 120 that transmits information, an information reception unit 130 that receives information, and an information storage unit 140 that stores information. The information processing device 100 also includes an information analysis unit 150 that analyzes information, an information collection unit 160 that collects information, and an access authority determination unit 170 that determines whether or not there is authority to access the information.

[0014] (Regarding the User Terminal 200 According to the Embodiment) The user terminal 200 is a computer device used by a user, such as a smartphone, a tablet PC (Personal Computer), a notebook PC, or a desktop PC. The user terminal 200 displays an inquiry form screen 600 (described later) based on information received from the information processing device 100, and transmits user input information, which is information input by the user into the inquiry form screen 600, to the information processing device 100.

[0015] (Regarding the external terminal 300 according to the embodiment) The external terminal 300 is, for example, a computer device such as a smartphone, tablet PC, notebook PC, or desktop PC used by the related party. The external terminal 300 includes a provider terminal 301, which is a terminal used by a provider of the maintenance manufacturer maintenance service. The provider terminal 301 receives inquiry information from the information processing device 100. In addition, the external terminal 300 transmits related party input information, which is information input by the related party, to the information processing device 100.

[0016] (Regarding the Device 400 According to the Embodiment) The device 400 is, for example, a so-called FA (Factory Automation) device such as an injection molding machine, i.e., a control device having the functions of a computer device for automating production processes in a factory. The device 400 transmits information that needs to be confirmed when making an inquiry to the information processing device 100 and the user terminal 200. For example, the device 400 transmits to the information processing device 100 and the user terminal 200 information such as device ID information indicating the identification number of the device 400 and alarm number information indicating an alarm number that is an identification number of an alarm output when an abnormality occurs in the device 400. Furthermore, for example, the device 400 transmits to the information processing device 100 and the user terminal 200 error occurrence screen information, which is a captured image of an error occurrence screen (described later) that is displayed when an abnormality occurs in the device 400. The information processing device 100 stores information received from the device 400 in the information storage unit 140, and the user terminal 200 also stores information received from the device 400 in the same manner as the information processing device 100.

[0017] (Hardware Configuration of Information Processing Device 100 According to Embodiment 1) As shown in Fig. 3 , the information processing device 100 includes, for example, a control unit 51 that executes processing in accordance with a control program 59. The control unit 51 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit). In accordance with the control program 59, the control unit 51 functions as an information generation unit 110, an information analysis unit 150, an information collection unit 160, and an access authority determination unit 170 shown in Fig. 2 .

[0018] 3, the information processing apparatus 100 includes a main memory unit 52 into which a control program 59 is loaded and which is used as a work area for the control unit 51. The main memory unit 52 includes a RAM (Random Access Memory).

[0019] The information processing device 100 also includes an external storage unit 53 that stores a control program 59 in advance. The external storage unit 53 supplies data to be stored by this program to the control unit 51 in accordance with instructions from the control unit 51, and stores the data supplied from the control unit 51. The external storage unit 53 includes a recording medium such as a flash memory, a hard disk drive (HDD), or a solid state drive (SSD). The external storage unit 53 functions as the information storage unit 140 shown in FIG. 2.

[0020] The information processing device 100 also includes an operation unit 54 that is operated by an administrator of the information processing device 100. Information input via the operation unit 54 is supplied to the control unit 51. The operation unit 54 includes information input components such as a keyboard, a mouse, and a touch panel.

[0021] The information processing device 100 also includes a display unit 55 that displays information input via the operation unit 54 and information output by the control unit 51. The display unit 55 includes a display device such as an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) or an organic EL (Electro-Luminescence) display.

[0022] 3, the information processing device 100 includes a transmission / reception unit 56 that transmits and receives information. The transmission / reception unit 56 includes information communication components such as a communication network terminal device that connects to a network and a wireless communication device. The transmission / reception unit 56 functions as the information transmission unit 120 and the information reception unit 130 shown in FIG. 2.

[0023] Returning to FIG. 3, in the information processing device 100 , the main memory unit 52 , the external memory unit 53 , the operation unit 54 , the display unit 55 and the transmission / reception unit 56 are all connected to the control unit 51 via the internal bus 50 .

[0024] 2 by the control unit 51 using the main memory unit 52, the external memory unit 53, the operation unit 54, the display unit 55, and the transmission / reception unit 56 as resources. For example, the information processing device 100 executes an information generation step performed by the information generation unit 110, an information transmission step performed by the information transmission unit 120, an information reception step performed by the information reception unit 130, and an information storage step performed by the information storage unit 140. Furthermore, for example, the information processing device 100 executes an information analysis step performed by the information analysis unit 150, an information collection step performed by the information collection unit 160, and an access authority determination step performed by the access authority determination unit 170.

[0025] Like the information processing device 100, the user terminal 200, the external terminal 300, and the device 400 also include a control unit 51, a main memory unit 52, an external memory unit 53, an operation unit 54, a display unit 55, and a transmission / reception unit 56, which are connected via an internal bus 50. Like the information processing device 100, the user terminal 200, the external terminal 300, and the device 400 also realize the above functions by the control unit 51 using the main memory unit 52, the external memory unit 53, the operation unit 54, the display unit 55, and the transmission / reception unit 56 as resources.

[0026] (Details of Functional Configuration of Information Processing Device 100 According to Embodiment) The information generating unit 110 generates inquiry form screen information, which is information required to display the inquiry form screen 600 shown in FIGS. 4A to 4C.

[0027] 4A , the inquiry form screen 600 is a screen on which a user contacts a maintenance service provider with an inquiry. The inquiry form screen 600 includes a device ID display field 610 that displays the identification number of the device 400, a query category display field 620 that displays the query category, and a query content display field 630 that displays the query content. The inquiry form screen 600 also includes an alarm number display field 640 that displays an alarm number, which is the identification number of an alarm output when an abnormality occurs in the device 400, an additional information display field 650 that displays a list of additional query content information, which is additional information required by the maintenance service provider to provide the service according to the query content, and a send button 660 for sending the information displayed in each of the display fields 610 to 650 to the information processing device 100.

[0028] Note that, for example, when the user terminal 200 attempts to display the inquiry form screen 600 upon receiving information indicating that the device 400 has output an alarm, the user terminal 200 has already received device ID information and alarm number information from the device 400. Therefore, in such a case, the display unit 55 of the user terminal 200 can display the identification number of the device 400 indicated by the device ID information in the device ID display field 610, as shown in FIG. 4A . Also, in such a case, the display unit 55 can display the alarm number indicated by the alarm number information in the alarm number display field 640. For example, the display unit 55 can display text information such as "device ID 001" as an example of device ID information in the device ID display field 610, and can display "alarm number 001" as an example of alarm number information in the alarm number display field 640. Note that when the display unit 55 of the user terminal 200 starts displaying the inquiry form screen 600, the additional information display field 650 is blacked out, as shown in FIG. 4A , and input from the user cannot be accepted.

[0029] Furthermore, the user displays the inquiry category in the inquiry category display field 620 by inputting using the operation unit 54 of the user terminal 200. Here, the inquiry category display field 620 is a display field using a pull-down menu selection method in which a plurality of predetermined inquiry categories, such as "emergency stop," "error message display," "alarm output," and "fault occurrence," can be selected. Therefore, the user selects one of the inquiry categories selectable in the pull-down menu by inputting using the operation unit 54 of the user terminal 200. For example, the display unit 55 can display text information such as "alarm output" as an example of the inquiry category selected by the user in the inquiry category display field 620.

[0030] In this embodiment, the inquiry category display field 620 is a pull-down menu selection type display field that allows the user to select one inquiry category, but this is not limited to this. For example, the inquiry category display field 620 may be a checkbox selection type display field that allows the user to select one or more inquiry categories. Also, in this embodiment, the user directly inputs the inquiry content into the inquiry category display field 620, but this is not limited to this. For example, the user terminal 200 may automatically input the inquiry content. Specifically, when the user terminal 200 receives alarm number information from the device 400 and displays the alarm number in the alarm number display field 640, the user terminal 200 may select "alarm output" and display it in the inquiry category display field 620.

[0031] Furthermore, the user may input information using the operation unit 54 of the user terminal 200 to display the inquiry content in the inquiry content display field 630. For example, the display unit 55 may display text information such as "The device stopped working during injection molding. Please take action." as an example of the inquiry content input by the user in the inquiry content display field 630. Note that in the present embodiment, the user directly inputs the inquiry content in the inquiry content display field 630. However, this is not limited to this; for example, the user terminal 200 may automatically input the inquiry content. Specifically, when the user terminal 200 receives alarm number information from the device 400 and displays the alarm number in the alarm number display field 640, the user terminal 200 may display an explanation of the inquiry content identified based on the alarm number, for example, text information of a standard phrase such as "Please take action on the problem with XX." in the inquiry content display field 630.

[0032] Furthermore, when information is input into each of the display fields 610 to 640, the user terminal 200 transmits the user input information currently input into the inquiry form screen 600 to the information processing device 100. Specifically, the user terminal 200 transmits to the information processing device 100 device ID information, which is the information displayed in the device ID display field 610, inquiry category information, which is the information displayed in the inquiry category display field 620, and inquiry content information, which is the information displayed in the inquiry content display field 630. At this time, if alarm number information is displayed in the alarm number display field 640, the user terminal 200 transmits to the information processing device 100 user input information further including alarm number information in addition to the above information.

[0033] When the information receiving unit 130 receives information requesting inquiry form screen information from the user terminal 200, the information sending unit 120 sends the inquiry form screen information to the user terminal 200. In addition, the information receiving unit 130 receives user input information including inquiry content information from the user terminal 200, and the information collecting unit 160 collects the inquiry content information included in the user input information as inquiry information.

[0034] The information analysis unit 150 analyzes the inquiry content information included in the user input information. The information analysis unit 150 analyzes the inquiry content information by classifying the inquiry content indicated by the inquiry content information into one of a plurality of predetermined inquiry cases. Here, the inquiry cases are cases of abnormalities in the apparatus 400 that are classified in more detail than the inquiry categories, such as "Case 1 (the injection molding machine does not operate)," "Case 2 (a void occurs)," and "Case 3 (a flow mark occurs)," as shown in FIG. 5 .

[0035] In the inquiry cases of this embodiment, supplementary cases such as "+α (burrs are generated)" are also preset as supplementary examples in addition to the above cases. The reason why "+α (burrs are generated)" is a supplementary case is because the cause of burrs depends not only on the condition of the device 400 but also on the condition of the mold used by the device 400, and mold problems are handled by the mold manufacturer. In other words, "+α (burrs are generated)" is managed as a supplementary case because it may be outside the scope of maintenance services provided by the maintenance company of the device 400. Note that, since the maintenance company of the device 400 may be able to handle mold problems in the future, the supplementary case of "+α (burrs are generated)" may be managed as a normal inquiry case as a result of gradually learning from future cases.

[0036] The information analysis unit 150 classifies the inquiry indicated by the inquiry information into at least one inquiry case using, for example, a known pattern matching technique. Specifically, if the inquiry information contains character information such as "injection molding" or "not working," the information analysis unit 150 classifies the inquiry into "Case 1 (the injection molding machine does not work)." Furthermore, if the inquiry information contains character information such as "flow mark" or "void," the information analysis unit 150 classifies the inquiry into "Case 2 (voids occur)" and "Case 3 (flow marks occur)." Furthermore, if the inquiry information contains character information such as "void" or "burr," the information analysis unit 150 classifies the inquiry into "Case 2 (voids occur)" and "+α (burrs occur)." The information analysis unit 150 generates classification result information, which is information indicating the results of classifying the inquiry indicated by the inquiry information into inquiry cases.

[0037] In this embodiment, the information analysis unit 150 classifies the query content into query cases using a pattern matching technique. However, this is not limited to this. For example, the information analysis unit 150 may classify the query content into query cases by inputting query content information into a trained model acquired from a learning device (not shown). In this case, the learning device needs to generate a trained model that can output classification result information when new query content information is input through machine learning using previously acquired past query content information, and transmit the trained model to the information processing device 100. The learning device can perform machine learning using known learning algorithms such as supervised learning, unsupervised learning, and reinforcement learning. For example, the learning device can apply K-means clustering, which is unsupervised learning that learns features of training data by providing the learning device with training data that does not include resulting labels.

[0038] Here, the K-means algorithm is a non-hierarchical clustering algorithm that uses cluster averages to classify a given number of clusters into k. Specifically, the K-means algorithm is processed as follows: First, a cluster is randomly assigned to each data x. Next, the center V of each cluster is calculated based on the assigned data. Next, the distance between each x and each v is calculated, and x is reassigned to the cluster with the closest center. Then, if the cluster assignment for all x remains unchanged through the above process, or if the amount of change falls below a predetermined threshold, it is determined that convergence has occurred and the process ends. Thus, the learning device can learn a classification method for inquiry cases through unsupervised learning such as the K-means algorithm, using learning data created based on combinations of acquired past inquiry content information.

[0039] The information collecting unit 160 collects, as inquiry information, inquiry content additional information corresponding to the inquiry content indicated by the inquiry content information, based on the analysis result of the inquiry content information by the information analyzing unit 150. For example, the information collecting unit 160 identifies an inquiry case classified based on the classification result information, identifies a storage device and address indicated by inquiry case additional information that is information previously added to the identified inquiry case, and collects the inquiry content additional information as inquiry information from the identified storage device and address. Note that the storage device that stores the inquiry content additional information includes at least the information storage unit 140, and may also include an external storage device such as an external database server (not shown) that is different from the information processing device 100.

[0040] The access authority determination unit 170 determines whether the maintenance service provider has the authority to access information that can be collected using the inquiry case additional information, based on the related party input information, which is information input by a related party of the maintenance service using the operation unit 54 of the external terminal 300. The access authority of the maintenance service provider is preset for each piece of information to be collected based on the related party input information. If there are multiple maintenance companies that can be providers, the access authority is preset for each maintenance company based on the related party input information. Therefore, the access authority determination unit 170 determines whether the relevant authority exists for each piece of information to be collected and for each maintenance company. Therefore, the information collection unit 160 first identifies the maintenance company to which the inquiry should be directed based on the identified inquiry case. Then, the information collection unit 160 collects, as inquiry content additional information, only information that the access authority determination unit 170 determines to be authorized to access the maintenance company to which the inquiry should be directed, from the information that can be collected using the inquiry case additional information added to the identified inquiry case.

[0041] Consider, for example, a case where the inquiry case identified based on the classification result information is "Case 1 (the injection molding machine is not operating)" and it is determined that the maintenance contractor to whom the inquiry is directed has the authority to access all collectible information. In this case, as shown in FIG. 5 , the information collection unit 160 first acquires additional information 1A, 1B, 1C, 1D, 1E, 1F, 1G, and 1H as inquiry case additional information. Next, based on additional information 1A, the information collection unit 160 collects error occurrence screen information, which is information that needs to be confirmed at the time of the inquiry and which the information receiving unit 130 has previously received from the device 400 and stored in the information storage unit 140. That is, the information collection unit 160 may collect the error occurrence screen information as inquiry additional information.

[0042] The information collecting unit 160 also collects information that needs to be confirmed at the time of other inquiries, which information receiving unit 130 has previously received from device 400 and stored in information storage unit 140. Specifically, based on additional information 1B, the information collecting unit 160 acquires network status information, which is information indicating the current state of the network environment of device 400. Based on additional information 1C, the information collecting unit 160 acquires power supply information, which is information indicating the current state of the power supply of device 400. Based on additional information 1D, the information collecting unit 160 collects motor drive information, which is information indicating the current state of drive of a motor (not shown) included in device 400. Based on additional information 1E, the information collecting unit 160 collects sensor output information, which is information indicating the current output of a sensor (not shown) included in device 400. Based on additional information 1F, the information collecting unit 160 collects operation history information, which is information indicating the user's operation history stored in external storage unit 53 of device 400.

[0043] The information collecting unit 160 also collects information different from the information that the information receiving unit 130 has received in advance from the device 400 and stored in the information storage unit 140. Specifically, the information collecting unit 160 collects operation manual information, which is information indicating an operation manual for the device 400 that has been stored in advance in the information storage unit 140, based on the additional information 1G. Note that information that is not received from the device 400, such as the operation manual information, is stored in the information storage unit 140 in a collectable state using inquiry case additional information, based on related party input information.

[0044] Consider a case where the inquiry case identified based on the classification result information is "Case 1 (the injection molding machine is not operating)" and it is determined that the maintenance contractor to be contacted does not have the authority to access the network status information, power supply information, motor drive information, sensor output information, and operation history information, which are among the collectable information. In this case, the information collection unit 160 collects error occurrence screen information and operation manual information as additional inquiry content information based on additional information 1A and additional information 1G, but does not collect the network status information, power supply information, motor drive information, sensor output information, or operation history information.

[0045] In this embodiment, collectable information is set as inquiry case additional information for each type of inquiry case based on information input by the person involved. However, the setting of inquiry case additional information is not limited to this. For example, inquiry case additional information associated with information received by the information processing device 100 from the device 400 may be set based on user input information. Also, for example, inquiry case additional information associated with information not received by the information processing device 100 from the device 400 may be set based on inquiry history information, which is history information indicating past inquiry content and responses from the time of inquiry to its resolution, stored in the information storage unit 140.

[0046] In this case, the information processing device 100 may, for example, input inquiry history information into a trained model acquired from the above-described learning device to automatically set inquiry case additional information for each inquiry case type. In this case, the learning device needs to learn the relationship between inquiry cases and inquiry case additional information through machine learning using previously acquired inquiry history information, and generate a trained model that can set inquiry case additional information for each inquiry case type when new inquiry history information is input, and transmit the trained model to the information processing device 100. Note that the learning device can learn a method for classifying inquiry case additional information into inquiry cases through unsupervised learning such as the K-means method, as described above.

[0047] When the information collecting unit 160 collects inquiry content additional information after the information receiving unit 130 receives user input information, the information sending unit 120 sends a list of inquiry content additional information to the user terminal 200. In this case, the user terminal 200 receives the list of inquiry content additional information from the information processing device 100, and the display unit 55 of the user terminal 200 displays the received list of inquiry content additional information in the additional information display field 650, as shown in Fig. 4B. At this time, the user terminal 200 cancels the blackout display and is ready to accept input from the user.

[0048] Here, the additional information display field 650 is a checkbox selection type display field in which one or more types of inquiry content additional information displayed in a list can be selected. For example, if the inquiry content indicated by the inquiry content information included in the user input information by the information processing device 100 is classified as "Case 1 (the injection molding machine does not operate)," the additional information display field 650 displays a list of inquiry additional information such as "Information 1A" indicating error occurrence screen information, "Information 1B" indicating network status information, "Information 1C" indicating power supply information, "Information 1D" indicating motor drive information, "Information 1E" indicating sensor output information, "Information 1F" indicating operation history information, and "Information 1G" indicating operation manual information.

[0049] For this reason, the user selects the additional inquiry information to be sent to the maintenance contractor, who will be the contact point, by inputting the checkboxes using the operation unit 54 of the user terminal 200. For example, as shown in FIG. 4C , the user selects the checkboxes for "Information 1A," "Information 1B," "Information 1C," and "Information 1D." If the user realizes that the displayed list of "Information 1A" to "Information 1G" is insufficient to share with the provider and wishes to select new information, the user inputs the new information into the additional information display field 650 to display it. For example, the user inputs and displays "Information 1H," which indicates the storage device and address storing email history information, which is information indicating past email history with the provider, and then selects the checkbox for "Information 1H."

[0050] Thereafter, when the user operates the send button 660 by inputting using the operation unit 54 of the user terminal 200, the user terminal 200 transmits user input information including user selection information indicating information selected by the user from the additional information on the inquiry content to the information processing device 100.

[0051] The information receiving unit 130 also receives user input information including user selection information from the user terminal 200. When the user selection information included in the user input information indicates that the user has selected new information, the information collecting unit 160 collects new information based on the user selection information. For example, when the user selection information indicates that "information 1H" has been selected, the information collecting unit 160 identifies the storage device and address indicated by "information 1H" and collects email history information. The information transmitting unit 120 then transmits inquiry information including the inquiry content information and the inquiry content additional information to the provider terminal 301 used by the provider, i.e., the maintenance company to which the inquiry is directed. At this time, the information transmitting unit 120 transmits inquiry information including the information selected by the user from the inquiry content additional information based on the user selection information to the provider terminal 301.

[0052] (Inquiry Information Transmission Process According to the Embodiment) Next, an operation of the information processing device 100 collecting inquiry information and transmitting it to the provider terminal 301 will be described using a flowchart. When the information receiving unit 130 receives information requesting inquiry form screen information from the user terminal 200, the information processing device 100 starts executing the inquiry information transmission process shown in Fig. 6. First, the information transmitting unit 120 transmits the inquiry form screen information to the user terminal 200 (step S101). After transmitting the inquiry form screen information, the information receiving unit 130 receives user input information including inquiry content information from the user terminal 200, and the information collecting unit 160 collects the inquiry content information included in the user input information as inquiry information (step S102).

[0053] After receiving the user input information, the information analysis unit 150 analyzes the inquiry content information by classifying the inquiry content indicated by the inquiry content information into one of a plurality of predetermined inquiry cases (step S103). For example, if the inquiry content information includes character information of words such as "injection molding" and "not working," the information analysis unit 150 generates classification result information indicating that the inquiry content has been classified into "Case 1 (the injection molding machine does not work)" using a known pattern matching technique.

[0054] After classifying the inquiry case, the information collection unit 160 collects, based on the classification result information, inquiry content additional information that the access authority determination unit 170 has determined to have the authority to access the maintenance company to which the inquiry is directed (step S104). Specifically, the information collection unit 160 first identifies the inquiry case classified based on the classification result information and the maintenance company to which the inquiry is directed, and then identifies the storage device and address where collectable information is stored using the inquiry case additional information of the identified inquiry case.

[0055] Then, the information collecting unit 160 collects, as additional inquiry content information, all collectable information that the maintenance company to be contacted has been determined to have access authority to from the identified storage device and address by the access authority determining unit 170. For example, if the identified inquiry case is "Case 1 (the injection molding machine is not operating)" and the maintenance company to be contacted has access authority to all collectable information, the information collecting unit 160 collects, as additional inquiry content information, error occurrence screen information, network status information, power supply information, motor drive information, sensor output information, operation history information, and operation manual information that are stored in a storage device such as the information collecting unit 160, based on additional information 1A to additional information 1G.

[0056] After collecting the inquiry content additional information, the information transmitting unit 120 transmits a list of the inquiry content additional information to the user terminal 200 (step S105), and the information receiving unit 130 receives user input information including user selection information from the user terminal 200 (step S106). For example, the information receiving unit 130 receives user input information including user selection information indicating that error occurrence screen information, network status information, power supply information, and motor drive information have been selected. After receiving the user input information, the information transmitting unit 120 transmits inquiry information including the information selected by the user from the inquiry content additional information based on the user selection information to the provider terminal 301 used by the maintenance company to which the inquiry is directed (step S107), and terminates the processing. For example, the information transmitting unit 120 transmits inquiry information including the inquiry content additional information including the error occurrence screen information, network status information, power supply information, and motor drive information as the information selected by the user, and the inquiry content information to the provider terminal 301, and terminates the processing.

[0057] As described above, according to the information processing system 1 of the present embodiment, the information processing device 100 collects inquiry information based on user input information input by a user receiving maintenance service for the device 400. In the information processing device 100, the information collection unit 160 collects inquiry content information included in the user input information as inquiry information, and the information analysis unit 150 analyzes the inquiry content information included in the user input information. Then, based on the analysis result of the inquiry content information, the information collection unit 160 collects, as inquiry information, inquiry content additional information corresponding to the inquiry content indicated by the inquiry content information.

[0058] In this manner, in the information processing system 1 according to the present embodiment, the information processing device 100 collects not only inquiry content information as inquiry information, but also additional inquiry content information corresponding to the inquiry content indicated by the inquiry content information. Therefore, the information processing system 1 according to the present embodiment facilitates appropriate information sharing between the user who made the inquiry and the provider who received the inquiry, compared to an information processing system in which the information processing device does not collect additional inquiry content information. As a result, the information processing system 1 according to the present embodiment can improve the work efficiency of the maintenance service provided by the provider who received the inquiry in response to an inquiry from the user who made the inquiry, and can shorten the time from the inquiry to the completion of the service.

[0059] Furthermore, according to the information processing system 1 of the present embodiment, in the information processing device 100, the information transmitting unit 120 transmits information including the inquiry content information and the inquiry content additional information as inquiry information to the provider terminal 301 used by the maintenance service provider. In this way, in the information processing system 1 of the present embodiment, the maintenance service provider can perform the maintenance service after checking the inquiry content information and the inquiry content additional information using the provider terminal 301.

[0060] Furthermore, according to the information processing system 1 of the present embodiment, in the information processing device 100, the information receiving unit 130 receives user input information including inquiry content information from the user terminal 200 used by the user. Furthermore, the information sending unit 120 sends to the user terminal 200 list information of inquiry content additional information collected by the information collecting unit 160. Furthermore, the information receiving unit 130 receives from the user terminal 200 user input information including user selection information indicating information that the user has selected from the inquiry content additional information and that can be sent to the provider. Then, the information sending unit 120 sends to the provider terminal 301 inquiry information including the information selected from the inquiry content additional information based on the user selection information.

[0061] In this way, in the information processing system 1 according to the present embodiment, the user can make an inquiry after confirming that there is no problem in sharing not only the inquiry content indicated by the inquiry content information but also the inquiry content additional information with the maintenance service provider. As a result, the information processing system 1 according to the present embodiment makes it easier for appropriate information sharing to occur between the user who is the inquiry source and the provider who is the inquiry recipient than an information processing system that does not transmit inquiry information including the inquiry content information and information selected from the inquiry content additional information based on the user selection information to the provider terminal.

[0062] Furthermore, according to the information processing system 1 of the present embodiment, in the information processing device 100, the information analysis unit 150 analyzes the inquiry content information by classifying the inquiry content indicated by the inquiry content information into one of a plurality of predetermined types of inquiry cases. Furthermore, the information collected by the information collection unit 160 can be collected based on inquiry case additional information that is added in advance to each type of inquiry case, and the information collection unit 160 collects inquiry content additional information according to the inquiry content based on the inquiry case additional information of the inquiry case into which the inquiry content indicated by the inquiry content information has been classified by the information analysis unit 150.

[0063] By doing this, the information processing system 1 according to this embodiment makes it easier for the maintenance service provider to collect the additional inquiry content information necessary to provide the service than an information processing system in which the information processing device does not collect the additional inquiry content information based on the additional inquiry case information of the inquiry case into which the inquiry content indicated by the inquiry content information is classified.

[0064] In particular, according to the information processing system 1 of this embodiment, the inquiry case additional information is added for each type of inquiry case based on related party input information, which is information entered by related parties of the maintenance service, including the maintenance company that provides the maintenance service.

[0065] In this manner, the maintenance service provider can expect to collect the information they desire as the additional inquiry information. For example, a maintenance company, as a party involved in the maintenance service, can access the information stored in device 400 and recognizes the content of the information stored in device 400. Therefore, the maintenance company can expect to collect the information they desire as the additional inquiry information, such as error occurrence screen information, network status information, power supply information, motor drive information, sensor output information, and operation history information. Therefore, the information processing system 1 according to this embodiment makes it easier for the maintenance service provider to collect the additional inquiry information necessary to provide the service than an information processing system in which additional inquiry case information is not added for each type of inquiry case based on party input information. As a result, the information processing system 1 according to this embodiment makes it easier for appropriate information sharing to occur between the user who originates the inquiry and the provider who receives the inquiry.

[0066] Furthermore, according to the information processing system 1 of this embodiment, in the information processing device 100, the access authority determination unit 170 determines, based on the related person input information, whether the maintenance service provider has the authority to access the information that can be collected using the inquiry case additional information. Then, the information collection unit 160 collects, as inquiry content additional information, information that the access authority determination unit 170 has determined the provider has the authority to access from among the information that can be collected using the inquiry case additional information of the inquiry case into which the inquiry content indicated by the inquiry content information has been classified by the information analysis unit 150.

[0067] In this way, the person concerned with the maintenance service can set for each piece of inquiry case additional information whether or not the maintenance company providing the maintenance service may access information that can be collected by the inquiry case additional information.

[0068] According to the information processing system 1 of this embodiment, in the information processing device 100, the information storage unit 140 stores inquiry history information indicating the content of past inquiries and the response content from the inquiry to its resolution, and the inquiry case additional information may be added for each type of inquiry case based on the inquiry history information stored in the information storage unit 140.

[0069] In this way, the information processing system 1 according to the present embodiment makes it easier for the maintenance service provider to collect the additional inquiry content information necessary for providing the service than an information processing system in which the inquiry case additional information is not added for each inquiry case type based on the inquiry history information. As a result, the information processing system 1 according to the present embodiment makes it easier for the appropriate information sharing to be carried out between the user who is the source of the inquiry and the provider who is the recipient of the inquiry.

[0070] Furthermore, according to the information processing system 1 of this embodiment, in the information processing device 100, the information receiving unit 130 receives error occurrence screen information from the device 400, and the information collecting unit 160 may collect the error occurrence screen information as additional inquiry information.

[0071] In this way, the maintenance service provider can check the error occurrence screen that was displayed when an abnormality occurred in device 400 at the time of the inquiry. Therefore, the information processing system 1 according to the present embodiment makes it easier for the maintenance service provider to collect the additional inquiry content information necessary to provide the service than an information processing system that does not collect error occurrence screen information as additional inquiry information. As a result, the information processing system 1 according to the present embodiment makes it easier for appropriate information sharing to occur between the user who made the inquiry and the provider who received the inquiry.

[0072] (Modification) In the above embodiment, the information processing device 100 is a cloud server, but is not limited to this. For example, the information processing device 100 may be a computer device such as a smartphone, tablet PC, notebook PC, or desktop PC used by a maintenance company that provides maintenance services. Specifically, the provider terminal 301 may have the functions of each of the units 110 to 170 of the information processing device 100. In this case, the provider terminal 301 becomes the information processing device 100 in the above embodiment, and therefore the function of the information transmission unit 120 to transmit inquiry information to itself can be omitted.

[0073] In the above embodiment, the information analysis unit 150 classifies the inquiry content into inquiry cases based on the inquiry content information, but this is not limited thereto, and the information analysis unit 150 may classify the inquiry content into inquiry cases based on, for example, inquiry category information and inquiry content information. Furthermore, the information analysis unit 150 may classify the inquiry content into inquiry cases based on the inquiry category information, for example, when the inquiry category information includes inquiry content information, or when multiple inquiry categories are selected and the inquiry content can be identified from the inquiry category information alone.

[0074] As in the above embodiment, it is preferable that the information processing device 100 allows the user to select information that can be sent to the provider from the additional information on the inquiry content, but it is not necessary for the user to be able to select information that can be sent to the provider from the additional information on the inquiry content.

[0075] As in the above embodiment, it is preferable that the information collection unit 160 collects the inquiry content additional information based on the inquiry case additional information of the inquiry case into which the inquiry content indicated by the inquiry content information is classified, but this is not limited to this. For example, the information analysis unit 150 does not need to classify the inquiry content indicated by the inquiry content information into a specific inquiry case. In this case, the information collection unit 160 may, for example, extract a specific word from the inquiry content indicated by the inquiry content information and collect information containing the specified word from all collectable information as the inquiry content additional information.

[0076] In the above embodiment, the information processing device 100 transmits a list of additional information about inquiry content to the user terminal 200, but this is not limiting, and for example, all collected additional information about inquiry content may be transmitted to the user terminal 200. In this case, the user terminal 200 may generate the list of additional information about inquiry content itself and display it in a list in the additional information display field 650 of the inquiry form screen 600.

[0077] In the above embodiment, the inquiry case additional information is added to each inquiry case type based on the related party input information, but this is not limited to this. For example, the inquiry case additional information may be added to each inquiry case type based on the related party input information and inquiry history information, or may be added to each inquiry case type based on the user input information and related party input information, or may be added to each inquiry case type based on the user input information and inquiry history information. Furthermore, for example, the inquiry case additional information may be added to each inquiry case type based on the user input information, related party input information, and inquiry history information.

[0078] In the above embodiment, the access authority determination unit 170 determines whether the provider has the authority to access the information collectable by the inquiry case additional information based on the related party input information, but this is not limited to this. For example, the access authority determination unit 170 may determine whether the provider has the authority to access the above information based on the related party input information and inquiry history information, or may determine whether the provider has the authority to access the above information based on the user input information and related party input information, or may determine whether the provider has the authority to access the above information based on the user input information and inquiry history information. Furthermore, for example, the access authority determination unit 170 may determine whether the provider has the authority to access the above information based on the user input information, related party input information, and inquiry history information.

[0079] As in the above embodiment, it is preferable that the error occurrence screen information received from the device 400 can be collected as the inquiry content additional information, but it is not necessary that the error occurrence screen information can be collected as the inquiry content additional information.

[0080] In the above embodiment, the information collection unit 160 stores information such as error occurrence screen information, network status information, power supply information, motor drive information, sensor output information, and operation history information received from the device 400 in the information storage unit 140, and collects this information as additional inquiry content information from the information storage unit 140. However, this is not limiting. For example, the information collection unit 160 may directly collect the above-mentioned information stored in the device 400 from the device 400.

[0081] The information processing device 100, which is the core of the processing performed by the information processing device 100 including the control unit 51, main memory unit 52, external memory unit 53, transmission / reception unit 56, and internal bus 50, may be configured to execute the above-described processing by, for example, storing and distributing a control program 59 for executing the above-described operations in a recording medium readable by the information processing device 100, such as a flash memory, and installing the control program 59. Alternatively, the information processing device 100 may be configured by storing the control program 59 in a storage device of a server device on a communication network and having the information processing device 100 download the control program 59.

[0082] Furthermore, when the functions of the information processing device 100 are realized by sharing the functions of an OS (Operating System) and an application program, or by cooperation between the OS and the application program, only the application program portion may be stored in a recording medium or storage device.

[0083] It is also possible to superimpose the control program 59 on a carrier wave and provide it via a communication network. For example, the control program 59 may be posted on a bulletin board system (BBS) on the communication network and provided via the communication network. The control program 59 may then be started and executed under the control of the OS in the same way as other application programs, thereby executing the above-described processing.

[0084] The present disclosure allows various embodiments and modifications without departing from the broad spirit and scope of the present disclosure. Furthermore, the above-described embodiments are intended to explain the present disclosure and do not limit the scope of the present disclosure. In other words, the scope of the present disclosure is defined by the claims, not the embodiments. Various modifications made within the scope of the claims and the meaning of equivalent disclosures are considered to be within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0085] 1...information processing system, 50...internal bus, 51...control unit, 52...main memory unit, 53...external memory unit, 54...operation unit, 55...display unit, 56...transmitting / receiving unit, 59...control program, 100...information processing device, 110...information generation unit, 120...information transmission unit, 130...information reception unit, 140...information storage unit, 150...information analysis unit, 160...information collection unit, 170...access right determination unit, 200...user terminal, 300...external terminal, 301...provider terminal, 400...device, 500...Internet, 600...inquiry form screen, 610...device ID display field, 620...inquiry category display field, 630...inquiry content display field, 640...alarm number display field, 650...additional information display field, 660...send button.

Claims

1. An information processing device that collects inquiry information, which is information related to an inquiry, based on user input information, which is information entered by a user receiving maintenance service for a device, comprising: an information collection unit that collects inquiry content information, which is information indicating the inquiry content included in the user input information, as the inquiry information; and an information analysis unit that analyzes the inquiry content information, which is information indicating the inquiry content included in the user input information, and the information collection unit collects inquiry content additional information, which is information corresponding to the inquiry content indicated by the inquiry content information, as the inquiry information based on the analysis result of the inquiry content information.

2. The information processing device according to claim 1, further comprising an information sending unit that sends information including the inquiry content information and the inquiry content additional information as the inquiry information to a provider terminal that is a terminal used by the provider of the maintenance service.

3. An information processing device as described in claim 2, further comprising an information receiving unit that receives the user input information including the inquiry content information from a user terminal that is a terminal used by the user, wherein the information sending unit sends list information of the inquiry content additional information to the user terminal, the information receiving unit receives the user input information from the user terminal that includes user selection information indicating information that can be sent to the provider selected by the user from the inquiry content additional information, and the information sending unit sends the inquiry information that includes the information selected from the inquiry content additional information based on the user selection information to the provider terminal.

4. The information processing device of claim 1, wherein the information analysis unit analyzes the inquiry content information by classifying the inquiry content indicated by the inquiry content information into one of a plurality of predetermined types of inquiry cases, the information collected by the information collection unit can be collected based on inquiry case additional information which is information that is pre-added to each type of inquiry case, and the information collection unit collects the inquiry content additional information according to the inquiry content based on the inquiry case additional information of the inquiry case into which the inquiry content indicated by the inquiry content information has been classified by the information analysis unit.

5. The information processing device according to claim 4, wherein the inquiry case additional information is added for each type of inquiry case based on related party input information, which is information input by related parties of the maintenance service, including the provider of the maintenance service.

6. An information processing device as described in claim 5, further comprising an access right determination unit that determines whether the provider has the authority to access information that can be collected by the inquiry case additional information based on the related party input information, wherein the information collection unit collects, as the inquiry content additional information, information that the access right determination unit has determined the provider has the authority to access from among the information that can be collected by the inquiry case additional information of the inquiry case into which the inquiry content indicated by the inquiry content information has been classified by the information analysis unit.

7. An information processing device according to claim 4, further comprising an information storage unit that stores inquiry history information, which is history information indicating the content of past inquiries and the response content from the inquiry to its resolution, and wherein the inquiry case additional information is added for each type of inquiry case based on the inquiry history information stored in the information storage unit.

8. The information processing device according to claim 1, further comprising an information receiving unit that receives from the device error occurrence screen information, which is information relating to an error occurrence screen that is a screen indicating that an error has occurred in the device, and wherein the information collecting unit may collect the error occurrence screen information.

9. An information processing system comprising the information processing device and provider terminal described in claim 2, and a user terminal which is a terminal used by the user, wherein the information processing device includes an information receiving unit which receives the user input information including the inquiry content information from the user terminal.

10. A control method including: an information analysis step in which an information processing device collects inquiry information, which is information related to an inquiry based on user input information, which is information entered by a user receiving maintenance service for a device, and analyzes inquiry content information, which is information indicating the inquiry content included in the user input information; and an information collection step in which the information processing device collects, as the inquiry information, information corresponding to the inquiry content indicated by the inquiry content information, based on the analysis result of the inquiry content information.

11. A control program that causes an information processing device that collects inquiry information, which is information related to inquiries based on user input information, which is information entered by a user receiving maintenance service for a device, to function as: an information analysis unit that analyzes inquiry content information, which is information indicating the inquiry content included in the user input information; and an information collection unit that collects information corresponding to the inquiry content indicated by the inquiry content information as the inquiry information, based on the analysis results of the inquiry content information.

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