JP2008217158A - Service component selection method and device, and service selection program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a cooperation service where appropriate service components matched with a user's requirement condition are combined. <P>SOLUTION: A score providing section 2311 provides a score to each of candidates of a service component detected from a service scenario. A price providing section 2312 provides an index for a constraining condition such as price. A temporary solution finding section 232 finds the service component establishing the constraining condition as the solution of a temporary cooperation service. A score up service component finding section 233 establishes the constraining condition in the temporary solution, and finds the service component whose score becomes the highest. A service component replacing section 234 replaces the temporary solution with the service component found by the score up service component finding section 233 to update the solution. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a service component selection method for providing a service component, which is a service function element on a network, as a link service by linking based on a service scenario describing a service category connection relationship indicating a service component function type. The present invention relates to a component selection device and a service selection program.

  Conventionally, as a service cooperation technology for linking service components based on a service scenario and providing a cooperation service, the user's electronic device searches the network for a service scenario corresponding to the cooperation service desired by the user, and performs the search. Based on the service scenario, a necessary and usable service component is searched on the network, and the searched service component is linked based on the service scenario, thereby generating a linked service desired by the user, In some cases, the user is inquired as to whether or not the linked service can be executed, and when the execution approval is obtained from the user, the generated linked service is executed (for example, see Patent Document 1). Thereby, based on a service scenario, it becomes possible to link service components and provide a linked service.

  However, in the above-described conventional technique (Patent Document 1), when a service component is searched based on a service scenario, when a plurality of service components are found, which service component is selected is not mentioned.

Therefore, as other service cooperation technologies that provide cooperative services, profile descriptions that describe what services the service components provide for the candidate service components found for each service category in the service scenario, and which users can The user context information indicating whether the user is in a situation and the user policy information indicating what kind of service component the user prioritizes, and a score is assigned based on the evaluation result, resulting in a high score Some select service components (see, for example, Non-Patent Document 1). As a result, it becomes possible to select a service component having a high score from a plurality of service component candidates found for each service category of the service scenario and to cooperate with each other.
JP 2005-196676 A Yamato Koji, et al. , “Service Synthesis Technology for Dynamic Service Realization in Ubiquitous Environment”, Transactions of Information Processing Society of Japan, Vol. 48, no. 2, pp. 562-577, Feb. 2007

  By the way, when providing a cooperation service by combining a plurality of service components, the user's requirements include a price for receiving the service, a response time, and the like. In other words, when providing a linked service composed of a plurality of service components, instead of selecting a service component only by a fixed index (score based on the evaluation result) such as service specifications as in the prior art, for example, By selecting and linking service components in consideration of constraint conditions such as price and response time related to service enjoyment, it is possible to provide an appropriate linked service that matches the user's requirements.

  FIG. 6 is a conceptual diagram for explaining processing for selecting and cooperating with a service component based on a score according to the above-described conventional technique (Non-Patent Document 1). In FIG. 6A, a plurality of service component candidates (1), (2),... Are found for each service category A to F, a score is assigned to each service component, and a service component with a high score is selected. An example is shown. In the example shown in the figure, it is shown that the service component having the highest score is selected in all service categories A, B, and C (D to F are omitted).

  FIG. 6B shows an example in which the price is taken up as a constraint condition, and the price of each service component is shown (the service categories D to F are omitted). The price of the cooperative service based on the service component selected in FIG. 6A is 300 yen from FIG. For example, even if a condition that the price is 200 yen or less is attached as the constraint condition, it is not possible to select and cooperate with a service component that satisfies 200 yen or less.

  As described above, in the above-described conventional technology (Non-Patent Document 1), a score is assigned to each service category, and even if a service component having a high score is selected and linked, a service component that satisfies the above-described constraint condition is selected. Furthermore, it is not guaranteed whether a service component that is close to the upper limit of the constraint condition is selected. That is, there is a problem that an appropriate service component cannot be selected and linked.

  The present invention has been made in consideration of such circumstances, and its purpose is to provide a service component selection method and a service that can provide a linked service that combines appropriate service components that meet the user's requirements. It is to provide a component selection device and a service selection program.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, the present invention provides a service component that selects a service component that constitutes the cooperation service when providing a cooperation service that links service components that can be used based on a specified service scenario. A selection method, a score granting step for giving a score by performing a predetermined evaluation on each of the available service components selected based on the service scenario, and for each of the available service components A constraint condition index providing step for providing an index for a predetermined constraint condition, and a service component that satisfies the constraint condition among the available service components is temporarily selected as a temporary solution of the cooperative service A solution discovery step and the cooperative service Among the service components selected as a temporary solution of the above, a score-up service component discovery step of finding a service component having the highest score, a service component selected as a temporary solution of the cooperation service, A service component selection method comprising: exchanging with a service component having the highest score, and updating a temporary solution of the cooperation service.

  The present invention is characterized in that, in the above invention, the temporary solution finding step limits the number of service components to be selected when selecting as a temporary solution of the cooperative service.

  According to the present invention, in the above invention, when the service component included in the temporary solution updated by the service component replacement step is within the constraint condition, the score-up service component discovery step, the service component The exchange step is performed again.

  The present invention is characterized in that, in the above-mentioned invention, the service component replacement step limits the number of replacements of the service component.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, the present invention selects a service component that constitutes the cooperation service when providing a cooperation service that cooperates with a service component that can be used based on a specified service scenario. A service component selection device, wherein each of the available service components is a score giving means for giving a score by performing a predetermined evaluation on each of the available service components selected based on the service scenario. A constraint condition index providing means for providing an index for a predetermined constraint condition, and a service component satisfying the constraint condition is selected as a temporary solution of the cooperative service from the available service components Temporary solution finding means for Among the service components selected as a typical solution, a score-up service component finding means for finding a service component with the highest score, a service component selected as a temporary solution of the cooperative service, and the score A service component selection device comprising service component exchange means for exchanging the highest service component and updating a temporary solution of the cooperation service.

  The present invention is characterized in that, in the above invention, the temporary solution finding means limits the number of service components to be selected when selecting as a temporary solution of the cooperative service.

  According to the present invention, in the above invention, when the service component included in the temporary solution updated by the service component exchange unit is within the range of the constraint condition, the score-up service component discovery unit, the service component The replacement means is operated again.

  The present invention is characterized in that, in the above-mentioned invention, the service component exchanging means limits the number of exchanges of the service component.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, the present invention selects a service component that constitutes the cooperation service when providing a cooperation service that cooperates with a service component that can be used based on a specified service scenario. A score giving step for giving a score by performing a predetermined evaluation on each of the available service components selected based on the service scenario to a computer that controls the service component selection device, and the available service components A constraint condition index providing step for providing an index for a predetermined constraint condition for each of the service components, and a service component satisfying the constraint condition among the available service components is temporarily Select as a temporary solution discovery step And a score-up service component discovery step for finding a service component having the highest score among service components selected as a temporary solution of the cooperative service, and a temporary solution of the cooperative service. The service component selection program for exchanging the service component with the service component with the highest score and executing a service component exchange step of updating a temporary solution of the cooperative service.

  According to the present invention, each of the available service components selected based on the service scenario is subjected to a predetermined evaluation and given a score, and each of the available service components has a predetermined constraint condition. The service component that satisfies the constraint condition is selected as a temporary solution for the linked service from the available service components, and the service component selected as the temporary solution for the linked service is selected. Then, the service component having the highest score is found, the service component selected as the temporary solution for the linkage service is exchanged with the service component having the highest score, and the temporary solution for the linkage service is updated. Therefore, it is possible to select an appropriate service component that matches the upper limit of the constraint conditions attached to the linked service and that has a high score, and creates a linked service that combines the appropriate service components that match the user's requirements. The advantage is that it can be provided.

  In addition, according to the present invention, when selecting as a temporary solution for a linked service, the number of service components to be selected is limited to meet the upper limit of the constraint condition attached to the linked service in a shorter time. In addition, there is an advantage that an appropriate service component having a high score can be selected.

  Further, according to the present invention, when the service component included in the updated temporary solution is within the range of the constraint condition, by executing again the score-up service component discovery step and the service component exchange step, There is an advantage that it is possible to select an appropriate service component that matches the upper limit of the constraint condition attached to the cooperation service and has a high score.

  Further, according to the present invention, the service component replacement step matches the upper limit of the constraint condition attached to the cooperation service in a shorter time by limiting the number of replacements of the service component, and has a high score. The advantage is that an appropriate service component can be selected.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

(System configuration)
FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of a service providing system according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, a service providing system includes a network 1, a service linkage engine 2, a service scenario DB (Database) 3, a service component information DB 4, a user context policy DB 5, a service component providing device 6, and a user terminal. Device 7.

  The service cooperation engine 2, service scenario DB 3, service component information DB 4, user context policy DB 5, service component providing device 6 and user terminal device 7 are connected to the network 1.

  In FIG. 1, one service component providing device 6 and one user terminal device 7 are shown for convenience of drawing, but there may be a plurality of each.

  The network 1 is a communication network such as telephone exchange, an information network such as the Internet, or a network such as a mobile network. The service cooperation engine 2 is an engine that detects, selects, executes, and cooperates with service components based on a service scenario. Details will be described later.

  The service scenario DB 3 is a database that accumulates service scenarios described by service scenario writers (not shown). The service component information DB 4 is a database for accumulating service component information provided by the service component providing apparatus 6, and both search using metadata and search using interface information are possible.

  The user context policy DB 5 is a database that accumulates user context information and user policy information. The service component providing device 6 is a device that provides a service component, receives a service component function execution request from the service cooperation engine 2, executes the function, and transmits a function execution result to the service cooperation engine 2.

  The user terminal device 7 is a terminal device that is operated by a user's operation. In order to request the service cooperation engine 2 to provide a cooperative service, the user terminal device 7 transmits a service provision request including a constraint condition and is transmitted from the service cooperation engine 2. Receives service execution results.

(System function)
In the present embodiment, it is possible to reduce routine work when the user makes a business trip, for example, by using a service cooperation engine installed in a personal terminal device or server. For example, no matter where the user is within the price range requested, when the departure time arrives, a device with an alarm function near the user prompts the user to leave, and a printer or monitor nearby. It provides information such as maps, train timetables, and weather forecasts.

(Service linkage engine configuration)
Next, the configuration of the service cooperation engine 2 according to the present embodiment will be described.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of the service cooperation engine 2 according to the present embodiment. In FIG. 2, the service cooperation engine 2 includes a service scenario setting unit 21, a service component detection unit 22, a service component selection unit 23, and a service component execution / cooperation unit 24.

  The service scenario setting unit 21 receives a service scenario included in the service provision request transmitted from the user terminal device 7 or receives information specifying the service scenario included in the service provision request, The scenario DB 3 is searched, a corresponding service scenario is set, and the set service scenario is supplied to the service component detection unit 22.

  The service component detection unit 22 searches the service component information DB 4 using the service component metadata described in the service scenario supplied from the service scenario setting unit 21, detects available service component candidates, The detected service component candidates are supplied to the service component selector 23.

  The service component selection unit 23 includes an evaluation unit 231, a temporary solution discovery unit 232 that is a feature of the present invention, a score-up service component discovery unit 233 that is also a feature of the present invention, and a service component that is also a feature of the present invention. -It is equipped with the nent exchange part 234. The evaluation unit 231 includes a score providing unit 2311 and a price providing unit 2312.

  For each of the service component candidates supplied from the service component detection unit 22, the score giving unit 2311 searches the service component profile description and the user context policy DB 5 for user context information and user policy. Score based on the information and score. The price assignment unit 2312 assigns an index (for example, a price) for the constraint condition. When the grant is completed, the evaluation unit 231 notifies the temporary solution finding unit 232 that the grant has been completed.

  The temporary solution discovery unit 232 selects a service component that satisfies the constraint condition, sets it as a temporary linked service solution (service scenario), and supplies the temporary solution to the score-up service component discovery unit 233. Details will be described later. The scoring-up service component finding unit 233 finds and supplies the service component that satisfies the constraint condition and has the highest score compared to the selected service component in the supplied temporary solution. The temporary solution and the found service component are supplied to the service component exchange unit 234. Details will be described later.

  The service component exchange unit 234 replaces the supplied temporary solution with the service component found by the score-up service component discovery unit 233, updates the solution, and supplies the updated solution to the service component execution / cooperation unit 24. The service component execution / linkage unit 24 transmits a function execution request for the service component to the service component providing device 6 based on the supplied solution (service scenario), and receives and receives the function execution result for the function execution request. Based on the function execution result, the service components are linked and transmitted to the user terminal device 7 as a result of the requested service execution.

  The temporary solution finding unit 232 described above includes limiting the number of service component candidates. Further, the service component exchanging unit 234 includes operating the score-up service component finding unit 233 again when it is within the range of the constraint condition. Further, the service component exchange unit 234 includes limiting the number of exchanges.

(Temporary solution discovery process and scoring service component discovery process)
Next, the temporary solution discovery process and the score-up service component discovery process of the service cooperation engine 2 according to the present embodiment will be described.

  FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram for explaining an example of a temporary solution finding process and a score-up service component finding process of the service cooperation engine 2 according to the present embodiment. As a restraint condition, the price is taken and it is said that it is 200 yen or less. In FIG. 3A, for each service category A to F, a plurality of service component candidates (1), (2),... Are found, and the constraint condition is the price. The result of assigning the price of -F is omitted. FIG. 3B shows the result of assigning scores for each service component (omitted for service categories D to F).

  First, the temporary solution discovery process will be described. The temporary solution is to select a service component that minimizes a price that is a constraint condition for all service categories. Here, as shown by the symbol a shown in FIG. 3A, service components of all 0 yen are selected. That is, in service category A, service component (2) is selected, in service category B, service component (3) is selected, and in service category C, service component (3) is selected.

  Next, the score-up service component discovery process will be described. In FIG. 3A, the score is 0.6 + 0.3 + 0.3 = 1.2 from the selected service components (2), (3), and (3). As shown in FIG. 3B, the service category B service component is changed from (3) to (1) as shown in FIG. 3B. It is to be. As a result, the price is 100 yen as shown by symbol b in FIG. 3A, and the score is 0.6 + 0.9 + 0.3 = 1.8.

  Since the constraint condition still has room, if the number of replacements is within the limit, the service score of service category C can be changed from (3) to (1). It is. As a result, the price will be 200 yen and the score will be raised to 2.2.

(Service linkage engine operation)
Next, the operation of the service cooperation engine 2 according to this embodiment will be described.
FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an operation example of the service cooperation engine 2 according to the present embodiment. In FIG. 4, a service scenario setting unit 21 receives a service provision request (step A1), sets a service scenario (step A2), a service component detection unit 22 detects a service component (step A3), and selects a service component. The evaluation unit 231 of the unit 23 gives a score or the like (step A4).

  Next, it is determined whether or not the temporary solution finding unit 232 is set in advance to limit the number of service component candidates (step A5). A6) A temporary solution is found (step A7). Next, the score-up service component discovery unit 233 finds a service component that increases the score (step A8), replaces it with the service component found by the service component exchange unit 234, and updates the solution (step A9).

  Next, it is determined whether or not the constraint condition has a margin (step A10). If there is a margin, it is further determined whether or not the number of replacements is within the limit (step A11). If it is within the limit, the process returns to step A8 and the above-described processing is repeated.

  On the other hand, if the constraint condition is not sufficient, or if the number of replacements reaches the limit, the service component execution / linkage unit 24 executes / links the service component based on the solution updated in step A9 (step A12), the requested service execution result is transmitted to the user terminal device 7 (step A13).

(System operation)
Next, the operation of the system according to the present embodiment will be described.
FIG. 5 is a sequence diagram showing an example of the overall operation of the service providing system according to the present embodiment. FIG. 5 shows a sequence among the user terminal device 7, service cooperation engine 2, service scenario DB 3, service component information DB 4, user context policy DB 5, and service component providing device 6.

  When the user terminal device 7 sends a service provision request to the service cooperation engine 2 (step B1), the service cooperation engine 2 sets a service scenario (step B2), detects a service component (step B3), and gives a score, etc. (Step B4). Next, a temporary solution is found (step B5), a service component having a higher score is found (step B6), the solution is replaced with the found service component and the solution is updated (step B7), and the service component is updated based on the updated solution. Execution / cooperation is performed (step B8), and the service execution result is transmitted to the user terminal device 7 (step B9).

  In step B5, the number of service component candidates may be limited. Further, in step B7, when it is within the range of the constraint condition (when there is a margin), it may be returned to step B6. In step B7, the number of exchanges may be limited.

  According to the above-described embodiment, it is possible to select an appropriate service component that matches the upper limit of the constraint condition attached to the cooperation service and that has a high score. Therefore, the user can listen to requests such as price and response time, and can use the linked service with peace of mind. In addition, for service providers, provision of linked services to users can be performed efficiently (highly satisfactory solutions can be found as such at high speed), leading to differentiation from competitors.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to the form demonstrated using FIGS. 1-5, In the range which does not deviate from the main point, it can be variously changed.

  As described above, it is obvious that the present invention can be used industrially. In other words, it is possible for users to listen to requests such as price and response time, so it is possible to use cooperative services with peace of mind. For service providers, provision of cooperative services to users is efficient (high-speed and satisfactory) It is possible to find a high-quality solution), and this will lead to differentiation from competitors, so the use of services can be expanded and the demand for systems and related devices can be expected to increase further.

It is a block diagram which shows the structural example of the service provision system by embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structural example of the service cooperation engine 2 by this embodiment. It is a conceptual diagram for demonstrating the example of a temporary solution discovery process of the service cooperation engine 2 by this embodiment, and a score-up service component discovery process example. It is a flowchart which shows the operation example of the service cooperation engine 2 by this embodiment. It is a sequence diagram which shows the example of whole operation | movement of the service provision system by this embodiment. It is a conceptual diagram for demonstrating the process which selects and cooperates a service component based on the score by a prior art.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Network 2 Service cooperation engine 21 Service scenario setting part 22 Service component detection part 23 Service component selection part 231 Evaluation part 2311 Score provision part (score provision means)
2312 Price granting part (constraint condition index giving means)
232 Temporary solution discovery part (temporary solution discovery means)
233 Score-up service component discovery unit (score-up service component discovery means)
234 Service Component Exchange Unit (Service Component Exchange Means)
24 Service Component Execution / Linkage Department 3 Service Scenario DB
4 Service component information DB
5 User Context Policy DB
6 Service component providing device 7 User terminal device

Claims (9)

A service component selection method for selecting a service component constituting the linkage service when providing a linkage service that links available service components based on a specified service scenario,
A score giving step for giving a score by performing a predetermined evaluation on each of the available service components selected based on the service scenario;
A constraint condition index providing step of providing an index for a predetermined constraint condition for each of the available service components;
A temporary solution discovery step of selecting, from among the available service components, a service component that satisfies the constraint condition as a temporary solution of the cooperative service;
A score-up service component discovery step of finding a service component having the highest score among service components selected as a temporary solution of the cooperation service;
A service component exchange step of exchanging the service component selected as a temporary solution of the cooperative service with the service component having the highest score and updating the temporary solution of the cooperative service. Service component selection method.   2. The service component selection method according to claim 1, wherein the temporary solution discovery step limits the number of service components to be selected when selecting as a temporary solution of the cooperative service.   When the service component included in the temporary solution updated by the service component replacement step is within the range of the constraint condition, the score-up service component discovery step and the service component replacement step are executed again. The service component selection method according to claim 1.   The service component selection method according to claim 1, wherein the service component replacement step limits the number of times the service component is replaced. A service component selection device that selects a service component that constitutes the linkage service when providing a linkage service that links available service components based on a specified service scenario;
Score giving means for giving a score by performing a predetermined evaluation on each of the available service components selected based on the service scenario;
Constraint condition index giving means for giving an index for a predetermined constraint condition for each of the available service components;
Temporary solution finding means for selecting a service component satisfying the constraint condition from the available service components as a temporary solution of the cooperative service;
Among the service components selected as a temporary solution of the cooperation service, a score-up service component finding unit for finding a service component having the highest score;
Service component exchange means for exchanging the service component selected as the temporary solution of the cooperative service and the service component having the highest score, and updating the temporary solution of the cooperative service; A service component selection device.   6. The service component selection apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the temporary solution finding means limits the number of service components to be selected when selecting as a temporary solution of the cooperative service.   When the service component included in the temporary solution updated by the service component exchange unit is within the range of the constraint condition, the score-up service component discovery unit and the service component exchange unit are operated again. The service component selection device according to claim 5.   6. The service component selecting apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the service component exchanging means limits the number of exchanges of the service component. A computer that controls a service component selection device that selects a service component that constitutes the linkage service when providing a linkage service that links available service components based on a specified service scenario.
A score giving step for giving a score by performing a predetermined evaluation on each of the available service components selected based on the service scenario;
A constraint condition index providing step of providing an index for a predetermined constraint condition for each of the available service components;
A temporary solution discovery step of selecting, from among the available service components, a service component that satisfies the constraint condition as a temporary solution of the cooperative service;
A score-up service component discovery step of finding a service component having the highest score among service components selected as a temporary solution of the cooperation service;
A service component exchange step of exchanging the service component selected as the temporary solution of the cooperative service with the service component having the highest score and updating the temporary solution of the cooperative service; Service component selection program.

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