JP2002098537A - Facilities information providing system and recording medium - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a cookshop information providing/booking service with elaborateness and high usability. SOLUTION: A car navigator 2 is connected to a terminal device 1 (e.g. a cellular phone, a portable information device or the like) mounted on a vehicle of a user as an object who is a driver or the like chiefly. A recommendation information or the like about each participating cookshop is stored in a participating cookshop database (DB) 11 at a site 10. The congestion situation in each cookshop is also stored and updated from an information processing terminal 7a-7d in each participating cookshop at any time (1 participating cookshop information registration). When the user accesses this system, appropriate cookshops are searched on the basis of an information including a current position/travel direction of the user obtained from the car navigator 2, the information in the participating cookshop DB 11, a road information DB 12 and a traffic information system 14. Then, the information also including the congestion situation is displayed on the terminal device of the user (2 cookshop information search). The booking is also received. In the case that the user accesses for booking, the contents of the booking are communicated to the cookshop in booking destination, and this log information is stored in a booking log DB 13 (3 booking reception).

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an apparatus for providing information on a facility such as a restaurant.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A current car navigation system (also referred to as a car navigation system for short) uses a real-time traffic congestion information obtained from a road traffic information system (ITS) to instruct a route to a destination. In addition to basic features such as finding the best directions to your destination,
It has various additional information provision functions.

For example, by displaying the positions of various facilities (gas stations, parking lots, restaurants, accommodation facilities, etc.) on a map, or by inputting conditions and the like, information on desired facilities (for example, around the destination) Etc. of the facility) can be displayed. In addition, a new service for the driver is provided by connecting the mobile terminal and the car navigation, such as “i-mode service for car navigation” (i-mode is a registered trademark of NTT Mobile Communication Network Co., Ltd.). Is about to begin. In addition, this "i-mode for car navigation
In the “service”, for example, display of restaurant information, display of character information captured by i-mode on a car navigation screen,
Transmission / reception of an e-mail to which position information is attached is performed.

[0004]

As described above, an environment for providing an information providing service using a car navigation system is being prepared. As a result, even while traveling by car, it is possible to obtain and utilize various information (for example, restaurant information and the like), thereby improving the convenience of the driver (including the passenger).

[0005] However, users are demanding more elaborate and highly convenient services. An object of the present invention is to automatically search for a facility such as an appropriate restaurant, to provide real-time information such as the current congestion status of the facility / estimated time to arrival, and to make reservations and follow-up from reservation to arrival. It is an object of the present invention to provide a facility information providing apparatus that can provide detailed and convenient services related to information provision / reservation.

[0006]

According to the present invention, there is provided a facility information providing apparatus for storing facility information for storing information on each facility, map information storing means for storing road map information, and a user terminal. A search condition determining means for narrowing a search range of the facility information to an arbitrary area based on information on a current position and a traveling direction of a coming user and road map information stored in the map information storing means; A facility information providing means for searching for the facility existing in the area determined by the means by searching the facility information storage means and displaying the information of the facility on the user terminal is provided.

[0007] According to the facility information providing apparatus, even if the user does not input search conditions one by one, the search range is automatically narrowed down to search for an appropriate facility (in which the user is heading). Information to the user. Also,
The facility information providing device further includes, for example, a required predicted time calculating means for calculating a required predicted time until the user arrives at each facility searched by the facility information providing means, and stores the required predicted time in the facility information storing means. The information on each facility includes data indicating the current congestion status of each facility, which is updated from time to time from a store terminal installed at each facility, and the information displayed on the user terminal includes the estimated required time. And congestion data.

[0008] By doing so, for example, the user can select a facility while avoiding a crowded facility, and can use an optimal facility according to the current situation. Further, the facility information providing apparatus according to the present invention presents facility information in response to access from a user terminal and accepts a reservation for the presented facility, and information on the reservation accepted by the reservation accepting means. And a reservation information notifying unit for notifying the terminal of the reserved facility.

According to the facility information providing apparatus, the user can not only refer to the information of each facility but also make a reservation for a desired facility (reservation of a seat, reservation of a menu (order), etc.).
With this, the user does not have to worry about waiting after arriving at the facility, and furthermore, in a facility such as a restaurant, the shop can prepare for cooking in advance, so that even after arriving at a seat, the user can relatively prepare. Start eating in a short time.

[0010] Further, the facility information providing device is, for example,
The information processing apparatus further includes a reservation log information storage unit that stores log information related to the reservation, and after the reservation, mediates exchange of information between the user terminal and the facility terminal using the reservation log information. For example, when the arrival of the user is likely to be delayed, if a delay notification is sent from the user terminal, the notification is transferred to the facility terminal so that the facility changes / adjusts the schedule. Response is possible. In this way, even if you do not go as planned after booking,
Can follow to some extent.

Further, the present invention can be configured as a computer-readable recording medium itself in which a program for causing a computer to execute the above various functions is recorded.

[0012]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of the entire configuration relating to a restaurant information providing / reserving service according to this example.

The user of the restaurant information providing / reserving service according to the present embodiment will be described as being a driver (and the passenger), but is not limited to this. In addition, the driver may be any driver such as a occupational driver such as a taxi or a truck, a person driving on business such as a business, a drive with family members, and the like.

The target user is not particularly limited, but the vehicle 1 of the user of the restaurant information providing / reserving service needs to have an in-vehicle terminal 1. Also, in this example, a description will be given assuming that a position information system (such as a car navigation system 2) using GPS is mounted on the user's car (the present invention is not limited to this, and the current position and the traveling direction are measured). Any device can be used as long as the current position can be detected by using a PHS, for example).

The in-vehicle terminal 1 is a portable communication terminal (wireless communication terminal) such as a portable telephone / PHS, and a portable information device (PDA (Personal Digital Assistan) connected to the portable communication terminal.
t), HPC (Handheld PC), notebook type personal computer, etc.), or these portable information devices having a wireless communication function.

[0016] Even when the portable communication terminal is used alone,
Even when a portable information device is used, it is basically configured to communicate with the base station 3 wirelessly and access each site from there via the mobile communication network 4 (packet network) and the Internet 5. I have. Even if the information provided by the site is a WWW page in the simplified HTML format or a WWW page in the HTML format, the site is accessed and the home page is displayed, and the two-way exchange is possible. Since there is no change in what can be done (the site 10 should be able to handle both of them), these will be described below without any particular distinction.

In FIG. 1, a site 10 is a server device (restaurant information providing / reserving device) for providing various services related to restaurant information providing / reserving, and has a function as an Internet server (WWW server) ( This is well known and will not be described in detail.)

The site 10 is provided with a member restaurant DB (database) 11, a road information DB 12, and a reservation log DB 13. Further, the site 10 is connected to the road traffic information system 14 (for example, V
ICS (registered trademark of the Road Traffic Information and Communication System Center), but is not limited to this, and is provided with current (latest) traffic jam information.
Note that VICS transmits traffic congestion information and the like to each car by using a beacon or the like. Therefore, if this beacon can be received, it is not necessary to connect to the dedicated line or the like.

The site 10 is connected via the network 6 to the information processing terminal 7a installed at each member restaurant.
7d (PC, PDA, etc.). The network 6 may be the Internet (further including a telephone line or the like) or a dedicated line.

The information processing terminals 7a to 7d are provided with, for example, a browser function, and are always connected to the site 10 via the network 6.
(At least constantly during business hours) and display a dedicated website for each member restaurant. This home page is, for example, FIG.
Is a screen for providing information to the center (site 10) as shown in FIG. 7, and when reservation is made, reservation information is displayed.

The site 10 firstly has a function of storing / updating information of each store inputted from the information processing terminals 7a to 7d of each member restaurant in the member restaurant DB 11 (member store information). Registration). Second, when there is access from a user, an appropriate restaurant is searched based on the information of the member restaurant DB 11, the road information DB 12, and the road traffic information system 14, and the information is presented to the user. Function (restaurant information search). Thirdly, when the user makes a reservation, the reservation log DB 13 is provided with a function of notifying the reservation destination to the restaurant of the reservation destination and storing this reservation log information in the reservation log DB 13. The reservation log information
This is used when following a reservation, which will be described later, or when charging. Details will be described later.

FIG. 2 is a hardware configuration diagram of the site 10 (server device). The illustrated server device 20 has a CP
U21, memory 22, communication unit 23, storage unit 24, and the above-mentioned member restaurant DB11, road information DB12, reservation log D
B13 and the like. Further, there may be an input unit (keyboard, mouse, etc.) and a display unit (display, etc.) not shown.

The CPU 21 is a central processing unit that controls the entire server device 20. The memory 22 is, for example, a RAM
And the like, and temporarily store programs and data when performing any processing. The communication unit 23 is a transmission control unit for connecting to the Internet and causing the server device 20 to exchange information bidirectionally with each client.

The storage unit 24 stores at least the data shown in FIG.
The program for providing the restaurant information providing / reserving service shown in FIG. Also, a program for realizing a function as an Internet server (WWW server) is stored. The entity of the storage unit 24 includes a magnetic or optical recording medium or a recording medium readable by a CPU such as a semiconductor memory. The recording medium includes a portable medium (portable recording medium 24a) such as a CD-ROM 25 and a floppy (registered trademark) disk 26, and a fixed medium such as a hard disk. Further, a configuration may be adopted in which the communication unit 23 receives a part or all of the programs, data, and the like stored in the recording medium via a transmission medium such as a network line (the Internet or the like). Further, the recording medium may be a recording medium such as another server constructed on a network. Further, the program may be configured to be transmitted to another server or client via a transmission medium such as a network line and installed in these devices.

Next, member restaurant DB11, road information DB
12, the reservation log DB 13 will be described.
First, this service (restaurant information provision / reservation service)
The restaurants that provide information to users at are stores that are affiliated in advance (hereinafter referred to as affiliated restaurants).
The shop name, the location of the shop, the telephone number, the introduction of the shop, the introduction of the menu, the recommended information, and the like are registered, and these information are stored in the member restaurant DB11. The shop introduction, menu introduction, recommended information, etc. can be updated at any time after joining.

Further, the member restaurant DB 11 stores data indicating the congestion status of each restaurant in the restaurant. The congestion status data is input from the information processing terminals 7a to 7d at any time (for example, when the congestion status changes) at the current congestion status of the store, and is updated as needed. This allows
As described later, the user can select a restaurant in consideration of the current congestion state of each restaurant.

The road information DB 12 stores information necessary for general car navigation such as road map information associated with latitude / longitude information. Site 10
The (server device 20) uses this road information DB 12 and information obtained from the road traffic information system 14 (here, VICS will be described as an example),
A function is provided for determining the current position (position on the road) based on the GPS position information, searching for a route to the destination / calculating the required time (considering the latest congestion information), and the like. That is, it has a function as a so-called VICS-compatible car navigation system.

When the user makes a reservation for a member restaurant (details will be described later), the reservation log DB 13 records information relating to the reservation. For example, the reservation shop, reservation time, current location, estimated arrival time, reservation information (number of reservations,
Reservation menu, etc.), user information, and the like.

The information recorded in the reservation log DB 13 is used to provide a service for tracking / supporting from the point of reservation to arrival. Further, it is used as a database for a billing process according to the usage status (details will be described later). It is also conceivable to accumulate this information as usage information and link it to various analyzes, marketing, service improvement for individual users, and the like.

FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining an example of a processing procedure of services provided by the site 10 such as restaurant information provision / reservation. A program for realizing each function shown in this flowchart is stored in a recording medium (such as the storage unit 24) in the form of a program code readable by the CPU. This program can also be transmitted in the form of a program code via a transmission medium such as a network line.

First, on each member restaurant side, for example, a clerk or the like, the information processing terminals 7a to 7d installed in each store.
From here (hereinafter, referred to as a store terminal), the congestion status of the own store is input at any time and notified to the site 10 (center) side (step S23). The site 10 updates the member restaurant DB 11 every time it receives this notification (step S12).

On the other hand, in each car, when the user wants to receive the restaurant information providing / reserving service, the above-mentioned on-board terminal 1 (hereinafter referred to as a user terminal (user terminal)) is used. For example, this service name (for example, “providing restaurant information provision / reservation”) is selected from a menu list (step S1). Or site 1
A URL of 0 may be input.

When the service is started, the user terminal first receives the current car position (latitude / longitude information etc. obtained from GPS) from the car navigation system 2 connected to the user terminal. The direction data is acquired (step S2), and this data is transmitted to the site 10 together with the search request command (step S3).

When the site 10 receives the search request,
A process of automatically narrowing down the search range (area) to search for a member restaurant is performed (step S13). The details of this search processing are shown in FIG. In FIG. 4, when the site 10 receives the search request command including the information on the current position and the traveling direction of the user (step S28), first, the road information D
Using B12, the area to be searched is narrowed down (step S29). In general, the search is performed within a predetermined range from the current position of the user in the traveling direction (a range from the current position or the time taken until arrival is less than a predetermined value). Although it is an area that should be covered, the specific method varies. For example, it is a fan-shaped area having an arbitrary angle with the traveling direction as a central axis from the current position. Alternatively, since the car does not always proceed in the current traveling direction (turn right / left on the way or the road itself may be curved), for example, it is determined on which road the current position is. (For example, it is determined that the vehicle is traveling on National Highway No. 1), and an area within a predetermined range (for example, about several hundred meters) along this road may be set as the search target area. Alternatively, if the user sets a destination in the car navigation 2 and is on the way to the destination, the car navigation 2 should search for and record the route to the destination. If this route information is also sent to the site 10 together with the current position and traveling direction data, an area within a predetermined range (for example, about several hundred meters) along this route can be set as a search target area. There are various other methods, and the method is not particularly limited to these specific methods.

After the search range (area) is narrowed down in step S29, the member restaurants existing in the area are searched using the member restaurant DB 11 (step S29).
30). Since the location of each affiliated restaurant is registered, the affiliated restaurant whose location is within the above-mentioned target area is the corresponding shop (information should be provided to the user).

Next, the required time (prediction) required for the user to arrive at each of the retrieved member restaurants is calculated (step S31). This can be realized by the same function as the car navigation. Furthermore, if the required time is calculated using the information obtained from the road traffic information system 14 by the same function as, for example, a VICS-compatible car navigation system, a calculation result with high prediction accuracy can be obtained. The calculated estimated required time data is stored in the member restaurant DB11.

Returning to FIG. 3, the description will be continued. The information of each affiliated restaurant obtained by the search processing in step S13 is read from the affiliated restaurant DB 11 and notified to the user (step S14). The user terminal receives and displays this (step S4).

FIG. 5 shows a display example. FIG. 5A is an example of a restaurant list 30 displayed on the user terminal. In the example shown in the figure, the store name 31 of each member restaurant searched and the introduction 3
2. The required time 33 and the congestion status 34 are displayed.
It is not limited to this.

The store name 31 and the introduction 32 are data such as basic information and advertisements of each store registered at the time of membership and stored in the member restaurant DB 11 (or updated at any time thereafter). The figure shows an example only, and is not limited to this. The required time 33 is a predicted value of the required time required for the user to arrive at each member restaurant, calculated in the process of step S31. The congestion status 34 indicates the current congestion status in the store. In the illustrated example, the symbol “○” indicates “vacant”, the symbol “△” indicates “slightly congested”, and the symbol “×” indicates “congested”. Of course, the present invention is not limited to such a display example, and may be displayed in, for example, characters.

As described above, the user can see not only information such as a mere introduction of each store, but also information such as the required estimated time and the current congestion status, and can select a store by comprehensive judgment taking these factors into consideration. It can be carried out. For example, if you like ramen, but you are currently crowded and don't want to wait, you will be able to make more appropriate choices depending on the situation, such as choosing from a vacant store.

When a restaurant is determined, the restaurant is selected / designated on the restaurant list 30, and a menu list 40 of the restaurant is displayed as shown in FIG. 5B, for example. In the menu list 40, a reservation can be made in addition to the menu information. That is, menu 41, feature 4
2 and the price 43 are information registered in advance by each affiliated restaurant and stored in the affiliated restaurant DB 11, but the quantity 4
Reference numeral 4 denotes a field to be input by the user. After the user inputs the desired number of reservations in the column of the quantity 44 of the desired menu (in the example shown, "vegetable hotto" is for two persons and "seafood hotto" is for one person), a "reserve" button 45 When the user presses, the user terminal transmits this reservation information to the site 10 (step S5).

If you want to see the menu of another store,
If the “cancel” button 46 is pressed, the display returns to the restaurant list 30.
Further, the data of the congestion state 34 may be used as the reservable information. That is, for example, reservations may not be made for a shop whose congestion status 34 is x (congestion).

Also, in this example, not only the reservation of the seats but also the ordering is completed in advance, so that the shop can prepare for cooking in advance, thereby enabling the user to make a comparative preparation after the arrival. It is a service that allows you to start a meal in a short time (ideally no waiting time), but it is not limited to this. Some users want to reserve only the seats and select the menu after actually entering the store, so it is not shown, but for example, a column for entering the number of reserved people is provided, and the number of people is entered in this column and " By pressing the "reservation" button 45, only seat reservation may be made. Also, there may be users who do not make a reservation but want to go to the selected store, so they are not shown, for example, "designate store",
A button meaning “acquisition of shop location coordinates” may be displayed, and when this button is pressed, a request to acquire location coordinates of the selected shop may be transmitted to the site 10.

When the site 10 receives the store designation (reservation) information transmitted from the user terminal in step S5 (step S15), it first determines whether it is a reservation or a position coordinate acquisition request. Location coordinates (latitude /
(Longitude) information is transmitted to the user terminal (step S1).
6). The user terminal passes the received position coordinate information to the car navigation. In the car navigation, the position coordinates are set as the destination, and navigation to the shop is started (step S6). In a service that merely provides various types of information on restaurants, it takes time and effort for the user to set a destination by referring to this information. In this example, if the user selects / designates a desired restaurant, the user is automatically instructed. Set as the earth.

Further, if the site 10 receives a position coordinate acquisition request instead of a reservation in step S15 (step S17, NO), the processing for this user is terminated. (Step S17, YES), a reservation notice is sent to the shop terminal of the reserved shop (Step S18). This reservation notice includes the reservation contents (menu and quantity,
Information such as the number of reservations) and the estimated time of arrival. still,
The estimated arrival time is obtained by adding the required estimated time to the current time. Further, a map in which the current position of the user is marked as shown in FIG. 7 may be notified using the map information of the road information DB 12. Further, the log information relating to this reservation is stored in the reservation log DB 13 (step S19). The reservation log includes not only the contents of the reservation notification, but also the reservation date and time, the identification information of the user, the identification information of the reserved shop, and the like.

The store terminal that has received the reservation notification accepts and registers the reservation (step S2).
4). The restaurant that accepts the reservation can perform various tasks to reduce the waiting time of the user (ideally zero waiting time), such as securing seats and preparing dishes, based on the contents of the reservation and the estimated arrival time. it can. This is advantageous not only for the user but also for the store, such as improvement in the quality of service and improvement in the turnover rate of customers.

As described above, the processing may be terminated when the reservation is completed, but in this example, the processing is performed until the follow-up after the reservation. That is, since the user is moving by car, the user may not go as scheduled. For example, traffic congestion that has not occurred at the time when the required estimated time is calculated may occur (accident congestion, etc.). As described above, even when the store cannot arrive at the store by the estimated arrival time for some reason, the store can follow the user to some extent if he can grasp the current state of the user. On the other hand, if the user arrives earlier than expected, the user may be wondering whether to enter the store.

As described above, even if the schedule is slightly out of order, if information is provided, the restaurant side can quickly respond to changes in the situation by changing the work schedule or making effective use of vacant seats. Thus, the site 10 of the present example bridges information between the user terminal and the store terminal as described below as a follow-up after the reservation.

First, after setting the destination in the car navigation system in step S6, the user is traveling toward the destination according to the instruction of the car navigation system. In this state, the user terminal determines whether or not the user terminal has arrived at the store at any time (step S7).
And the current time is slightly before the expected arrival time (10 in this example).
Minutes ago) (step S10). Usually, a car navigation system has a function of recognizing arrival at a destination and notifying the arrival by voice or the like.
If the user terminal obtains this information from the car navigation system, it can make the determination in step S7.

In step S7, if it is determined that the vehicle has arrived (step S7, YES) (however, in this example, step S10 means that the vehicle arrived 10 minutes before the scheduled arrival time). Terminal is site 1
0 is notified that it has arrived (step S8).
The site 10 transfers the arrival notification to the store terminal based on the log information stored in the reservation log DB 13 (Step S20). The store terminal receives this arrival notification (step S25) and displays it. As described above, when the user arrives before the scheduled arrival time, the store determines whether or not a clerk has a vacant seat and operates the store terminal. A "waiting instruction" is notified, and if the seat is vacant, "preparation OK" is notified (step S26).

The site 10 transfers this notification to the user terminal (step S21), and displays it on the user terminal (step S9). In this way, even if the user arrives earlier than expected, he / she can wait slowly in the car until he / she is notified of "preparation OK" without hesitation as to whether to enter the store.

On the other hand, a little before the scheduled arrival time (in this example, 10 minutes before, but 5 minutes or 3 minutes ago,
If the user terminal has not arrived at the store (step S10, YES), the user terminal determines whether or not to issue a delay notification to the user by voice or display. Encourage the judgment of. The user determines whether or not it is possible to arrive by the scheduled arrival time, and if it is unlikely to arrive, transmits a delay notification (step S11). Site 1
0 transfers this delay notification to the store terminal (step S
22). The store terminal receives and displays the delay notification (step S27). As a result, the store can know in advance that the arrival of the user will be delayed and take measures such as adjusting the schedule. Also, usually, the car navigation system recalculates and displays the estimated time required to reach the destination at any time, so if the latest information is acquired and included in the delay notification, the store side will have a few minutes You can know if you will arrive at. Further, in addition to the delay notification, when it is determined that it is possible to arrive on schedule, a notification that “arrives on schedule” may be sent. In this way, the shop can continue preparation work with confidence.

FIG. 6 shows an example of an information providing screen for notifying the congestion status described in step S23. For example, it is assumed that an information providing screen 50 to the center (site 10) as shown in the drawing is displayed on each store terminal at normal times. On the information providing screen 50, for example, items indicating the congestion status such as "congestion" 51, "slightly congestion" 52, and "congestion cancellation" 53 are displayed. The clerk looks at the inside of the store and selects / designates any of these items when the congestion status changes. The method of selection / designation may be, for example, using a mouse or the like, or in the case of a touch panel, by directly touching a display position on the screen to designate. In response to this, the congestion state data stored in the member restaurant DB 11 is updated.

The information providing screen 50 displays not only the congestion status but also items such as "end of business hours" 54 and "change of menu" 55. "Business hours end" 5
If you select / specify 4, the site 10 that received this notification
Will not present the information of this store to the user until the start of business is notified later. If the store's business hours (including information such as regular holidays) are registered in the site 10 at the time of joining, etc., it is not necessary to notify the start / end of business every time. As described above, each member restaurant can update the information registered at the beginning, such as “Introduction of shop”, “Introduction of menu”, and “Recommended information” at any time. "Change menu" 55 is shown.
When "change menu" 55 is selected / designated, an update screen for information on "menu introduction" registered in the member restaurant DB 11 is displayed, and the clerk or the like performs data update work.

FIG. 7 is displayed on the store terminal at the time of reservation.
It is a map display example of the current position of the user's car. this is,
When the reservation notification is sent to the store terminal in step S18, it is displayed on the display of the store terminal. After confirming the above-mentioned reservation contents (number of people, menu, estimated arrival time, etc.), the clerk or the like can refer to this map display screen 60 to grasp the current position of the user. When "Confirm" 61 is selected / designated, the screen returns to the information providing screen 50.

Finally, charging will be described. This can be done by using any of the existing methods, and will not be described in detail. However, in general, for example, when a usage fee is collected from a user, a unique mobile phone-specific method is used. In the information providing service, for example, a usage fee of about 100 yen or 200 yen per month is collected in advance. Alternatively, the information of the reservation log DB 13 may be accumulated for, for example, one month, and each user may be charged according to the number of times of use, usage time, data amount of packet communication, etc. for one month. . Alternatively, since the restaurants can enjoy the merits of increasing the customer collection rate and improving the quality of service by joining, the membership fee may be collected from these affiliated restaurants. Alternatively, an advertisement may be displayed on the screen of the restaurant list 20 or the like, and an advertisement fee may be collected.

In the above description of the embodiment, the search range (area) is automatically set based on the position information and the traveling direction of the car.
By narrowing down the search conditions, the user does not have to input the search condition every time. However, there may be a case where the user wants to freely specify the search condition. Therefore, the user may be able to specify a desired (want to eat) area by selection. This makes it possible to perform a more appropriate restaurant search.

Further, an arbitrary search condition other than "region" may be added. For example, it is possible to specify a time (time zone) at which the user wants to eat, or to specify a budget or the like, so that a more appropriate restaurant search can be performed. Further, in the above description of the embodiment, it has been described that the target user of the service is a person who is moving by car, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a similar service can be provided to railway users. In other words, by using software that can search for a route (route) to the destination, calculate the required time including the transfer time, and use a service that transmits real-time traffic information such as a railway accident, Service can be provided. It is also possible to target pedestrians.

[0059]

As described above in detail, according to the facility information providing apparatus of the present invention, it is possible to provide services such as information provision and reservation highly convenient for users in various points. For example, even if the user does not enter search conditions one by one,
It is possible to narrow down the search range (area) based on the information on the user's current position / traveling direction, and to provide appropriate information on facilities such as restaurants. In addition, the information provided to the user can include real-time information such as the current congestion state of the facility and the estimated time to arrival, thereby allowing the user to select an appropriate facility. In addition, reservations can be accepted, and the user can wait very little after arriving at the facility. Further, it is possible to provide a fine-grained service, such as following up from the reservation to arrival and notifying the facility in advance when it is likely to be behind schedule.

[0060] Further, not only users but also facilities such as restaurants can be provided with merits such as an improvement in the rate of attracting customers and an improvement in the quality of services.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of the entire configuration relating to a restaurant information providing / reserving service.

FIG. 2 is a hardware configuration diagram of a site (server device).

FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining an example of a processing procedure of a service such as restaurant information provision / reservation.

FIG. 4 is a detailed flowchart of a search process in step S13 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5A is a diagram illustrating an example of a restaurant list displayed on a user terminal, and FIG. 5B is a diagram illustrating an example of a menu list.

FIG. 6 is an example of an information providing screen displayed on each store terminal for notifying a congestion state and the like.

FIG. 7 is a map display example of a current position of a user's car, which is displayed on a store terminal at the time of reservation.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 In-vehicle terminal 2 Car navigation 3 Base station 4 Mobile communication network 5 Internet 6 Network 7a-7d Information processing terminal 10 Site 11 Member restaurant DB 12 Road information DB 13 Reservation log DB 14 Road traffic information system 20 Server device 21 CPU 22 Memory 23 Communication unit 24 Storage unit 24a Portable storage medium 25 CD-ROM 26 Floppy disk 30 List of restaurants 31 Store name 32 Introduction 33 Time required 34 Congestion status 40 Menu list 41 Menu 42 Features 43 Price 44 Quantity 45 "Reservation" button 46 “Cancel” button 50 Information provision screen 51 “Congestion” 52 “Slightly congestion” 53 “Congestion release” 54 “End of business hours” 55 “Change menu” 60 Map display screen 61 “Confirmation”

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Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. facility information storage means for storing information on each facility; map information storage means for storing road map information; information on a current position and a traveling direction of a user sent from a user terminal; Based on the road map information stored in the map information storage means, a search condition determining means for narrowing the search range of the facility information to an arbitrary area; and a facility existing in the area determined by the search condition determining means, And a facility information providing means for searching and finding the facility information storage means and displaying information on the facility on a user terminal. 2. The facility information storage means further comprises a required predicted time calculating means for calculating a required predicted time until the user arrives at each facility searched by the facility information providing means. Information includes
Data indicating the current congestion status of each facility, which is updated from time to time from the store terminal installed at each facility, is included, and the information to be displayed on the user terminal includes the data of the required estimated time and the congestion status. Claim 1 characterized by the following:
The described facility information providing device. 3. A reservation receiving means for presenting facility information in response to access from a user terminal and receiving a reservation for the presented facility; and transmitting the information of the reservation received by the reservation receiving means to the reserved facility. A facility information providing device, comprising: a reservation information notifying unit for notifying the terminal of the facility information. 4. A reservation log information storage means for storing log information relating to the reservation, wherein after the reservation, information exchange between the user terminal and the facility terminal is performed using the reservation log information. 4. The facility information providing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the facility information is provided through mediation. 5. A function of providing, to the user terminal, facility information obtained by narrowing down a search range based on information on the current position and traveling direction of the user sent from the user terminal to the computer. And a computer-readable recording medium recording a program for executing, when the user terminal makes a reservation for a facility, a function of notifying the terminal of the reserved facility of the reservation information.