JP2008181335A - Information management device, information distribution system, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To widely use an electronic document with an electronic tag, etc., added thereto by a person other than an adding person. <P>SOLUTION: An information display device 21 adds tag information to a document file and displays it. An information management server device 11 collects tag information from the plurality of information display devices 21, tabulates the information, and generates tag tabulation information. The tag tabulation information is distributed from the information management server device 11 to the information display devices 21 and displayed by the information display devices 21 together with the document file. Then, the frequency level of a tag included in the tag tabulation information is displayed in the close vicinity of the document, thereby allowing the user to visually recognize which description part is noted by the other user among the respective pages of the document. The document file with the tag tabulation information is an advantage for the user. The value may be charged to the user in a system. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a technique for distributing information to which additional information such as an electronic tag is added.

A technique for adding information desired by the viewer to an electronic document is known. Examples of information to be added include what is called an electronic sticky note, underline or marker line written in a character string in a document, various comments, and notes. Among these additional information, for example, as a method for inputting an electronic sticky note, a method is known in which the position of the electronic sticky note is specified by bringing a pen device into contact with a display surface constituted by a pressure-sensitive touch panel. As a method for displaying an electronic sticky note, a method of superimposing and displaying an object image imitating a sticky note to be pasted on a paper document at a specified position on the electronic document is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
JP 2006-53741 A

An electronic document to which additional information as described above is added is used by the individual viewer who made the addition, or at best by a person who has a direct human relationship with the individual (for example, a supervisor at work). Only.
The present invention was devised not to limit the use of a document to which additional information was added to such a specific person but to further explore its utility value, and its purpose was to add the additional information. The information is also used by a person other than the person who added the information.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the present invention relates to storage means for storing information in association with an identifier assigned to the information, information for reading the information and its identifier from the storage means, and displaying the information Information transmitting means for transmitting the read information and the identifier to the display device, additional information added to the information in the information display device, and an identifier of the information to which the additional information is added A receiving unit; a totaling information updating unit that totalizes the additional information received by the receiving unit for each piece of information, and stores the totaling information related to the totaling result in the storage unit in association with the identifier of the information; In response to a request designating an identifier, the total information stored in association with the identifier is read from the storage means, and the information display device Providing information management apparatus characterized by comprising a total information transmission means signals for.
According to the present invention, since information added with additional information can be displayed by an information display device other than the information display device that performed the addition, information other than the person who added the information added with the additional information can be displayed. It can be used by any person.

  The additional information includes a position where the additional information is added to the information by the information display device, and the total information includes a result of totaling the number of the additional information for each position, and the total information Preferably, the transmission means transmits data for displaying an image representing the result of the aggregation in the vicinity of each of the positions in the information display device as the aggregation information. It is more desirable that the image representing the result of the totalization is a grayscale image whose density varies depending on the result of the totalization. This is because the result of the aggregation can be easily recognized at a glance.

In addition to the additional information and the identifier of the information, the receiving unit receives attribute information of the user to which the additional information is added by the communication unit, and the total information updating unit is received by the receiving unit. The additional information is totaled for each information and each attribute information, and the total information related to the total result is stored in the storage means in association with the identifier of the information and the attribute information, the total information transmission means, In response to a request specifying the identifier and the attribute information, the aggregate information stored in association with the identifier and the attribute information is read from the storage unit and transmitted to the information display device by the communication unit. It may be.
Thereby, it is possible to specify the attribute information of the user to which the additional information is added and obtain the total information.

Further, it is a process for charging the consideration of the total information transmitted by the total information transmitting means to the user of the information display device that is the transmission destination of the total information, and the attribute information included in the request You may make it provide the accounting means which performs the process for charging different consideration according to the content.
Thereby, different charges can be charged according to the content of the attribute information of the user to which the additional information is added.

The additional information includes a position where the additional information is added to the information by the information display device, and a user ID assigned to the user who added the additional information. A total value including the total value obtained by counting the number of additional information for each position, and the position included in the additional information received by the receiving unit is greater than a threshold value among the total values for each position included in the total information If the position corresponds to the value, a high point is stored in association with the user ID of the user who added the additional information, while the position included in the additional information received by the receiving unit is the total If the position corresponds to a total value that is smaller than the threshold value among the total values for each position included in the information, a low point corresponding to the user ID of the user to which the additional information is added Storing whether it is desirable to or not to store the point already comprises providing means to reduce the points stored.
By giving points to the act of adding a tag, it is possible to encourage the act of adding the tag, and by adding points according to the aggregate value, only unnecessary points are added and additional points are added It can be expected to prevent fraudulent attempts to earn money.

Further, the present invention is an information distribution system comprising an information management device and a plurality of information display devices, wherein the information management device stores information and an identifier assigned to the information in association with each other. The information and its identifier are read from the storage means and transmitted to the information display device; the additional information added to the information in the information display device; and the information to which the additional information is added A receiving unit that receives an identifier; and additional information received by the receiving unit is aggregated for each piece of information, and aggregated information related to the aggregation result is stored in the storage unit in association with each identifier of the information. In response to a request specifying the identifier and the aggregate information update unit, the aggregate information stored in association with the identifier is read from the storage unit. Total information transmitting means for transmitting to the information display device, and at least one information display device of the plurality of information display devices includes the information transmitted by the information transmission device of the information management device, and For the information displayed by the first receiving means for receiving the identifier, the first display means for displaying the information received by the first receiving means, and the information displayed by the first display means, An adding means for adding the additional information in accordance with a designation of a user to browse; a first transmitting means for transmitting the additional information and an identifier of the information to which the additional information is added to the information management apparatus; And at least one of the plurality of information display devices includes: a second transmission unit configured to transmit a request for the aggregate information designating the identifier; and the request In response, a second receiving means for receiving the aggregate information transmitted by the aggregate information transmitting means of the information management device, and a second display for displaying the aggregate information together with the information corresponding to the aggregate information And an information distribution system.
According to the present invention, the information added with the additional information can be displayed on the information display device other than the information display device that performed the addition, so that the information added with the additional information can be displayed by a person other than the person who added the information. Can be used.

  The additional information includes a position where the additional information is added to the information, and the total information includes a result of totaling the number of the additional information for each position, and the second information of the information display device Preferably, the display means displays an image representing the result of the aggregation in association with each position.

Further, the present invention provides a storage unit that stores information in association with information and an identifier assigned to the information, and an information display device that reads the information and its identifier from the storage unit and displays the information. Receiving means for receiving the read information and the identifier, additional information added to the information in the information display device, and an identifier of the information to which the additional information is added Total information updating means for totalizing the additional information received by the receiving means for each piece of information and storing the total information related to the total result in the storage means in association with the identifier of the information; and In response to the specified request, the total information stored in association with the identifier is read from the storage means and sent to the information display device. It provides a program for functioning as an aggregate information transmitting means for.
According to the present invention, the information added with the additional information can be displayed on the information display device other than the information display device that performed the addition, so that the information added with the additional information can be displayed by a person other than the person who added the information. Can be used.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
[Constitution]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an overall configuration of an information distribution system 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in the figure, the information distribution system 100 includes an information management server device 11, a plurality of information display devices 21a and 21b, a plurality of communication devices 31a and 31b, a network 41, and a payment system 51. ing. Note that there may actually be more information display devices 21a and 21b and communication devices 31a and 31b than shown in the figure.

  The network 41 is a network that connects the information management server device 11, the communication devices 31a and 31b, and the information display devices 21a and 21b. For example, a plurality of types such as the Internet, a LAN (Local Area Network), a mobile phone network, or a wireless LAN. Configured by the network. The information management server device 11 stores various information called contents, and provides a service for downloading these information to the communication devices 31a and 31b and the information display devices 21a and 21b via the network 41. The information stored in the information management server device 11 may be anything as long as it is a target to which additional information is added. Here, a description will be given by taking a document file as an example. Each of the document files stored by the information management server device 11 includes file attribute information such as a file name, creation date, or creator, and a keyword related to the contents of the document file is associated with each document file. Is remembered. The users of the communication devices 31a and 31b and the information display devices 21a and 21b can search for a desired document file and download it by specifying a file name, a keyword, or the like as a search condition. The file name of the document file serves as an identifier for identifying each document file.

  The settlement system 51 is a system including various financial networks and financial institutions such as a JBA (National Bank Association) network and a CAFIS (Credit And Finance Information System) network (not shown). The information management server device 11 performs a charging process for charging the user for the consideration of the document file downloaded to the communication devices 31a and 31b and the information display devices 21a and 21b, and then performs a payment process on the payment system 51. Ask. In response to this request, payment processing by the payment system 51 is executed.

  The information display devices 21a and 21b and the communication devices 31a and 31b are user terminals used by users. The information display device and the communication device do not need to be separate devices as shown in the figure, and they may be integrated as an information display device. The information display devices 21a and 21b are display devices that display a document based on a document file. The communication devices 31a and 31b are, for example, personal computer devices or mobile phones, and function as communication means of the information display devices 21a and 21b connected to the communication devices 31a and 31b, respectively. Therefore, the communication devices 31a and 31b have a first communication function for performing data communication with the information management server device 11 and a second communication function for performing data communication with the information display devices 21a and 21b. It has. The first communication function is realized by, for example, various modems or a wireless communication circuit compliant with IMT-2000. The second communication function is realized by, for example, a serial interface conforming to the USB (Universal Serial Bus) standard, a wireless interface conforming to IrDA (Infrared Data Association), Bluetooth (registered trademark), or the like. Since the information display devices 21a and 21b have the same configuration and operation, they are collectively referred to as “information display device 21” unless it is particularly necessary to distinguish them. Similarly, when it is not necessary to distinguish between the communication devices 31a and 31b, these are collectively referred to as “communication device 31”.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of the information management server device 11.
As shown in the figure, the information management server device 11 includes a CPU 111, a ROM 112, a RAM 113, an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) 114, and an interface 115. The CPU 111 controls each unit of the information management server device 11 by executing a program stored in the ROM 112 or the HDD 114, and executes various processes on the document file. The RAM 113 functions as a work area for the CPU 111 when the CPU 111 executes a program. The HDD 114 stores a program executed by the CPU 111 and has a storage area for storing a large number of document files, tag information and tag total information described later. The interface 115 is an interface device for transmitting and receiving data via the network 41.

Here, the document file stored in the HDD 114 will be described.
A document file is a set of data representing a document composed of one or a plurality of pages. That is, the document file is a so-called multi-page file in which data for a plurality of pages can be included in one file. Of the data constituting the document file, the data representing the document of each page is hereinafter referred to as “page data”. That is, the document file includes page data for a plurality of pages. Additional information is added to the page data. The additional information includes information such as an electronic sticky note, an underline or marker line, various comments or notes, etc. In the present embodiment, “sticky note” will be described as an example. This tag is added to an arbitrary position of each page data of the document file by the information display device 21 that has downloaded the document file.

  The document file is distributed for a fee from the information management server device 11 to the users of the information display devices 21a and 21b and the communication devices 31a and 31b. For this reason, the HDD 114 stores price data representing the price of the document file in association with each document file. Further, as will be described later, a document file and sticky note total information can be set as a set and distributed to users of the information display devices 21a and 21b and the communication devices 31a and 31b, instead of a single document file. For this reason, the HDD 114 stores price data representing the price of each document file and the tag total information in association with each other. The document file and the tag total information set are set at a higher price than the document file alone. A unique user ID is assigned in advance to the users of the information display devices 21a and 21b and the communication devices 31a and 31b, and the HDD 114 also stores user information including this user ID.

  Note that it is preferable that the capacity of the document file is small from the viewpoint of being communicated via the network 41. From this point of view, the CPU 111 desirably converts the document file into data in a format compressed by a predetermined compression method. In order to ensure the confidentiality of the contents of the document, the CPU 111 preferably converts the document file into data in a format encrypted by a predetermined encryption method. However, when compression processing or encryption processing is performed, the information display device 21 or the communication device 31 needs to perform decompression (decompression) processing or decryption processing. Therefore, when the processing capacity of the CPU 211 of the information display device 21 or the CPU of the communication device 31 is limited, the document file may be in a format that does not perform compression processing or encryption processing.

Next, the configuration of the information display device 21 will be described.
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the information display device 21. As shown in the figure, the information display device 21 includes a power supply unit 210, a CPU 211, a ROM 212, a RAM 213, a flash memory 214, an interface 215, an operation unit 216, a display body controller 217, and a memory display. A body 218 and a touch screen 219 are provided. The power supply unit 210 includes a battery and a power control circuit, and supplies power required for the operation of the information display device 21. The battery of the power supply unit 210 is a rechargeable secondary battery such as a Ni—Cd battery or a Li ion battery.

  The CPU 211 executes a program stored in the ROM 212 or the flash memory 214 to display a document on the storage display 218 based on the document file, or to add tag information to the document file. I do. The RAM 213 functions as a work area for the CPU 211 when the CPU 211 executes a program. The flash memory 214 is a rewritable storage medium, and stores a program executed by the CPU 211 and a document file. The flash memory 214 may be configured to be detachable from the information display device 21. The interface 215 is an interface corresponding to an interface that realizes the second communication function of the communication devices 31a and 31b, and transmits and receives data to and from the communication device 31. The operation unit 216 includes a plurality of operation keys, and outputs an operation signal corresponding to each operation key to the CPU 211.

  The display body controller 217 includes a drive circuit that controls the operation of the memory-type display body 218. The display controller 217 supplies a drive signal corresponding to an image to be displayed to the memory display 218 and controls on / off of power supplied to the memory display 218. The memory display body 218 is a display body having a liquid crystal layer made of a memory liquid crystal. Here, the memory liquid crystal is liquid crystal that can maintain a display state (that is, gradation) without applying a voltage. As the memory liquid crystal, for example, cholesteric liquid crystal is used. The memory-type display body 218 has a plurality of rows and a plurality of columns of pixels, and each pixel has a gradation corresponding to the supplied image data. The number of gradations of each pixel of the memory display 218 is arbitrary, but in the present embodiment, it is assumed to be 16 monochrome gradations. The touch screen 219 is a transparent screen provided on the front surface of the memory-type display body 218 when viewed from the user, and senses the presence or absence of an object contact for each predetermined minute area. This minute region is associated with a pixel of the memory display 218, and preferably has the same size as this pixel. The touch screen 219 outputs a sensing signal indicating that an object is in contact for each minute region, and supplies it to the CPU 211. The memory display 218 and the touch screen 219 constitute a display unit 21D.

Next, FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the appearance of the information display device 21.
As shown in the drawing, a display unit 21D and a plurality of operation keys 216a to 216c are provided on the front surface of the information display device 21. A stylus pen 21 </ b> S is used with the information display device 21. The stylus pen 21S is a pen-like instrument for inputting a position where tag information is added to the display unit 21D, handwritten characters, and the like. The display unit 21D represents the display area of the memory display 218 described above, and includes a touch screen 219 on the surface thereof. The display area of the display unit 21D has a predetermined size, and the size is, for example, a letter size (8.5 × 11 inches) or an A4 size (210 × 297 mm). The plurality of operation keys 216a to 216c are operation elements for performing page turning operation, addition of tag information, and the like, and each generates a predetermined operation signal. As shown in FIG. 4, this operation key includes at least a movement key 216a and a tag key 216b. The movement key 216a is a cross-shaped key for changing the page of the document displayed on the display unit 21D, and is moved up and down (or left and right) by the user to change to the previous or next page or another document. An operation signal representing an instruction to that effect is generated. The tag key 216b is an operation key for instructing addition of tag information.

[data structure]
Next, the structure of data handled in the information distribution system 100 will be described.
When the document is displayed on the display unit 21D of the information display device 21, the user browses the document and performs an operation for adding a sticky note to a place where the content that should be noted by the user is written. Upon receiving this operation, the information display device 21 displays the sticky note on the display unit 21D, generates sticky note information, and stores it in the flash memory 214 in association with the document file.

An example of the tag information stored in the flash memory 214 at this time is shown in FIG.
The file attribute information such as the file name “xxx.doc”, the creation date “2006/1/15”, and the creator “XXX” illustrated in FIG. 5 is included in the document file downloaded from the information management server device 11. Since it is described, the information display device 21 may transcribe it into the tag information format. The tag information and the document file are associated with each other by the file name (document file identifier) in the file attribute information. The “sticky note position” in the figure indicates the position where the sticky note is added in the display area of the display unit 21D.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the display area of the display unit 21 </ b> D is equally divided into strip-shaped segment areas from above to below, and each position on the display area is 1 to 100 attached to each segment area. It is represented by the segment number up to. The tag is displayed in this display area, for example, as shown in FIG. An image d in the figure is an image of a sticky note. At this time, of the 100 segment areas, the segment number of the segment area to which the tag is added becomes the “tag position”. For example, FIG. 5 shows an example in which a tag is added to the position of the segment area of four segment numbers “15”, “20”, “81”, and “90” of the page assigned page number 1. Yes. Further, no sticky note is added to the page assigned page number 2, and in the page assigned page number 3, a sticky note is placed at the position of the segment areas of two segment numbers “35” and “50”. Is added. The tag information generated by the information display device 21 is transmitted to the information management server device 11 via the communication device 31.

  The information management server device 11 collects the sticky information as described above from a large number of information display devices 21, aggregates the collected sticky information for each document file, generates sticky total information related to the total result, Are stored in the HDD 114 in association with the file name of the document file.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of the tag total information.
The file attribute information such as the file name “xxx.doc”, the creation date “2006/1/15”, and the creator “XXX” illustrated in FIG. 8 is added to the tag information transmitted from the information display device 21. The tag information is associated with the document file by the file name of the file attribute information. The “tag frequency” shown in the drawing includes each position in the display area of the display unit 21D, the number of sticky notes added to the position (number of sticky notes), and the frequency level obtained from the number of sticky notes. The number of sticky notes is the total number of actually added sticky notes, and the frequency level quantitatively represents how often the sticky notes are added based on the number of sticky notes.

  This frequency level takes 16 levels from “0” to “15”. The number “16” is the same as the number of gradation levels of the information display device 21. In the example shown in FIG. 8, in the page to which page number 1 is assigned, the number of sticky notes added to the segment area of segment number “1” is “0”, so the lowest frequency level is “0”. It is associated. Although “3” sticky notes are added to the segment area of the segment number “2”, the frequency level is still “0”. Then, “20” sticky notes are added to the segment area of the segment number “3”, and the frequency level is “4”. This means that a sticky note is added at a frequency corresponding to “4” when “15” is the upper limit of the frequency level.

This frequency level is determined as follows.
The CPU 111 of the information management server device 11 specifies the number of sticky notes from the sticky note information transmitted from the information display device 21, and counts all the numbers for each position on the page of the document file. As a result, as shown in FIG. 9, for example, the number of sticky notes for each position (segment number) in a certain page is calculated. Then, all the numbers of sticky notes of the entire page are added to obtain the total value, and the number of sticky notes corresponding to 10% of the total value is obtained. By setting the number of sticky notes (shaded area in the figure) as the number of sticky notes corresponding to the upper limit value “15” of the frequency level, and dividing the number of sticky notes by 15 equally, the frequency levels 0, 1, 2, 3, The number of sticky notes corresponding to 15 levels of 4,. As a result, the number of sticky notes and the frequency level are associated with each other. Therefore, the CPU 111 may store this correspondence in the HDD 114 and specify the frequency level corresponding to the calculated number of sticky notes.

  The tag total information is transmitted from the information management server device 11 to the information display device 21 via the communication device 31 together with the document file. The information display device 21 displays an image based on the tag total information together with each page of the document file.

Here, FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the tag total information and the display form of the document.
As shown in FIG. 10, the display area of the display unit 21D includes a tag frequency display area a1 in which tag total information is displayed and a page display area a2 in which a document page is displayed. In the tag frequency display area a1, a gray image corresponding to the frequency level (that is, the number of tag numbers) is displayed. That is, a dark image is displayed in a segment area with a high frequency level (that is, a large number of sticky notes), and a light image is displayed in a segment area with a low frequency level (that is, a small number of sticky notes). In the image data for displaying such an image, the image data with the frequency level “0” is colorless, that is, the image data corresponding to the background of the document, and the image data with the frequency level “15” corresponds to black. It becomes image data.

  By browsing the frequency level of the tag in the immediate vicinity of the document in this way, the user can visually recognize which description portion of each page of the document is noticed by other users. For example, when the document is a paper, the user can instantly identify a place where important information is described. Further, when the document is a magazine or newspaper, the user can instantly identify an article or advertisement that is being watched by others. In short, the frequency level of the sticky note displayed in association with each position on the document is useful for specifying the position of information having some useful meaning for the user. Note that the correspondence between the density of the image and the frequency level may be reversed. That is, a light image may be displayed in a segment area with a high frequency level (that is, a large number of sticky notes), and a dark image may be displayed in a segment area with a low frequency level (that is, a small number of sticky notes).

[Operation]
(Operation of downloading document file and uploading tag information)
FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram showing the overall operation of the information distribution system 100.
The operation when the information display device 21a and the communication device 31a download a document file from the information management server device 11, adds tag information to the document file, and uploads it to the information management server device 11 using FIG. explain.

  First, the user operates the communication device 31a to access the document search service of the information management server device 11, and specifies a search condition such as a keyword to request a search. Upon receiving this operation (step S1), the communication device 31a transmits a search request including the specified search condition to the information management server device 11 (step S2). The CPU 111 of the information management server device 11 searches for a document file in the HDD 114 based on the received search condition (step S3). When the document file that matches the search condition is searched, the CPU 111 transmits the search result to the communication device 31a (step S4). This search result includes file attributes such as the file name of the document file obtained by the search, the gist of the document, and the like. The user refers to the search result and performs an operation on the communication device 31a by designating the file name of the desired document file and instructing the download. In response to this operation, the communication device 31a transmits a download request including the file name of the designated document file to the information management server device 11 (step S5).

  When receiving the download request, the CPU 111 of the information management server device 11 performs a charging process for charging the user for the price of the document file having the file name included in the request (step S6). Next, the CPU 111 reads out the document file with the file name from the HDD 114 and transmits it to the communication device 31a (step S7). The details of the billing process in step S6 will be described later.

  The document file downloaded by the communication device 31a is temporarily stored in the communication device 31a. When the user performs a predetermined transfer operation using the communication device 31a (step S8), the transfer is performed from the interface of the communication device 31a to the interface 215 of the information display device 21a according to the operation (step S9). As described above, this transfer process may be performed in response to a user's transfer operation in the communication device 31a, or may be performed in response to a transfer request operation in the information display device 21a. Further, the communication device 31a may actively perform the operation without waiting for a user operation, or transfer from the communication device 31a may be performed in response to an active request from the information display device 21a.

  When the CPU 211 of the information display device 21a receives the document file, the CPU 211 stores the document file in the flash memory 214, and generates image data suitable for display on the storage-type display 218. Specifically, the CPU 211 interprets the contents of the page data included in the document file, and outputs 4-bit (that is, 16 gradations) image data having gradation values according to the contents of each memory display 218. Calculate for pixels. Then, the CPU 211 stores the image data for a plurality of pages generated in this way in the flash memory 214.

  The CPU 211 supplies the generated image data to the display controller 217 and causes the memory display 218 to display a document (step S10). At this time, the CPU 211 loads image data of a predetermined page (for example, the first page) into the RAM 213 and supplies it to the display controller 217. The display controller 217 generates a driving signal having a voltage corresponding to the supplied image data for one page, and supplies the driving signal to the corresponding pixel. Each pixel of the memory-type display body 218 exhibits a gradation corresponding to the supplied drive signal, so that the user can visually recognize the document.

  When the document is displayed on the memory display 218 in this way, the user can view it. In this case, the user may instruct to move the page of the document displayed on the display unit 21D by operating the movement key 216a as necessary. When an operation signal corresponding to the movement key 216a is supplied, the CPU 211 loads image data of a page to be displayed next from the flash memory 214 to the RAM 213 and supplies it to the display controller 217 to display the next page. Let

  Now, the user can attach a tag to a position desired by the user while browsing the document. When accepting such an operation (step S11), the CPU 211 of the information display device 21a displays a sticky note at a position designated by the user, generates the above-mentioned sticky note information, associates it with a document file, and associates it with the flash memory 214. (Step S12).

A process executed by the CPU 211 at this time will be described together with a user operation.
When the user wants to add a tag, the user touches the touch screen 219 with the pen tip of the stylus pen 21S after pressing (or pressing) the tag key 216b when the document is displayed on the display unit 21D. To specify the position of the tag. The CPU 211 obtains an operation signal corresponding to the sticky note key 216b from the operation unit 216, and obtains a sensing signal indicating a position where the pen tip of the stylus pen 21S touches on the touch screen from the touch screen. Accept.

  Next, the CPU 211 generates image data representing a tag and supplies it to the display controller 217, and also generates tag information as shown in FIG. 5, and stores this in the flash memory 214 in association with the document file. . The display controller 217 drives the memory display 218 based on the image data, and superimposes and displays an image d imitating a sticky note on the document as shown in FIG. At this time, the position where the image d is displayed is the position of the segment area in which the pen tip of the stylus pen 21S is in contact among the segment areas divided into 100 parts as described above. The generated sticky note information includes attribute information such as the file name and creation date and time creator included in the document file, and the segment attached to the segment area touched by the pen tip of the stylus pen 21S. A number is included as a tag position. In addition, when a tag is attached to a plurality of positions on the page, the segment number of a plurality of segment areas in contact with the pen tip of the stylus pen 21S is included in the tag information (see FIG. 5).

  Returning to the description of FIG. 11 again, when the CPU 211 receives an operation for transmitting the tag information by the user (step S13), the CPU 211 transmits the generated tag information to the communication device 31a (step S14). The communication device 31a that has received the tag information temporarily stores the received tag information and then transfers it to the information management server device 11 (step S15).

  In the information management server device 11, the CPU 111 stores the received tag information in the HDD 114 (step S16). Then, the CPU 111 updates the tag total information based on the stored tag information (step S17). Specifically, first, the CPU 111 extracts attribute information such as a file name from the received tag information, and searches the HDD 114 for tag update information that matches the attribute information. Then, the CPU 111 increments the number of sticky notes corresponding to the segment number included in the sticky note information one by one in the sticky note update information obtained by the search. For example, in the case of sticky note information as shown in FIG. 5, the segment numbers “15”, “20”, “81”, and “90” are written as the sticky note positions of page number 1. The CPU 111 increments the number of sticky notes corresponding to the sticky note positions (segment numbers) “15”, “20”, “81”, and “90” of page number 1 in FIG.

Then, the CPU 111 obtains the frequency level by the method as described above based on the number of sticky notes, and overwrites the obtained frequency level in the sticky note update information. Note that if the CPU 111 does not find the tag update information that matches the attribute information included in the received tag information, the CPU 111 creates new tag total information corresponding to the attribute information. Then, it is stored in the HDD 114.
The processing in steps S11 to S17 as described above is executed each time one or a plurality of sticky notes are added to a document page in the information display device 21.

(Download operation of document file and tag total information)
Now, the information display device 21 can download not only the document file as described above but also a document file with tag total information. Hereinafter, the operation when the information display device 21b and the communication device 31b download a document file with tag total information will be described with reference to the sequence shown in FIG.

  In FIG. 12, the user operates the communication device 31 to access the document search service of the information management server device 11, designates a search condition such as a keyword, and adds a document file with tag total information (hereinafter referred to as a tag with tag). Request a search). Upon receiving this operation (step S21), the communication device 31b transmits a search request including the specified search condition to the information management server device 11 (step S22). The CPU 111 of the information management server device 11 searches for a document file in the HDD 114 based on the received search condition (step S23).

  When the document file that matches the search condition is searched, the CPU 111 transmits the search result to the communication device 31b (step S24). This search result includes file attributes such as the file name of the document file obtained by the search, the gist of the document, and the like. The user refers to the search result, and performs an operation of designating the file name of the desired document file and instructing download on the communication device 31b. In response to this operation, the communication device 31b transmits a download request including the file name of the designated document file to the information management server device 11 (step S25).

  When receiving the download request, the CPU 111 of the information management server device 11 performs a charging process for charging the user for the compensation of the document file having the file name and the tag total information included in the request (step S26). Next, the CPU 111 reads out the document file having the file name and the tag total information associated with the document file from the HDD 114, and transmits them to the communication device 31a (step S27). At this time, the CPU 111 does not need to transmit the “number of sticky notes” in the sticky note totaling information in the format shown in FIG. This is because if only the “frequency level” can be identified, an image corresponding to the frequency level can be displayed on the information display device 21b. Details of the billing process in step S26 will be described later.

  The document file and the tag total information downloaded by the communication device 31b are temporarily stored in the communication device 31b. When the user performs a predetermined transfer operation using the communication device 31b (step S28), the transfer is performed from the interface of the communication device 31b to the interface 215 of the information display device 21b according to the operation (step S29). This transfer process may be performed in accordance with a user operation in the communication device 31b, or may be performed in accordance with an operation in the information display device 21b. Further, the communication device 31b may actively perform without waiting for the user's operation, or may be performed in response to an active request from the information display device 21b.

  When the information display device 21b receives the document file and the tag total information, the information display device 21b stores the document file and the tag total information in the flash memory 214, and generates image data suitable for display on the storage-type display 218. Specifically, the CPU 211 of the information display device 21b interprets the contents of the page data included in the document file and stores 4-bit (that is, 16 gradations) image data having gradation values corresponding to the contents. Calculation is performed for each pixel of the display body 218. At the same time, the CPU 211 interprets the contents of the frequency level of the tag total information, and calculates 4-bit (that is, 16 gradations) image data for each pixel of the storage-type display body 218 as a gradation value corresponding to the contents. To do. The CPU 211 stores the image data generated in this way in the flash memory 214.

  The CPU 211 supplies the generated image data to the display controller 217 and causes the memory display 218 to display a document (step S30). At this time, the CPU 211 loads image data of a predetermined page (for example, the first page) and image data of sticky note total information corresponding to the page into the RAM 213, and supplies this to the display controller 217. The display controller 217 generates a driving signal having a voltage corresponding to the supplied image data, and supplies the driving signal to the corresponding pixel. Each pixel of the memory-type display 218 exhibits a gradation corresponding to the supplied drive signal, so that the user can visually recognize the contents of the document and the tag total information.

  As a result, the memory and the tag total information are displayed on the memory display 218 as shown in FIG. The user can browse these and visually recognize which description portion of each page of the document is noticed by other users. In this case, the user may instruct to move the page of the document displayed on the display unit 21D by operating the movement key 216a as necessary. When the operation signal corresponding to the movement key 216a is supplied, the CPU 211 loads the image data of the page to be displayed next and the tag total information corresponding to the page from the flash memory 214 to the RAM 213, and displays the display controller. 217 to display the next page and tag total information.

  Now, the user can also add a sticky note to this sticky note-added document. When the CPU 211 of the information display device 21b accepts such a sticky note addition operation (step S31), the sticky note is displayed at the position designated by the user, and the sticky note information is generated and associated with the document file in the flash memory 214. Store (step S32). Since the process which CPU211 performs at this time is as having demonstrated using FIG. 11, description is abbreviate | omitted.

  The CPU 211 stores the generated tag information in the flash memory 214 in association with the document file. And CPU211 will transmit the produced | generated tag information to the communication apparatus 31, if the transmission operation of tag information by a user is received (step S33) (step S34). The communication device 31 that has received the tag information temporarily stores the received tag information and transmits it to the information management server device 11 (step S35). In the information management server device 11, the CPU 111 stores the received tag information in the HDD 114 (step S36). Then, the CPU 111 updates the tag total information based on the stored tag information (step S37). The details are as described with reference to FIG.

(Billing operation)
Next, accounting processing by the information management server apparatus 11 will be described.
As described above, the CPU 111 of the information management server device 11 performs billing processing in step S6 or step S26. First, specific contents of the billing process in step S6 will be described below.
When the billing process is started, first, the CPU 111 specifies price data associated with the document file and specifies a user ID assigned to the user who acquired the document file. Since the price data is stored in the HDD 114 in association with the document file as described above, it is used. For the user ID of the user who acquired the document file, the communication device 31a requests the input of the user ID in the login process when accessing the document search service of the information management server device 11, and stores it in the RAM 113. Just remember. Then, the CPU 111 notifies the settlement system 51 of the specified price data together with the user ID and requests settlement processing. Up to this point, the accounting process performed by the CPU 111 is performed. In response to this notification, the payment system 51 performs a payment process in which the notified amount is withdrawn from the bank account associated with the user ID.

In addition, the billing process in step S26 is as follows.
First, the CPU 111 identifies price data associated with a document file with a tag and identifies a user ID assigned to the user who acquired the document file with the tag. As described above, since the price data is stored in the HDD 114 in association with the document file with a tag, it is used. For the user ID of the user who acquired the document file with the tag, the communication device 31b requests the input of the user ID in the login process when accessing the document search service of the information management server device 11, What is necessary is just to memorize | store in RAM113. Then, the CPU 111 notifies the settlement system 51 of the specified price data together with the user ID and requests settlement processing. Up to this point, the accounting process performed by the CPU 111 is performed. In response to this notification, the payment system 51 performs a payment process in which the notified amount is withdrawn from the bank account associated with the user ID.

  As described above, the information display device 21 can add the tag information to the document file and display it. On the other hand, the information management server device 11 collects sticky note information from a plurality of information display devices 21 and totals them to generate sticky note total information. This tag total information is distributed from the information management server device 11 to the information display device 21, and is displayed together with the document file on the information display device 21. At this time, since the frequency level of the tag included in the tag total information is displayed in the vicinity of the document, the user visually recognizes which part of each page of the document is noted by other users. can do. Such a document file with tag total information is useful for the user, but the system described above can charge the user for the price.

[Modification]
The above embodiment may be modified as follows. Note that the following modifications may be combined as appropriate.
(Modification 1)
In the operation example of the embodiment, the tag information is transmitted from the information display device 21a to the information management server device 11, while the tag total information acquired from the information management server device 11 is displayed by the information display device 21b. Explained. The information display device 21 that transmits the tag information and the information display device 21 that displays the tag total information may be the same information display device 21 or may be separate information display devices 21. That is, at least one of the plurality of information display devices 21 may transmit the tag information, and at least one of the plurality of information display devices 21 may display the tag total information.
In the embodiment, the operations performed in the image display device 21 and the communication device 31 are separately described. However, in view of the fact that the image display device 21 and the communication device 31 are configured integrally, these operations are performed. May be performed by either the image display device 21 or the communication device 31.

(Modification 2)
In the embodiment, an example in which the consideration of the document file and the tag total information is paid in money has been described. However, instead of this money, points given to the user may be used. This point is given to the user as follows, for example.
In addition to the position where the tag is added, the user ID of the user who added the tag is included in the tag information described above. When the sticky information is transmitted from the information display apparatus 21 to the information management server apparatus 11 in steps S14 and S15 in FIG. A user ID may be included in the tag information and transmitted. This user ID may be stored in advance by the information display device 21 or the communication device 31, or may be input by the user each time. In the login process when the communication device 31 accesses the document search service of the information management server device 11, the information management server device 11 requests input of the user ID and stores it in the RAM 113. The user ID may be added to the tag information transmitted from the communication device 31.
Then, the CPU 111 of the information management server device 11 gives a high point to a user who adds a sticky note to a position (segment area) where the frequency level is higher than the threshold value, while sticking a note at a position where the frequency level is lower than the threshold value. For a user who has added, a low point is given, a point is not given, or the current point of the user is reduced. The assigned points are stored in the HDD 114 in association with the user ID by the CPU 111.
For example, it is assumed that the frequency level serving as a threshold is “8” of “0” to “15”. In addition, in the calculation of the tag total information in steps S17 and S37 of FIGS. 11 and 12, if a tag is added at a position where the frequency level is “9” to “15” exceeding the threshold, 5 points are given to the user who added such a sticky note. When a tag is added at a position where the frequency level is the threshold value “8”, two points are given to the user who added the tag. Further, when a tag is added at a position where the frequency level is “0” to “7” which is less than the threshold, points are not given to the user or three points are reduced. The points given to the user in this manner are converted into a monetary value at a predetermined conversion rate, and can be used as compensation for the document file and the tag total information.
Thus, by giving points to the act of adding a tag, the act of adding the tag can be promoted. At the same time, by giving the number of points according to the corresponding frequency level, it is possible to expect the effect of preventing fraudulent attempts to earn only points by adding sticky notes to unnecessary positions as soon as possible.

(Modification 3)
The tag total information may be classified according to the user attribute of the user who added the tag information.
In this way, if the tag total information is classified according to user attributes, for example, a “20s” “female” user whose hobby is “movie appreciation” is selected as an article or document in a document (in this case, a magazine is preferable). This is useful when you want to know if you have added a tag to an advertisement. Especially for marketing companies who want to know the needs of the world, it is very useful information. In this case, when obtaining the tag total information of the user corresponding to such a specific user attribute, it is desirable that the price of the tag total information is higher than the price of the tag total information not specifying the user attribute. Specifically, the following may be performed.
The HDD 114 of the information management server device 11 stores the user ID and the user attribute information of the user of the user ID in association with each other. This user attribute information includes all kinds of attribute information such as physical characteristics such as age, sex, height and weight, hobbies, living area, family structure, and the like. Further, based on the user attribute information, for example, the common or similar attributes are grouped and stored in the HDD 114. For example, a “20s” group, a “30s” group,..., A “male” group, a “female” group, and so on.
The tag information includes the user ID of the user who added the tag in addition to the position where the tag is added. When the sticky information is transmitted from the information display apparatus 21 to the information management server apparatus 11 in steps S14 and S15 in FIG. A user ID may be included in the tag information and transmitted. This user ID may be stored in advance by the information display device 21 or the communication device 31, or may be input by the user each time. In the login process when the communication device 31 accesses the document search service of the information management server device 11, the information management server device 11 requests input of the user ID and stores it in the RAM 113. The user ID may be added to the tag information transmitted from the communication device 31.
Then, the CPU 111 of the information management server device 11 generates sticky note total information based on the sticky note information including the user ID. In this case, the CPU 111 generates tag total information for each group to which user attribute information corresponding to the user ID included in the tag information belongs.
In step S25 of FIG. 12, the user designates a desired document file and designates a desired user attribute group. The communication device 31 transmits a search request including the file name of the document file designated by the user and a group of user attributes to the information management server device 11. The CPU 111 of the information management server device 11 transmits to the communication device 31 the specified document file and the tag total information of the user attribute group included in the request among the tag total information corresponding to the document file. The charging process at this time is a process of charging a different price according to the contents of the user attribute group designated by the user. For example, a reference price corresponding to one type of user attribute is determined in advance. Then, when a user attribute of “female” in “20s” who has a hobby of “movie watching” is specified, there are three types of user attributes specified, and therefore, an amount that is three times the standard consideration is charged. Condition.

(Modification 4)
In the embodiment, “tag” is given as an example of additional information. However, “line” such as an underline or marker line, and “character” such as various comments or notes may be used as additional information.
When “line” is used as additional information, the information display device 21 may be provided with a line key for adding “line” to the character string displayed on the display unit 21D. Then, after the user presses (or presses) the line key while the document is displayed, the user touches the touch screen 219 with the stylus pen 21S to specify the start point and the end point of the line. When the CPU 211 obtains the operation signal corresponding to the line key and the sensing signal indicating the start point and the end point, the CPU 211 supplies image data representing “line” to the display controller 217 and the position of the start point or end point of the line. Additional information including (segment area) is generated.
When “character” is used as additional information, the information display device 21 may be provided with a character key for adding a character to the display area of the display unit 21D. The user first designates a position to add a character with the stylus pen 21S, and then presses (or presses) a character key to perform an operation of writing (drawing) a desired character or line on the touch screen 219. . When the CPU 211 acquires a sensing signal indicating such an operation, the CPU 211 supplies image data representing “character” to the display controller 217 and generates additional information including a position (segment area) to which the character is added. .

(Modification 5)
In FIG. 10, the tag total information is represented by a grayscale image, but is not limited to this display mode. For example, if the information display device 21 can display a color image, an image having a different color according to the frequency level is displayed. It may be what you do. In short, any image representing the contents of the tag total information may be used. Further, the image representing the tag total information and the position in the information may be displayed in association with each other, and it is not always necessary to display the image at the corresponding position. In other words, it is desirable to display an image representing the tag total information in each segment area of the display area.

(Modification 6)
In the above-described embodiment, only the case where the tag information is added is shown, but a configuration may be provided in which the tag information added once is deleted. As a method for erasing the tag information, there are a method of operating with an operation key and a method of operating with a stylus pen 21S. For example, when the user presses the tag key 216b while the information display device 21 is displaying a certain page to which the “tag” is added, the CPU 211 erases the “tag” added to the page. While generating the data, the tag information corresponding to the data may be deleted. Alternatively, when the information display device 21 is displaying a certain page to which the “tag” is added, when the user touches the stylus pen 21S at a position corresponding to the “tag”, the CPU 211 detects this, Image data obtained by deleting the “sticky note” added to the page may be generated, and the corresponding sticky note information may be deleted.

(Modification 7)
In the above-described embodiment, the sticky information transmission process starting from step S13 and step S33 is executed every time the user instructs the transmission of the sticky information, but it is automatically performed when a predetermined condition is satisfied. May be executed automatically. For example, it may be executed when the information display device 21 is connected to the communication device 31 and the communication device 31 can communicate with the information management server device 11.

(Modification 8)
In the embodiment, the example in which the tag total information is transmitted from the information management server device 11 to the information display device 21 via the communication device 31 together with the document file has been described. Not limited to this, the tag total information may be transmitted from the information management server device 11 to the information display device 21 via the communication device 31 independently of the document file. In this case, the information display device 21 needs to download a document file corresponding to the tag total information from the information management server device 11 in advance. However, this is only the difference between the transmission timing of the tag total information and the document file. In any case, the tag management information and the document are sent from the information management server device 11 to the information display device 21 via the communication device 31. The configuration that files are transmitted is common.

(Modification 9)
The information display device 21 may be any device that displays an image, and can be applied to, for example, a PDA (Personal Digital Assistants) or a personal computer. The programs executed by the CPU 111 and the CPU 211 are recorded on a recording medium such as a magnetic tape, a magnetic disk, a flexible disk, an optical recording medium, a magneto-optical recording medium, a CD (Compact Disk), a DVD (Digital Versatile Disk), and a RAM. Can be provided in a recorded state. That is, the present invention can be realized as a program.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of an information delivery system. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of an information management server apparatus. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of an information display apparatus. It is a perspective view which shows the external appearance of an information display apparatus. It is a figure which shows an example of tag information. It is a figure explaining the position of a display area. It is a figure which shows an example of the display mode of a tag. It is a figure which shows an example of tag total information. It is a figure which shows the method of determining the upper limit of a frequency level. It is a figure which shows an example of the display mode of a document and tag total information. It is a sequence diagram which shows the operation example of an information delivery system. It is a sequence diagram which shows the operation example of an information delivery system.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 ... Information delivery system, 11 ... Information management server apparatus, 111 ... CPU, 112 ... ROM, 113 ... RAM, 114 ... HDD, 115 ... Interface, 31a, 31b ... Communication apparatus, 21a, 21b ... Information display apparatus, 210 ... Power unit 211... CPU 212 212 ROM 213 RAM 214 Flash memory 215 Interface 216 Operation unit 217 Display controller 218 Memory display 219 Touch screen 41 Network 51 ... Payment system.

Claims (9)

Storage means for storing information in association with an identifier assigned to the information;
The information and its identifier are read from the storage means, and the information transmitting means for transmitting the read information and the identifier to an information display device that displays the information;
Receiving means for receiving additional information added to the information in the information display device and an identifier of the information to which the additional information is added;
Total information update means for totalizing the additional information received by the receiving means for each information, and storing the total information related to the total result in the storage means in association with the identifier of the information;
In accordance with a request designating the identifier, the information comprises: aggregate information transmission means for reading the aggregate information stored in association with the identifier from the storage means and transmitting the information to the information display device. Management device. The additional information includes a position where the additional information is added to the information by the information display device,
The tabulation information includes a result of tabulating the number of the additional information for each position,
The aggregate information transmitting means transmits data for causing the information display device to display an image representing the result of the aggregation in association with each of the positions as the aggregate information. The information management device described. The information management apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the image representing the result of the aggregation is a grayscale image whose density varies depending on the result of the aggregation. In addition to the additional information and the identifier of the information, the receiving means receives attribute information of the user who added the additional information,
The aggregate information update unit aggregates the additional information received by the reception unit for each information and each attribute information, and associates the aggregate information related to the aggregation result with the identifier of the information and the attribute information. Memorize it in the memory means,
The total information transmission unit reads the total information stored in association with the identifier and the attribute information from the storage unit in response to a request specifying the identifier and the attribute information, and stores the total information in the information display device. The information management apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the information management apparatus transmits the information. This is a process for charging the user of the information display device that is the transmission destination of the total information for the consideration of the total information transmitted by the total information transmission means, and includes the contents of the attribute information included in the request The information management apparatus according to claim 4, further comprising a billing unit that performs processing for billing different considerations. The additional information includes a position where the additional information is added to the information by the information display device, and a user ID assigned to the user who added the additional information,
The total information includes a total value obtained by counting the number of the additional information for each position,
When the position included in the additional information received by the receiving unit is a position corresponding to a total value greater than a threshold among the total values for each position included in the total information, the additional information is added. While the high point is stored in association with the user ID of the user who has performed, the position included in the additional information received by the receiving unit is less than the threshold among the total values for each position included in the total information If the position corresponds to the value, point giving means for storing a low point in association with the user ID of the user who added the additional information, not storing the point, or reducing the already stored point The information management apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: An information distribution system comprising an information management device and a plurality of information display devices,
The information management device includes:
Storage means for storing information in association with an identifier assigned to the information;
Information transmitting means for reading the information and its identifier from the storage means and transmitting the information to the information display device;
Receiving means for receiving additional information added to the information in the information display device and an identifier of the information to which the additional information is added;
Total information updating means for totalizing the additional information received by the receiving means for each information, and storing the total information related to the total result in the storage means in association with the identifier of each of the information;
In response to the request designating the identifier, the aggregate information stored in association with the identifier is read from the storage unit, and aggregated information transmission unit that transmits to the information display device,
At least one information display device among the plurality of information display devices is:
First receiving means for receiving the information and the identifier transmitted by the information transmitting means of the information management device;
First display means for displaying information received by the first receiving means;
Adding means for adding the additional information to the information displayed by the first display means in accordance with a designation of a user who browses the information;
First transmission means for transmitting the additional information and the identifier of the information to which the additional information is added to the information management device;
At least one information display device among the plurality of information display devices is:
Second transmission means for transmitting the request for the total information specifying the identifier;
Second receiving means for receiving the aggregate information transmitted by the aggregate information transmitting means of the information management device in response to the request;
A second display means for displaying the total information together with the information corresponding to the total information. An information distribution system comprising: The additional information includes a position where the additional information is added to the information,
The tabulation information includes a result of tabulating the number of the additional information for each position,
The information distribution system according to claim 7, wherein the second display unit of the information display device displays an image representing the result of the aggregation in association with each of the positions. Computer
Storage means for storing information in association with an identifier assigned to the information;
The information and its identifier are read from the storage means, and the information transmitting means for transmitting the read information and the identifier to an information display device that displays the information;
Receiving means for receiving additional information added to the information in the information display device and an identifier of the information to which the additional information is added;
Total information update means for totalizing the additional information received by the receiving means for each information, and storing the total information related to the total result in the storage means in association with the identifier of the information;
A program for causing the total information stored in association with the identifier to be read from the storage unit and function as a total information transmission unit for transmitting to the information display device in response to a request designating the identifier.

Images