JP2008226009A - Portable terminal, information management server, marketing system, and marketing information provision method and program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a marketing system capable of collecting commodities unpurchased by customers in addition to purchased commodities, the place and time thereof or the like. <P>SOLUTION: A portable terminal 1 is provided with: a short range radio communication function for communicating with a radio tag attached to a particular commodity or its rack; a positioning function selector for switching a first indoor position measuring function and a second outdoor position measuring function in accordance with a receiving state of a position measuring radio wave; an information storage part for storing, at a prescribed time interval, position information acquired by using a position measuring function selected by the positioning function selector and commodity information received by the short range radio communication function, if any, together with time information ; and a transmitting part for transmitting the information stored in the information storing part to a prescribed information management server. The information management server 6 responds to corresponding data in response to an inquiry obtained by combining a position, a commodity and a time from an information management terminal (client) 8. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a mobile terminal, an information management server, a marketing system, a marketing information providing method, and a program, and in particular, a mobile terminal that collects information useful for marketing using a short-range wireless function, an information management server, a marketing system, and a marketing The present invention relates to an information providing method and a program.

  In recent years, mobile terminals such as mobile phones have become more sophisticated, and GPS (Global Positioning System) positioning functions, base station positioning functions, short-range wireless functions (such as RFID), electronic money functions and IC card functions, Many functions such as a wireless LAN function have begun to be installed, and it has become possible to acquire information such as location information, purchase status, and product information of mobile terminals.

  On the other hand, details of consumer movement (location information, time information, etc.) and characteristics (consumer's gender, age, address, occupation, preference, etc.) in store planning and retail display in the retail industry. It is important to grasp.

  For example, when considering the opening of a new retail store, a fixed point observation or questionnaire survey is entrusted to a specialized marketing company to calculate / select sales forecasts, products handled, store locations, etc. Yes. In the former fixed point observation, only a specific place / time is surveyed, and it is impossible to grasp the detailed characteristics of consumers. In the latter questionnaire, enormous costs are required.

  In view of the situation as described above, it has been proposed to conduct a marketing survey using a portable terminal that is widely used in the world. For example, in Patent Literature 1, a portable communication device that can connect a barcode reader to a collected monitor is lent separately from a conventional POS system, and a barcode attached to a purchased product is read, and the data processing device A configuration for sending is disclosed.

  Moreover, in patent document 2, using the GPS positioning function and base station positioning function of a portable terminal, the positional information and user attribute information of a portable terminal are collected, and the attribute of people located in a certain area is analyzed, It has been proposed to analyze the flow line of a specific user.

JP 2003-256737 A JP 2006-260331 A

  However, the above-described conventional technique has a problem in that it is not possible to obtain information on a product that the customer is interested in but has not been purchased. For example, in patent document 1, since it is the structure which transmits purchase merchandise data to a data processing apparatus in the stage which purchased goods, it is about the goods which became comparison object with the goods actually purchased before purchase, for example. I can't get information.

  In Patent Document 2, it is possible to acquire position information and attribute information, but it has a function of collecting highly accurate position information that a user has approached a product or the like in a store or facility. Because there is no information, it is not possible to obtain information that enables consideration of store layout, shelf allocation (facing), product lineup, and the like.

  Also, if you are interested in a product and have picked it up but have not purchased it, the user may not pick up the product at the next store, or purchase it if the price is low. In addition, the continuous collection and analysis of data from a specific monitor is also significant in marketing. If a wide area (indoor, outdoor, underground) that spans multiple stores can be covered, the above survey can be conducted. It is considered to be.

  The present invention has been made in view of the circumstances described above, and obtains hidden consumer preference information such as information about the product that the customer did not purchase, its location, time, etc., as widely as possible. It is an object of the present invention to provide a portable terminal, an information management server, a marketing system, a marketing information providing method, and a program that can lead to the discovery of new markets.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, a short-range wireless communication function for communicating with a specific product or a wireless tag attached to the display shelf, and a first position for indoor use according to the reception status of a position measurement radio wave A positioning function selector that switches between a measuring function and a second position measuring function for outdoor use, position information acquired by using the position measuring function selected by the positioning function selector at a predetermined time interval, and a short distance If there is product information received by the wireless communication function, an information storage unit that stores the product information together with time information, and a transmission unit that transmits the information stored in the information storage unit to a predetermined information management server; , And a program for realizing the functions of the positioning function selector, the information storage unit, and the transmission unit of the mobile terminal.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, the information received from the mobile terminal is stored in a database, and the corresponding data is responded to an inquiry combining the position, product, and time from the client terminal. A characteristic information management server is provided.

  According to the third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a marketing system and a method for providing marketing information that are configured using the above-described portable terminal and an information management server.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to collect consumer behavior in a wide area, whether indoors or outdoors, and use it for marketing.

  Next, the best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of a marketing system according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 1, a mobile terminal 1 possessed by a user who has agreed to become a monitor, a GPS satellite 2, a wireless base station 3 of a mobile telephone network, a wireless AP (access point) 4 of a wireless LAN, a public A network 5, an information management server 6, an information DB (database) 7, an information management terminal (client terminal) 8, and a product 9 with a wireless tag (product tag) are shown.

  The public network 5 includes a mobile phone network, a satellite communication network, a wireless LAN, and the like. The portable terminal 1 transmits position information, time information, product information, purchase information, and the like to the information management server 6 via the public network 5.

  The information management server 6 is a server that collects location information, time information, product information, purchase information, and the like transmitted from the mobile terminal 1 via the public network 5 and stores the information in the information DB 7 for each mobile terminal 1.

  The information management terminal 8 is a personal computer or the like for issuing an inquiry combining a position, a product, and time to the information management server 6 and referring to a response (a total result).

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a detailed configuration of the mobile terminal 1 of FIG. Referring to FIG. 2, the mobile terminal 1 selects an optimum positioning function from the radio base station positioning function 11a, the GPS positioning function 11b, and the wireless LAN positioning function 11c according to the radio wave reception status, the number of received radio waves, and the like. A positioning function selector 12, a short-range wireless communication function 13 for reading information in a wireless tag (hereinafter referred to as a product tag) in which product information is written and attached to the product or its display shelf, and an electronic money / IC card A function 14, a time management unit 15 for managing time, an information storage unit 16 for temporarily storing location information, time information, product information, purchase information, etc. according to the contents set in the condition setting unit 17, and the location information A condition setting unit 17 that sets collection conditions and transmission conditions for time information, product information, purchase information, etc., and sends them to the information management server 6 according to the contents set in the condition setting unit 17. It is configured to include a transmitting unit 18 for.

  The positioning function selector 12 operates at a predetermined time interval, checks the positioning status of each positioning function (each radio wave reception intensity, received wave number, etc.), compares the accuracy of position information calculation in each positioning means, and at that time Then, the positioning function with the highest accuracy is selected, and the position information by the positioning function is notified to the information storage unit 16.

  The short-range wireless communication function 13 includes an RFID tag reader and the like, emits radio waves at predetermined time intervals, and reflects the reflected wave of the passive type product tag attached to the display shelf of the product 9 or a product not shown. The loaded product information is read and transmitted to the information storage unit 16.

  The electronic money / IC card function 14 transmits the purchase information to the information storage unit 16 when purchasing using electronic money or an IC card.

  The information storage unit 16 outputs position information notified from the positioning function selector 12, product information notified from the short-range wireless communication function 13, purchase information notified from the electronic money / IC card function 14, and output from the time management unit 15. Time information to be stored as a set. In addition, when there is a transmission request from the transmission unit 18, the information storage unit 16 transmits only information that meets the provision conditions set in the condition setting unit 17 to the transmission unit 18.

  The condition setting unit 17 is a means for setting information provision conditions, transmission timing, and the like on the information management server 6 side, and stores information in the transmission unit 18 at the set transmission timing (fixed period, only during purchase, etc.) An instruction to transmit information stored in the unit 16 is issued.

  The information provision conditions include, for example, provision period (start date / time, end date / time), place (nationwide, specific area, specific facility, etc.), provided information type (location information, purchase information, product) Information and combinations thereof).

  FIG. 4 is an example of information provision conditions set in the condition setting unit 17. In the example of FIG. 4, when the user (mobile terminal 1) is in “Tokyo” during the period set as the provision period, location information, purchase information, product information, and time information (essential items) are collected every day. The accumulated data is transmitted at 12:00.

  When there is a transmission instruction from the condition setting unit 17, the transmission unit 18 issues a transmission request to the information storage unit 16, and sends the information output from the information storage unit 16 via the public network 5 to the information management server 6. Send to.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of an operation flow of the positioning function selector 12. In the example of FIG. 3, the positioning function selector 12 first has a wireless LAN positioning condition that the received radio wave intensity of the wireless LAN is sufficient at the current location and that radio waves from a sufficient number of wireless APs are received. If established (“established” in step S001), the wireless LAN positioning function is selected (step S002).

  If the wireless LAN positioning condition is not satisfied in step S001, the positioning function selector 12 determines that the GPS positioning condition that the received GPS signal intensity is sufficient at the current location is satisfied (“established in step S003”). ”), And operates to select the GPS positioning function (step S004).

  If the GPS positioning condition is not satisfied in step S003, the positioning function selector 12 operates to select the radio base station positioning function (step S005).

  Next, a flow from when information is sent from the mobile terminal 1 to the information management server 6 until it is used as marketing information will be described.

(Information provision contract)
First, a contract is signed between the user of the mobile terminal 1 and the operator of the information management server 6 to agree to provide information that matches the conditions set by the user as a monitor.

  At the time of this contract, the user of the mobile terminal 1 registers the user's basic information in the information DB 7. For example, sex, age, address, occupation, preference, portable terminal ID, and the like are registered as basic user information.

(Setting of information provision conditions)
Next, the user of the portable terminal 1 inputs information provision conditions and transmission timing to the condition setting unit 17 of the portable terminal 1 (see FIG. 4).

(Start of providing information)
Thereafter, the mobile terminal 1 acquires position information, purchase information, and product information according to the information provision conditions, and stores them in the information storage unit 16.

  First, the positioning function selector 12 selects a positioning function with the highest accuracy at a predetermined time interval, and transmits the measured position information to the information storage unit 16.

  Subsequently, the short-range wireless communication function 13 emits radio waves, reads the product information read from the product 9 in the vicinity or the product tag attached to the display shelf, and transmits the product information to the information storage unit 16. For example, when the user picks up the product, stops in front of the display shelf, and the distance between the mobile terminal 1 and the product tag approaches, the product information placed on the reflected wave returned from the product tag is a short distance. It is read by the wireless communication function 13.

  When the electronic money / IC card function 14 is used, purchase information is transmitted to the information storage unit 16.

  The information storage unit 16 stores each piece of information together with the time information output from the time management unit 15. FIG. 5 is an example of information sent from the mobile terminal 1 of a user who has agreed to provide location information, time information, product information, and purchase information.

  Thereafter, when the condition setting unit 17 issues a transmission instruction to the transmission unit 18 according to the transmission timing set by the user, the transmission unit 18 receives the information provision condition set in the condition setting unit 17 from the information storage unit 16. Is received and transmitted to the information management server 6 via the public network 5.

(Information accumulation and analysis)
The information management server 6 accumulates information transmitted from the mobile terminal 1 in the information DB 7. Here, when a person who needs marketing information operates the information management terminal 8 and inputs the inquiry content, the information management server 6 selects information matching the inquiry content from the information DB 7 and sends it to the information management terminal 8. Send.

  The inquiry content may be a combination of gender, age, address, occupation, position, time, product type, purchased product type, preference type, etc.

  For example, if “location = Area around A, time = Sunday morning”, as shown in FIG. 6, “what kind of person sees what and what buys around A in the Sunday morning” Is it? "

  Further, for example, if “place = around B point, time = Sunday afternoon, product / time = more than D minutes near C product”, as shown in FIG. "What kind of person you are interested in, and how long have you stayed?"

  As described above, it is possible to obtain accurate location information (consumer flow) and nearby product information, purchase information, and consumer preference information, whether it is indoors or outdoors. It is possible to greatly improve the properties.

  In the above-described embodiment, the mobile terminal 1 has been described as including the wireless base station positioning function 11a, the GPS positioning function 11b, and the wireless LAN positioning function 11c so that positioning can be performed in as wide an area as possible. For example, if there is another positioning function using Bluetooth (registered trademark) or the like, it can be added as an option of the positioning function selector.

  In the embodiment described above, the user of the mobile terminal 1 has been described as setting the information providing condition. However, in order to reduce the burden on the user side, for example, an e-mail describing the information providing condition together with the contract content described above May be configured to automatically set the information provision condition simply by selecting whether or not information transmission is possible based on the condition.

  It is also preferable to provide incentives for providing information (product discount coupons, cashbacks, points, etc.), latest marketing information, etc. at the time of the contract. This leads to securing of monitors and promotion of information provision, and further improvement of marketing effectiveness can be expected.

It is a figure showing the whole marketing system composition concerning one embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram showing the detailed structure of the portable terminal which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure showing an example of the operation | movement flow of the positioning function selector of FIG. It is an example of the information provision conditions set to the condition setting part of FIG. 3 is a sample of information stored in the information storage unit of FIG. It is a sample of the information provided from the information management server which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a sample of the information provided from the information management server which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Mobile terminal 2 GPS satellite 3 Wireless base station 4 Wireless access point 5 Public network 6 Information management server 7 Information DB (database)
8 Information management terminal (client terminal)
9 Products 11a Wireless base station positioning function 11b GPS positioning function 11c Wireless LAN positioning function 12 Positioning function selector 13 Short-range wireless communication function 14 Electronic money / IC card function 15 Time management unit 16 Information storage unit 17 Condition setting unit 18 Transmission unit

Claims (9)

A short-range wireless communication function for communicating with a specific product or a wireless tag attached to its display shelf;
A positioning function selector that switches between a first position measurement function for indoor use and a second position measurement function for outdoor use according to the reception status of the position measurement radio wave;
At predetermined time intervals, the position information acquired by using the position measurement function selected by the positioning function selector and the product information when there is product information received by the short-range wireless communication function are stored together with the time information. An information storage unit to
A transmission unit for transmitting the information stored in the information storage unit to a predetermined information management server;
A mobile terminal characterized by. Furthermore, a condition setting unit for setting transmission timing by the transmission unit is provided.
The mobile terminal according to claim 1. The condition setting unit holds an information provision condition that defines a condition for providing information to the information management server,
The information storage unit outputs information conforming to the information provision condition to the transmission unit;
The mobile terminal according to claim 2. As the first indoor position measurement function, a wireless LAN positioning function using radio waves received from a wireless LAN access point is provided,
As the second outdoor position measuring function, a GPS positioning function using GPS (Global Positioning System) received radio waves is provided.
Furthermore, it has a wireless base station positioning function by radio waves received from the wireless base station of the mobile phone network,
The positioning function selector selects a position measurement function according to the priority of the wireless LAN positioning function, the GPS positioning function, and the wireless base station positioning function according to the reception status of each radio wave;
The portable terminal according to any one of claims 1 to 3.   Information received from the portable terminal according to any one of claims 1 to 4 is stored in a database, and information collected from a corresponding user in response to an inquiry combining a user attribute, position, product, and time from a client terminal An information management server characterized by responding to When responding to the information collected from the corresponding user, further responding to pre-registered user preference information;
An information management server characterized by A short-range wireless communication function for communicating with a specific product or a wireless tag attached to its display shelf;
A positioning function selector that switches between a first position measurement function for indoor use and a second position measurement function for outdoor use according to the reception status of the position measurement radio wave;
At predetermined time intervals, the position information acquired by using the position measurement function selected by the positioning function selector and the product information when there is product information received by the short-range wireless communication function are stored together with the time information. An information storage unit to
A mobile terminal comprising: a transmission unit that transmits information stored in the information storage unit to a predetermined information management server;
An information management server that receives information stored in the information storage unit from the mobile terminal, stores the information in a database, and responds to the combination of position, product, and time from the client terminal with corresponding data; ,
Including marketing system. A portable terminal including a short-range wireless communication function, a first position measurement function for indoor use, and a second position measurement function for outdoor use, according to the reception status of the position measurement radio wave, an information management server, A marketing information providing method using
The portable terminal receives the position information acquired by using the position measuring function selected by the positioning function selector at a predetermined time interval and the product or the wireless tag attached to the display shelf by the short-range wireless communication function. If there is product information, store the product information together with time information,
The mobile terminal transmits information stored in the information storage unit to the information management server according to a predetermined transmission condition,
The information management server stores information received from the mobile terminal in a database, and responds to the inquiry combining the position, product, and time from the client terminal with corresponding data,
Providing marketing information. A program to be executed by a portable terminal having a short-range wireless communication function, a first position measurement function for indoor use, and a second position measurement function for outdoor use according to a reception state of a position measurement radio wave ,
A process of selecting a position measurement function according to the reception status of the position measurement radio wave at a predetermined time interval and acquiring position information;
A process of confirming whether there is a specific product or its display shelf with a wireless tag in the vicinity by the short-range wireless communication function, and receiving product information;
A process of storing the position information and the product information when there is the product information received by the short-range wireless communication function together with time information in an information storage unit;
A process of transmitting information stored in the information storage unit to a predetermined information management server according to a predetermined transmission condition;
A program for causing the portable terminal to execute.

Images