JP2010086389A - Vote service processing program, vote service device, and vote service method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To start a transaction easily, as to a vote service processing program, a vote service device and a vote service method. <P>SOLUTION: A balance information acquiring means 12 acquires a terminal ID, when receiving a participation request to a vote from a user terminal 30 set with an electronic currency, and acquires information of an electronic currency balance from a management server 20. A balance confirmation means 13 compares the electronic currency balance with an establishment fund amount required for establishing an account for purchasing a voting slip, after acquiring the electronic currency balance, and determines the propriety of establishing the account for purchasing the voting slip. An account establishing means 14 sets the establishment fund amount to establish the purchasing account, when the establishment fund amount is secured. Account information correlated with the terminal ID is registered in an account information table 11a, and the establishment fund amount is notified to the management server 20, to indicate updating of the electronic currency balance. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a voting service processing program, a voting service device, and a voting service method, and more particularly to a voting service processing program, a voting service device, and a voting service method for providing a service for purchasing voting tickets for public competitions without cash.

  In public competitions such as horse races, bicycle races, boat races, and auto races, cashless voting services that purchase or refund voting tickets without cash are being introduced. For example, a voting service system is provided in which a designated account set for each customer is used to purchase a voting ticket instructed from a personal computer, a mobile phone or the like, and a dividend is refunded. Such a voting service system has an advantage that voting can be performed without going to the public stadium.

  On the other hand, in cashless voting using a designated account, an application procedure for opening an account for conducting cashless voting in advance is required. A dedicated designated account is opened in the organizer system along with the application, and the user is registered as a cashless voting subscriber. In order to open a designated account, it is necessary to hold an account (hereinafter referred to as a deposit account) previously established in a financial institution designated by the organizer for credit management. After that, cashless voting is possible after an examination that usually takes days to weeks.

  The organizer system and the financial institution system are connected via a network, and their account information is exchanged for funds transfer processing. Funds used to purchase voting tickets are withdrawn from a deposit account in advance and deposited into a designated account in the organizer system. Also, when a refund is generated, it can be once deposited into a designated account and then transferred to a deposit account as necessary.

In addition, since account information exchange between the organizer system and the financial institution system is not performed at any time, the content of the designated account for voting may not match the content of the deposit account. Therefore, there is a voting terminal device that obtains the user's deposit balance information and information by voting operation, calculates the purchase limit of the user's voting ticket, and notifies the user of the calculated purchase limit. (For example, see Patent Document 1).
JP 2001-52224 A

  The cashless voting service has the advantage of being able to vote from a personal computer or mobile phone at home without having to go to the stadium or voting ticket office, and is considered to contribute to the acquisition of new customers.

  However, in order to receive the cashless voting service, it has been necessary to register a designated account in advance by performing the above-described complicated procedure. In addition, since it takes time to review, a considerable period of time has passed before it can be used. However, this series of procedures is necessary for credit management and could not be omitted. For this reason, it was not possible to provide a service immediately to users who would like to participate in voting for a while, and this service was limited to some fixed fans.

  As described above, the conventional voting service is not convenient because it requires users to perform prior registration work, and is not readily available to all users. The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and provides a voting service processing program, a voting service device, and a voting service method capable of improving convenience for the user and easily starting a transaction. With the goal.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a voting service processing program is provided for providing a service for purchasing a voting ticket for a public competition without cash, by causing a computer to function as balance information acquisition means, balance confirmation means and account opening means. Is done. The balance information acquisition means acquires the terminal specific information of the user terminal when acquiring a vote participation request from the user terminal connected via the network. And the information of the electronic currency balance corresponding to this terminal specific information is acquired from the management computer which manages the electronic currency set in the user terminal in association with the terminal specific information. The balance confirmation means compares the electronic currency balance acquired by the balance information acquisition means with the opening funds required to open a voting ticket purchase account, and whether the opening funds can be secured from the electronic currency balance Confirm. When it is confirmed that the opening fund amount can be secured by the balance confirmation unit, the account opening unit sets the opening fund amount and opens a purchase account. Therefore, the account information in which the purchase account is associated with the terminal-specific information is stored in the storage unit, and the management computer is notified of the opening fund amount and instructed to update the electronic currency balance.

  According to a computer that executes such a voting service processing program, upon receiving a vote participation request from a user terminal for which electronic currency is set, terminal specific information of the user terminal is acquired and the electronic currency is managed. The electronic currency balance information is acquired from the management computer. In the management computer, electronic currency information including a balance is managed in association with terminal-specific information. When the electronic currency balance is acquired, it is compared with the opening fund amount necessary for opening the voting ticket purchase account to determine whether or not the purchase account can be opened. When the opening fund amount can be secured, the opening fund amount is set and a purchase account is opened. Then, the account information in which the opened purchase account is associated with the terminal-specific information is generated and stored in the storage means, and the management computer is notified of the opening fund amount and instructed to update the electronic currency balance.

  In order to solve the above problems, a voting service apparatus that functions in the same manner as the above processing means and a voting service method that causes a computer to execute a procedure similar to the above service processing program are provided.

  According to the disclosed voting service processing program, voting service device, and voting service method, a purchase account is immediately opened in response to a request for participation in voting, which increases user convenience. As a result, it is no longer necessary to perform a complicated procedure and open a designated account in advance, and the user can easily participate in voting when he / she thinks.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. First, the concept of the invention applied to the embodiment will be described, and then the specific contents of the embodiment will be described.
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an outline of the invention.

  The voting service device 10 includes a storage unit 11, a balance information acquisition unit 12, a balance confirmation unit 13, an account opening unit 14, and a communication unit 15, and includes a management server 20, a user terminal 30, and a user terminal 30 via a network (not shown). Connect to. Each processing means of the voting service device 10 realizes its processing function by the computer executing the voting service processing program, and purchases voting tickets for public competitions in cashless in response to a request from the user terminal 30. Provide service.

  The storage means 11 stores an account information table 11a. In the account information table 11a, information related to a purchase account for purchasing a voting ticket opened in response to a request from the user terminal 30 is registered. For example, the account balance of the established purchase account is registered in association with terminal specific information (hereinafter referred to as a terminal ID) for identifying the user terminal 30.

  When the balance information acquisition means 12 confirms the user's intention to vote, the balance information acquisition means 12 acquires electronic currency information including the balance of the electronic currency held by the user in order to open a voting ticket purchase account. Specifically, a participation request for voting is transmitted from the user terminal 30 by the user's operation. When a participation request is received via the communication means 15, the terminal ID of the user terminal 30 that has made the participation request is acquired. From the user terminal 30, together with the terminal ID, an opening fund amount designated by the user to be allocated for purchase funds is transmitted. These pieces of information may be transmitted from the user terminal 30 at the same time as the vote participation request. Funds for opening this account are allocated from the electronic currency set in the user terminal 30. The electronic currency is managed by the management server 20 in association with the terminal ID, and is set based on a credit contract between the user of the user terminal 30 and the management server 20. Therefore, the management server 20 is requested to acquire information on the electronic currency balance corresponding to this terminal ID. Therefore, if this electronic currency is used, it can be considered that the credit between the user terminal 30 and the voting service device 10 is also established.

  The balance confirmation means 13 confirms the electronic currency balance and determines whether or not a purchase account can be opened. Specifically, the electronic currency balance acquired from the management server 20 is compared with the designated opening fund amount, and whether or not the electronic currency balance is larger than the opening fund amount, that is, the opening fund amount is calculated from the electronic currency balance. Check whether it can be secured. At this time, the balance obtained by subtracting a predetermined amount to be secured as the electronic currency of the user terminal 30 may be compared with the opening fund amount. For example, when the user terminal 30 is a mobile phone and pays a call charge from electronic currency, the amount obtained by subtracting a predetermined call charge from the electronic currency balance is compared with the opening funds. Thereby, a predetermined call charge can be secured in the electronic currency of the user terminal 30. As a result of the determination, if the purchase account can be opened, the process is transferred to the account opening means 14. If it is not possible to open a purchase account, the user terminal 30 is notified of the inability to open.

  The account opening means 14 opens a purchase account for the user when it is confirmed by the balance confirmation means 13 that the opening funds for opening the purchase account can be secured from the electronic currency balance. . An opening fund amount is set in the purchase account, and the purchase account is registered in the account information table 11a in association with the terminal ID of the user terminal 30. Then, the management server 20 is notified of the opening fund amount, and is requested to update the electronic currency balance by subtracting the opening fund amount from the electronic currency balance. The account opening unit 14 may calculate the updated electronic currency balance and notify the management server 20 of the calculated electronic currency balance. Thereafter, the user terminal 30 is notified that a purchase account has been opened and that voting is possible.

  The communication unit 15 is connected to the management server 20 via a network, receives data transmitted via the management server 20, and transfers the data to the balance information acquisition unit 12, the balance confirmation unit 13, and the account opening unit 14. Further, the transmission data received from each of these means is transmitted to the management server 20.

  The management server 20 includes an electronic currency information database (hereinafter referred to as DB) 21 and manages the user terminal 30, in particular, manages the balance of the electronic currency associated with the user terminal 30. In the electronic currency information DB 21, information related to electronic currency is stored in association with the terminal ID of the corresponding user terminal 30. In the electronic currency information, at least the current balance of the electronic currency is registered.

  The user terminal 30 is, for example, a personal computer or a mobile phone, and unique terminal specific information is set for each. In addition, it holds electronic currency in association with terminal-specific information. This electronic currency is managed by the management server 20, and can be charged or withdrawn from the electronic currency balance by instructing from the user terminal 30.

The operation of the voting service device 10 having such a configuration will be described.
A user who wants to participate in public competition voting makes a voting request from the user terminal 30 owned by the user. The participation request is attached with the terminal ID for identifying the user terminal 30 and the opening fund amount set in the purchase account for the newly opened voting ticket, and is transmitted to the voting service device 10. In addition, the user holds an electronic currency in association with the user terminal 30, and the user can use this electronic currency for payment for voting ticket purchase.

  In the voting service device 10, when the balance information acquisition unit 12 receives a participation request from the user terminal 30 via the communication unit 15, the connection with the user terminal 30 is established. Then, the terminal ID attached to the participation request and the opening fund amount are extracted. These pieces of information may be obtained by requesting again after establishing a connection. The opening fund amount is not essential, and if there is no instruction, a predetermined amount may be set as the opening fund amount. For example, an amount that exceeds at least this minimum unit is set based on the minimum unit for purchasing a voting ticket. Subsequently, the balance of the electronic currency managed by the management server 20 is requested via the communication unit 15. The request is made by designating a terminal ID. The management server 20 searches the electronic currency information DB 21 based on the terminal ID, extracts the electronic currency balance of the corresponding terminal ID, and transmits it to the voting service device 10. The balance confirmation unit 13 compares the electronic currency balance received via the communication unit 15 with the opening fund amount, and determines whether the electronic currency balance exceeds the opening fund amount, that is, from the electronic currency balance to the opening fund. Determine whether the amount can be secured. At this time, a predetermined amount to be secured in the electronic currency balance managed by the management server 20 may be subtracted in advance, and the amount may be compared. When the opening fund amount can be secured, the account opening means 14 opens a purchase account. An opening fund amount is set in the purchase account, and the purchase account is registered in the account information table 11a in association with the terminal ID of the user terminal 30. Then, the management server 20 is notified of the opening fund amount, and is requested to update the electronic currency balance by subtracting the opening fund amount from the electronic currency balance. The account opening unit 14 may calculate the updated electronic currency balance and notify the management server 20 of the calculated electronic currency balance. Further, the user terminal 30 is notified that a purchase account has been established and that voting is possible. On the other hand, when it is determined by the balance confirmation means 13 that the opening fund amount cannot be secured, the opening of the purchasing account is stopped and the user terminal 30 is notified that the purchasing account cannot be opened.

  According to this voting service device 10, since the electronic currency managed by the management server 20 that has already been credited with the user terminal 30 is used, a voting ticket purchase account is immediately opened. Can do. Thus, even if the designated account is not opened in advance, the purchase account can be easily opened based on the electronic currency, and the convenience for the user is increased. In particular, it is more convenient for users who are not fixed fans and want to participate in voting. As a result, it is possible to expand the fan base to those who have never participated in voting.

  When opening an account, it is also possible to secure a predetermined amount separately from the current electronic currency balance, and to secure a fund for opening a purchase account from the balance obtained by reducing the amount. As a result, it is possible to avoid a situation in which credit cannot be secured during voting.

Hereinafter, an embodiment will be described in detail with reference to the drawings, taking as an example a case where the embodiment is applied to a transaction system using a mobile phone equipped with a SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) card.
The SIM card is an IC chip that can be removed from the mobile phone, and stores information necessary for causing the mobile terminal to function, such as a telephone number and a user ID. Each SIM card is set with unique information (hereinafter referred to as a card ID). Also, here, it is assumed that an electronic currency that is associated with a SIM card and used for payment of a call charge is managed.

FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram illustrating an example of a voting system.
The voting system includes a voting service device 100, a mobile phone management server 200, and user mobile phones 300a and 300b. The voting service device 100 and the mobile phone management server 200 are connected via a network 401. In addition, the mobile phone management server 200 and the mobile phones 300 a and 300 b are connected via the mobile phone network 402. Note that the voting service device 100 and the mobile phones 300a and 300b are connected via another relay device connected to the mobile phone network 402 if the mobile phone management server 200 can grasp the connection time to the mobile phone network 402. It may be.

  The voting service device 100 is a device that provides a voting service for public competitions, and is connected to a public competition operation server (not shown). Then, a cashless voting service is provided to the mobile phones 300a and 300b input via the mobile phone management server 200.

  The mobile phone management server 200 includes a SIM information DB 210 and manages call charges and SIM cards of the mobile phones 300a and 300b. The mobile phone management server 200 manages the electronic currency of each user in association with the SIM cards of the mobile phones 300a and 300b. This management information is stored in the SIM information DB 210. Hereinafter, an electronic currency balance managed by the mobile phone management server 200 in association with the SIM card is referred to as a SIM card balance. Further, the call charges used by the mobile phones 300a and 300b are deducted from the SIM card balance. Note that the call charge includes not only the charge used for the telephone function but also the charge required for communication when data communication is performed.

  The mobile phones 300a and 300b are equipped with a SIM card and have a function as an information terminal in addition to a telephone function. In the following description, the mobile phones 300a and 300b are collectively referred to as the mobile phone 300 unless it is necessary to distinguish between them.

Here, the hardware configuration of the voting service apparatus 100 will be described. FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration example of the voting service apparatus.
The entire voting service apparatus 100 is controlled by a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 101. A random access memory (RAM) 102, a hard disk drive (HDD) 103, and a communication interface 104 are connected to the CPU 101 via a bus 105.

  The RAM 102 temporarily stores at least part of an OS (Operating System) program and application programs to be executed by the CPU 101. The RAM 102 stores various data necessary for processing by the CPU 101. The HDD 103 stores the OS and application programs. The communication interface 104 is connected to the network 401 and transmits / receives data to / from the mobile phone management server 200 via the network 401.

  With such a hardware configuration, the processing function of the voting service apparatus 100 can be realized. 3 shows the hardware configuration of the voting service apparatus 100, the hardware configuration of the mobile phone management server 200 is the same.

Next, the functional configuration of each device will be described. FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram showing a functional configuration of each device of the voting system.
The voting service apparatus 100 includes an account information DB 110, a voting participation reception unit 120, and a voting processing unit 130.

  The account information DB 110 stores an account information table related to a voting ticket purchase account opened by the voting service apparatus 100 based on the SIM card balance. This purchase account is an account that is temporarily opened until a series of processing is completed in response to a vote request from a user. For example, while the connection between the voting service device 100 and the mobile phone 300 is established, the purchase account is held. When the mobile phone 300 finishes the process related to voting, the balance remaining in the purchase account is returned to the corresponding SIM card balance, and the purchase account is deleted.

  The voting participation reception unit 120 includes a balance information acquisition unit 121, a balance confirmation unit 122, and an account opening unit 123, and when receiving a user's intention to vote (participation request for voting) from the mobile phone 300, Based on the SIM card balance, a purchase account for purchasing a voting ticket is opened. When the balance information acquisition unit 121 receives the card ID and the opening fund amount from the mobile phone 300, the balance information acquisition unit 121 acquires the SIM card balance corresponding to the card ID from the mobile phone management server 200 based on the acquired card ID. The balance confirmation unit 122 subtracts the call upper limit for voting from the SIM card balance acquired by the balance information acquisition unit 121, compares the amount with the opening fund amount, and determines whether or not the purchase account can be opened. Determine. The call upper limit amount is a call charge that is predicted to be necessary from the establishment of the connection between the mobile phone 300 and the voting service device 100 to the end of a series of voting processes. For example, a call charge corresponding to an estimated connection time such as 5 minutes or 10 minutes is set. The SIM card balance obtained by subtracting the call upper limit is compared with the opening fund amount. If the SIM card balance is equal to or larger than the opening fund amount, it is determined that the purchase account can be opened. When it is determined that a purchase account can be opened, the account opening unit 123 sets an opening fund amount, opens a purchase account, and registers it in the account information table of the account information DB 110. In addition, the mobile phone management server 200 is notified of the opening fund amount and requested to subtract from the SIM card balance. In this way, voting using the mobile phone 300 becomes possible.

  The voting processing unit 130 uses the purchase account set by the voting participation reception unit 120 to perform processing related to voting, such as purchase of voting tickets and refund of dividends. The purchase of a voting ticket is based on the voting ticket purchase instruction input from the mobile phone 300, and the purchase price of the voting ticket instructed is compared with the balance of the purchase account. If the purchase amount of the designated voting ticket is less than the balance of the purchase account, the designated voting ticket is purchased and the purchase price is subtracted from the purchase account. When the purchased voting ticket is successful and the refund is received, the refund is added to the balance of the purchase account. In this way, the transaction using the purchase account is performed until the balance of the purchase account becomes less than the amount necessary for purchasing the voting ticket or until the user stops the voting process. Furthermore, when the end of voting is instructed, the balance remaining in the purchase account is notified to the mobile phone management server 200, and the balance is transferred to the SIM card balance. Then, the purchase account is closed.

The mobile phone management server 200 includes a SIM information DB 210, a SIM card balance management unit 220, and a control unit 230.
The SIM information DB 210 stores information such as the SIM card balance held and the expiration date of the SIM card 310 in association with the card ID of the SIM card 310 of the mobile phone 300 to be managed.

  The SIM card balance management unit 220 performs management of the SIM card balance, such as collection of call charges and transfer management of funds corresponding to the SIM card 310. In collecting a call charge, the call charge is deducted from the SIM card balance on a predetermined date. When a balance inquiry is received via the control unit 230, the SIM information DB 210 is searched using the designated card ID, and the SIM card balance of the corresponding card ID is extracted. Then, the extracted SIM card balance is transmitted to the voting service apparatus 100 via the control unit 230. Similarly, when the opening fund amount is acquired, the amount is subtracted from the SIM card balance, and the calculated SIM card balance is stored in the corresponding area in the SIM information DB 210.

  The control unit 230 controls the entire apparatus. Further, the call time and communication time of the mobile phone 300 are monitored, and the call charge is calculated. The calculated call charge is notified to the SIM card balance management unit 220 at a predetermined timing, and is instructed to be subtracted from the SIM card balance to update the SIM card balance.

  The mobile phone 300 includes a SIM card 310, a control unit 320, a display unit 330, and an input unit 340. The SIM card 310 stores information for identifying a user such as a card ID, an expiration date of the SIM card 310, and the like.

  The control unit 320 controls the entire apparatus. The display unit 330 displays a screen provided by the voting service device 100 acquired via the mobile phone management server 200. For example, a screen for purchasing voting tickets is displayed. The input unit 340 outputs a signal obtained when the user operates an input device such as a keyboard of the mobile phone 300 to the control unit 320. The control unit 320 converts the signal into data and transmits it to the voting service apparatus 100 via the mobile phone management server 200. Note that some data is for the mobile phone management server 200.

Here, an account information table stored in the account information DB 110 will be described. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of an account information table.
In the account information table 1110, information items of the card ID 1111 and the account balance 1112 of the purchase account are set.

  The card ID 1111 is set with the card ID of the SIM card, which is unique information of the mobile phone 300a, 300b of the user who opened the purchase account. The card ID is identification information for specifying the mobile phones 300a and 300b and their users.

The account balance 1112 stores the current balance of the purchase account opened for the user identified by the value of the card ID 1111.
Next, the voting service process in the voting system having such a configuration will be described.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a processing procedure of voting service processing. The same elements as those in FIG. Reference numerals 601 to 607 denote information transmitted in the direction of the arrow.
A user who wants to participate in the voting operates the mobile phone 300 and transmits a voting participation request 601 to the voting service apparatus 100. The participation request 601 is attached with the card ID of the SIM card 310 mounted on the mobile phone 300 and the funds for opening a voting ticket purchase account set by the user.

  Upon receiving the participation request 601, the voting service device 100 starts the participation acceptance process (starts step S01. In the participation acceptance process, the acquired card ID is attached to the mobile phone management server 200 and the SIM card balance request 602 is transmitted. Receiving the SIM card balance request 602, the mobile phone management server 200 searches the SIM information DB 210, extracts the SIM card balance of the corresponding card ID, and returns a response 603 with the SIM card balance attached. The voting service device 100 that has acquired the SIM card balance determines whether or not the purchase account can be opened by comparing the sum of the opening fund amount and the call upper limit amount with the SIM card balance. A purchase account is opened, and the opening fund amount 604 is notified to the mobile phone management server 200. Further, the determination result is sent. And it notifies the mobile phone 300 as the permission notification 605. The result of the determination if it is opened Allowed of purchase for the account, and vote Yes. In this way the voting service apparatus 100, a temporary trading account is opened.

  After the voting ticket purchase account is opened, voting information 606 indicating the voting content is sent from the mobile phone 300. The voting information 606 includes designation information such as a purchase group number and a bet amount. The voting service apparatus 100 that has acquired the voting information 606 checks whether or not the voting ticket can be purchased. If it is possible, the voting service apparatus 100 purchases the voting ticket and deducts the price from the purchase account. Then, a voting result notification (voting impossible or voting complete) 607 is transmitted to the mobile phone 300. In this way, the voting process using the temporary purchase account is performed.

Hereinafter, the process procedure of the participation reception process and the voting process in the voting service apparatus 100 will be described in detail.
FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the procedure of the participation acceptance process of the voting service device.

A vote participation request 601 is input, and the process is started.
[Step S11] The balance information acquisition unit 121 extracts the card ID and the opening fund amount for the purchase account set by the user from the acquired participation request 601. Then, the minimum amount of 1 bet, which is the minimum unit of the premium, is compared with the designated opening fund amount. If the opening fund amount is greater than or equal to the minimum amount for one bet, the setting is correct and the process proceeds to step S12. If the opening fund amount is less than the minimum amount for one bet, it is determined that the setting is incorrect and the process proceeds to step S17.

  [Step S12] When the opening fund for the purchase account set by the user is equal to or more than the minimum amount for one bet, a SIM card balance request 602 is made with the card ID attached to the mobile phone management server 200. As a response 603, the SIM card balance associated with the card ID is acquired.

[Step S13] The balance confirmation unit 122 confirms the SIM card balance and determines whether an account can be opened. Here, the balance of the SIM card is compared with the sum of the account opening fund amount and the call upper limit amount. Specifically, the formula,
Surplus = SIM balance-Call limit-Opening funds (1)
To determine whether the surplus is greater than zero. If the surplus is 0 or more, it is determined that an account can be opened. When the surplus is less than 0, it is determined that an account cannot be opened.

  [Step S14] The account opening unit 123 checks the determination result of step S13. If the determination result is that an account can be opened, the process proceeds to step S15. If the determination result is that an account cannot be opened, the process proceeds to step S17.

  [Step S15] If an account can be opened, the account opening unit 123 opens a purchase account for the user to purchase a voting ticket in association with the card ID. The opening funds are deposited in the purchase account. Further, a record of the account information table 1110 in which the card ID and the account balance of the purchase account are associated is generated and registered in the account information table 1110. Then, the mobile phone management server 200 is notified of the opening fund amount and told to subtract the opening fund amount from the SIM card balance.

  [Step S16] Since the purchase account has been opened in step S15, the mobile phone 300 that has transmitted the participation request 601 is notified that voting is possible, and the process is terminated.

  [Step S17] Since the account cannot be opened, the mobile phone 300 that has transmitted the participation request 601 is notified that voting is not possible. If necessary, it may be notified by attaching a reason for the impossibility (for example, the opening fund amount is less than the minimum amount for one bet, the SIM card balance is insufficient).

  When a participation request is received by executing the above processing procedure, a voting ticket purchase account is opened based on the SIM card balance that the user holds in association with the SIM card 310 of the mobile phone 300.

Next, the voting process using the established purchase account will be described. FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a voting process procedure of the voting service apparatus.
When the user operates the mobile phone 300, voting information corresponding to the operation content is generated. When the voting service device 100 acquires voting information, the voting service device 100 starts voting processing.

[Step S <b> 21] The voting processing unit 130 extracts the purchase group number and the bet amount of the voting ticket from the voting information acquired from the mobile phone 300.
[Step S22] Based on the card ID, the account balance of the corresponding purchase account acquired from the account information DB 110 is extracted. Then, the bet amount extracted in step S21 is compared. If the account balance is equal to or greater than the bet amount designated by the user, the process proceeds to step S23. If the account balance is less than the bet amount, the process proceeds to step S26.

  [Step S23] If the account balance is equal to or greater than the bet amount, the organizer system that performs the totaling process for the purchased voting tickets is notified of the purchase number and the like, and the result of the vote totaling process is obtained.

[Step S24] The bet amount is subtracted from the account balance, the calculated amount is set as a new account balance, and the value of the corresponding account balance in the account information table is updated.
[Step S25] A vote completion response notifying that the vote has been completed normally is transmitted to the mobile phone 300, and the process is terminated. At this time, information such as the vote count result obtained in step S23 or the latest account balance calculated in step S24 may be attached to the vote completion response.

[Step S26] When the account balance is less than the bet amount, a response indicating that voting is not possible is transmitted to the mobile phone 300, and the process is terminated.
By executing the above processing procedure, voting can be performed using a purchase account established based on the SIM card balance. In addition, a call upper limit required for a call during the voting process is secured in advance when the purchase account is opened. For this reason, the situation where the credit cannot be ensured such as no call charge during the voting is avoided.

  In the above description, the processing procedure up to the purchase of a voting ticket has been described. However, the processing in the middle of a purchased voting ticket is the same as in the case of voting performed by opening a designated account in advance. The refund according to the hit ballot ticket is reflected in the purchase account and can be used for the next and subsequent voting. In the voting process procedure shown in FIG. 8, the account balance to be compared with the bet amount in step S22 is an amount reflecting the refund amount.

  Further, when the user finishes the participation in the voting, that is, when the connection with the voting service device 100 is released, the balance of the purchase account is notified to the mobile phone management server 200 and the funds are converted into the SIM card balance. Transfer. Then, the purchase account is closed, and information regarding the purchase account is deleted from the account information table 1110. In addition, whenever one transaction ends or when a time corresponding to the call upper limit amount has elapsed, the user may be inquired of whether or not to end and the purchase account may be closed.

  As described above, according to the voting service device 100, upon receiving a voting request from an arbitrary user, the voting ticket purchase account opening fund amount is secured from the SIM card balance held by the user. , Temporarily open a purchase account. At this time, a call upper limit for voting always remains in the SIM card balance. Thereby, credit is ensured without going through complicated examination procedures. Further, since the upper limit of the call is secured in the SIM card balance, it is possible to avoid a situation where credit cannot be secured during voting.

  The above processing functions can be realized by a computer. In that case, a program describing the processing content of the function that the voting service apparatus should have is provided. By executing the program on a computer, the above processing functions are realized on the computer. The program describing the processing contents can be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium.

  When distributing the program, for example, portable recording media such as a DVD (Digital Versatile Disc) and a CD-ROM (Compact Disc Read Only Memory) on which the program is recorded are sold. It is also possible to store the program in a storage device of a server computer and transfer the program from the server computer to another computer via a network.

  The computer that executes the program stores, for example, the program recorded on the portable recording medium or the program transferred from the server computer in its own storage device. Then, the computer reads the program from its own storage device and executes processing according to the program. The computer can also read the program directly from the portable recording medium and execute processing according to the program. Further, each time the program is transferred from the server computer, the computer can sequentially execute processing according to the received program.

Regarding the above embodiment, the following additional notes are disclosed.
(Supplementary note 1) In a voting service processing program for providing a service for purchasing voting tickets for public competitions without cash,
Computer
When a request for participation in voting is acquired from a user terminal connected via a network, terminal specific information of the user terminal is acquired, and an electronic currency set in the user terminal is managed in association with the terminal specific information Balance information acquisition means for acquiring information on an electronic currency balance corresponding to the terminal-specific information from the management computer
Whether the electronic funds balance acquired by the balance information acquisition means is compared with the opening funds required for opening the voting ticket purchase account, and whether the opening funds can be secured from the electronic currency balance Balance confirmation means to confirm,
When it is confirmed by the balance confirmation means that the opening fund amount can be secured, the opening fund amount is set and the purchase account is opened, and the purchase account is associated with the terminal-specific information. Account opening means for storing the account information in the storage means, and notifying the management computer of the opening fund amount and instructing the updating of the electronic currency balance,
A voting service processing program characterized by functioning as

(Additional remark 2) When the said amount of funds for opening is designated from the said user terminal, the said balance confirmation means is the designated amount, and when not designated, at least the minimum unit when purchasing the said voting ticket The amount corresponding to
The voting service processing program according to supplementary note 1, characterized in that:

  (Supplementary Note 3) When the balance confirmation unit compares the electronic currency balance with the opening fund amount, the balance confirmation unit subtracts a predetermined amount from the electronic currency balance to secure the predetermined amount. 2. The voting service processing program according to appendix 1, wherein the electronic currency balance obtained by subtracting the predetermined amount is compared with the opening fund amount.

(Appendix 4) The user terminal is a mobile phone that pays a call charge using the electronic currency,
When the balance confirmation means compares the electronic currency balance with the opening fund amount, a call charge necessary for the purchase processing of the voting ticket with the mobile phone is subtracted from the electronic currency balance in advance. Then, after securing the call charge, the electronic money balance from which the call charge has been subtracted is compared with the opening fund amount.
The voting service processing program according to supplementary note 1, characterized in that:

(Supplementary note 5)
When the voting process using the purchase account is completed, the management computer is notified of the balance of the purchase account and added to the electronic currency balance, and the purchase account is closed. Function as voting processing means for deleting the account information from the storage means;
The voting service processing program according to supplementary note 1, characterized in that:

  (Supplementary Note 6) The terminal unique information of the user terminal is unique information set in a SIM card mounted on a mobile phone, and the purchase account is set in association with unique information of the SIM card. The voting service processing program according to supplementary note 1, characterized in that:

(Appendix 7) In a voting service device that provides a service for purchasing voting tickets for public competitions without cash,
When a request for participation in voting is acquired from a user terminal connected via a network, terminal specific information of the user terminal is acquired, and an electronic currency set in the user terminal is managed in association with the terminal specific information Balance information acquisition means for acquiring information of an electronic currency balance corresponding to the terminal-specific information from the management computer,
Whether the electronic funds balance acquired by the balance information acquisition means is compared with the opening funds required for opening the voting ticket purchase account, and whether the opening funds can be secured from the electronic currency balance Balance confirmation means to confirm,
When it is confirmed by the balance confirmation means that the opening fund amount can be secured, the opening fund amount is set and the purchase account is opened, and the purchase account is associated with the terminal-specific information. Account opening means for storing the account information in the storage means, and notifying the management computer of the opening fund amount and instructing to update the electronic currency balance;
A voting service device characterized by comprising:

(Appendix 8) In a voting service method for providing a service for purchasing voting tickets for public competitions without cash,
When the balance information acquisition means acquires a participation request for voting from a user terminal connected via a network, the terminal specific information of the user terminal is acquired and set in the user terminal in association with the terminal specific information. A procedure for acquiring electronic currency balance information corresponding to the terminal-specific information from a management computer that manages the electronic currency;
The balance confirmation means compares the electronic currency balance acquired by the balance information acquisition means with the opening fund amount necessary for opening the voting ticket purchase account, and the opening funds amount from the electronic currency balance. Steps to check if can be secured,
When the account opening means confirms that the opening fund amount can be secured by the balance confirmation means, the opening fund amount is set and the purchase account is opened, and the purchase account and the terminal-specific Storing the account information associated with the information in the storage means, and instructing the management computer to update the electronic currency balance by notifying the management fund amount;
A voting service method characterized by comprising:

It is the figure which showed the outline | summary of invention. It is the block diagram which showed an example of the voting system. It is a block diagram which shows the hardware structural example of a voting service apparatus. It is the functional block diagram which showed the function structure of each apparatus of a voting system. It is the figure which showed an example of the account information table. It is the figure which showed an example of the process sequence of voting service processing. It is the flowchart which showed the procedure of the participation reception process of a voting service apparatus. It is the flowchart which showed the procedure of the voting process of a voting service apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Vote service apparatus 11 Memory | storage means 11a Account information table 12 Balance information acquisition means 13 Balance confirmation means 14 Account opening means 20 Management server 21 Electronic currency information DB (database)
30 User terminal

Claims (5)

In the voting service processing program to provide cashless purchase service for public competition voting tickets,
Computer
When a request for participation in voting is acquired from a user terminal connected via a network, terminal specific information of the user terminal is acquired, and an electronic currency set in the user terminal is managed in association with the terminal specific information Balance information acquisition means for acquiring information on an electronic currency balance corresponding to the terminal-specific information from the management computer
Whether the electronic funds balance acquired by the balance information acquisition means is compared with the opening funds required for opening the voting ticket purchase account, and whether the opening funds can be secured from the electronic currency balance Balance confirmation means to confirm,
When it is confirmed by the balance confirmation means that the opening fund amount can be secured, the opening fund amount is set and the purchase account is opened, and the purchase account is associated with the terminal-specific information. Account opening means for storing the account information in the storage means, and notifying the management computer of the opening fund amount and instructing the updating of the electronic currency balance,
A voting service processing program characterized by functioning as The user terminal is a mobile phone that pays a call charge using the electronic currency,
When the balance confirmation means compares the electronic currency balance with the opening fund amount, a call charge necessary for the purchase processing of the voting ticket with the mobile phone is subtracted from the electronic currency balance in advance. Then, after securing the call charge, the electronic money balance from which the call charge has been subtracted is compared with the opening fund amount.
The voting service processing program according to claim 1. The computer further
When the voting process using the purchase account is completed, the management computer is notified of the balance of the purchase account and added to the electronic currency balance, and the purchase account is closed. Function as voting processing means for deleting the account information from the storage means;
The voting service processing program according to claim 1. In a voting service device that provides a cashless purchase service for public competition voting tickets,
When a request for participation in voting is acquired from a user terminal connected via a network, terminal specific information of the user terminal is acquired, and an electronic currency set in the user terminal is managed in association with the terminal specific information Balance information acquisition means for acquiring information of an electronic currency balance corresponding to the terminal-specific information from the management computer,
Whether the electronic funds balance acquired by the balance information acquisition means is compared with the opening funds required for opening the voting ticket purchase account, and whether the opening funds can be secured from the electronic currency balance Balance confirmation means to confirm,
When it is confirmed by the balance confirmation means that the opening fund amount can be secured, the opening fund amount is set and the purchase account is opened, and the purchase account is associated with the terminal-specific information. Account opening means for storing the account information in the storage means, and notifying the management computer of the opening fund amount and instructing to update the electronic currency balance;
A voting service device characterized by comprising: In a voting service method for providing a cashless purchase service for public competition voting tickets,
When the balance information acquisition means acquires a participation request for voting from a user terminal connected via a network, the terminal specific information of the user terminal is acquired and set in the user terminal in association with the terminal specific information. A procedure for acquiring electronic currency balance information corresponding to the terminal-specific information from a management computer that manages the electronic currency;
The balance confirmation means compares the electronic currency balance acquired by the balance information acquisition means with the opening fund amount necessary for opening the voting ticket purchase account, and the opening funds amount from the electronic currency balance. Steps to check if can be secured,
When the account opening means confirms that the opening fund amount can be secured by the balance confirmation means, the opening fund amount is set and the purchase account is opened, and the purchase account and the terminal-specific Storing the account information associated with the information in the storage means, and instructing the management computer to update the electronic currency balance by notifying the management fund amount;
A voting service method characterized by comprising:

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