JP2013175015A - Information providing system and information providing method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an information providing system that is easily applicable to an existing home appliance and provides information related to the home appliance via a network while suppressing increase in cost of the home appliance.SOLUTION: An information providing system 1 comprises: a home appliance 2; an information providing device 4 connected to a network, which stores information related to the home appliance 2, compares power consumption data of the home appliance 2 in use with the stored information related to the home appliance 2, and provides information related to the home appliance 2 corresponding to the power consumption data; a power consumption measuring and collecting device 3 which measures power consumption of the home appliance 2, collects the power consumption data, and transmits the power consumption data to the information providing device 4 via the network; and an information display terminal 5 which receives the information related to the home appliance 2 corresponding to the power consumption data from the information providing device 4 via the network, and displays the information.

Description

  The present invention relates to an information providing system and an information providing method for providing information corresponding to power consumption of home appliances via a network.

  2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, information providing systems that provide information related to home appliances used by users in homes and the like via a network such as the Internet have attracted attention. Information relating to the home appliance is, for example, information such as advertisements and maintenance information. The provided information is displayed on a display terminal owned by the user. Such conventional information providing systems are described in Patent Documents 1 and 2.

  The conventional multi-function network communication terminal described in Patent Document 1 has a function of remotely operating a daily life equipment connected to a network and a function capable of bidirectional communication with an information communication network. The multi-function network communication terminal accesses the management server through the information communication network and transmits information on the living equipment device every time the attribute information on the living equipment device is updated. On the other hand, the multi-function network communication terminal receives the guidance information including the advertisement transmitted from the management server, and updates and displays it on the display screen.

  The conventional maintenance information providing system described in Patent Literature 2 includes a plurality of information home appliances and a maintenance information providing device that provides maintenance information on the information home appliances. The maintenance information providing system monitors the state of the information home appliance via the communication line, and based on the state of the information home appliance and a threshold predetermined by the manufacturer of the information home appliance, maintenance predetermined by the manufacturer of the information home appliance Notify users of information.

JP 2001-338213 A JP 2010-176600 A

  However, since the conventional information providing system described in Patent Document 1 has a function in which the multi-function network communication terminal remotely operates the life equipment (home appliance), the home appliance also interacts with the communication terminal. It is necessary to incorporate a function for performing communication. In addition, the conventional information providing system described in Patent Document 2 needs to include a state measuring unit in which the information home appliance measures the state of its components, and a measurement result transmitting unit that transmits the measurement result to the maintenance information providing apparatus. .

  As described above, the conventional information providing system needs to incorporate sensors for detecting the state of the home appliance and a communication device for transmitting the detection data to the network in advance in the home appliance. Therefore, there has been a problem that the cost of home appliances increases, and the information providing system cannot be applied to existing home appliances that do not include these sensors and communication devices.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and provides information related to home appliances via a network that can be easily applied to existing home appliances while suppressing an increase in the cost of home appliances. It is an object to provide an information providing system and an information providing method thereof.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the information providing system of the present invention stores home appliances and information on the home appliances, and also stores power consumption data of the home appliances in use and stored information on the home appliances. And providing information related to the home appliance corresponding to the power consumption data, and an information providing device connected to a network, measuring the power consumption of the home appliance, and collecting the power consumption data And a power consumption measuring and collecting device that transmits the power consumption data to the information providing device via a network, and receiving information related to the home appliance corresponding to the power consumption data from the information providing device via the network. And an information display terminal for displaying.

  According to this configuration, the information providing system measures and collects the power consumption data of the home appliance using the power consumption measuring and collecting device, and further transmits it to the information providing device via the network. And an information provision system acquires the information which concerns on the household appliances corresponding to the power consumption data from an information provision apparatus, and provides it to a user via a network. That is, the information providing system uses power consumption as a source for obtaining information related to home appliances, and includes a power consumption measuring device and a communication device that are separate from the home appliances. Therefore, the information providing system does not need to incorporate sensors for detecting the state of the home appliance or a communication device for transmitting the detection data to the network in advance in the home appliance.

  Further, in the information providing system having the above configuration, the power consumption measurement and collection device includes: a power consumption measurement device that measures power consumption of the home appliance installed in a power plug of the home appliance; and the power consumption measurement A power consumption data collection device that receives and collects the power consumption data from the device.

  According to this configuration, the power consumption is easily measured and power consumption data is collected simply by inserting the power plug of the home appliance into the outlet.

  Further, in the information providing system configured as described above, the information related to the home appliance stored in the information providing apparatus is another home appliance of the same category as the home appliance and its power consumption data, and the home appliance in use When the power consumption data of the device is compared with the power consumption data of the other home appliances, and the other home appliances have lower power consumption, the advertisement related to the other home appliances on the information display terminal It is characterized by displaying information including.

  According to this configuration, the information providing system displays, on the information display terminal, an advertisement of another household appliance of the same category as the household electrical appliance based on the power consumption data of the household electrical appliance in use and provides it to the user.

  Further, in the information providing system configured as described above, the information related to the home appliance stored in the information providing apparatus is specified power consumption data during normal operation of the home appliance, and the consumption of the home appliance in use Based on a comparison between power data and the specified power consumption data of the home appliance, the information display terminal displays information including a failure or malfunction of the home appliance in use, a maintenance method, and a repair support guide. It is said.

  According to this configuration, the information providing system detects a state such as a failure or malfunction of the home appliance based on the power consumption data of the home appliance in use, displays the information on the information display terminal, and provides the information to the user.

  Further, in the information providing system configured as described above, the information related to the home appliance stored in the information providing apparatus is operation power consumption data that embodies power consumption during user operation of the home appliance, and is being used Based on the comparison between the power consumption data of the home appliance and the power consumption data at the time of operation of the home appliance, the information display terminal displays information including the number of operations of the home appliance and the operation results. It is characterized by that.

  According to this configuration, the information providing system identifies the operation status of the home appliance based on the power consumption data of the home appliance in use, displays the information on the information display terminal, and provides it to the user.

  Further, in order to solve the above-described problem, the present invention provides an information providing method for providing information related to a home appliance in use via a network, and uses a power consumption measuring and collecting apparatus separate from the home appliance. Measuring the power consumption of the home appliance and collecting the power consumption data, and connecting the power consumption data to the information providing device for storing information related to the home appliance using the power consumption measurement collecting device. Transmitting via power, comparing the power consumption data with information related to the home appliance, transmitting information related to the home appliance corresponding to the power consumption data from the information providing device, And an information display terminal receiving and displaying information relating to the home appliance.

  According to this method, using power consumption as a source for obtaining information related to home appliances, comparing power consumption data and information related to home appliances by a power consumption measuring device and communication device separate from the home appliances, Realizing the exchange. Therefore, it is not necessary to incorporate sensors for detecting the state of the home appliance or a communication device for transmitting the detection data to the network in advance in the home appliance.

  Further, in the information providing method having the above configuration, the information related to the home appliance stored in the information providing apparatus is another home appliance of the same category as the home appliance and its power consumption data, and the home appliance in use A step of comparing the power consumption data of the device with the power consumption data of the other home appliance, and when the other home appliance has a lower power consumption, the information display terminal And a step of displaying information including such an advertisement.

  According to this method, based on the power consumption data of the home appliance in use, an advertisement of another home appliance of the same category as that home appliance is displayed on the information display terminal and provided to the user.

  Further, in the information providing method having the above configuration, the information related to the home appliance stored in the information providing apparatus is specified power consumption data during normal operation of the home appliance, and the consumption of the home appliance in use Comparing power data with the specified power consumption data of the home appliance, and displaying information including failure and malfunction of the home appliance in use on the information display terminal, a maintenance method, and repair support guidance; It is characterized by having.

  According to this method, a state such as a failure or malfunction of the home appliance is detected based on the power consumption data of the home appliance being used, and the information is displayed on the information display terminal and provided to the user.

  Further, in the information providing method configured as described above, the information related to the home appliance stored in the information providing apparatus is operation power consumption data that embodies power consumption during user operation of the home appliance, and is in use Comparing the power consumption data of the household electrical appliance with the power consumption data during operation of the household electrical appliance, and displaying information including the number of operations of the household electrical appliance in use on the information display terminal; It is characterized by having.

  According to this method, the operation status of the home appliance is identified based on the power consumption data of the home appliance in use, and the information is displayed on the information display terminal and provided to the user.

  According to the configuration of the present invention, the information providing system and the information providing method need to previously incorporate sensors for detecting the state of the home appliance and a communication device for transmitting the detection data to the network into the home appliance. There is no. Therefore, it is possible to provide an information providing system and an information providing method for providing information related to home appliances via a network that can be easily applied to existing home appliances while suppressing an increase in cost of home appliances. Can do.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the information provision system which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the information provision method using the information provision system which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the power consumption data which the information provision system which concerns on Example 1 of this invention uses. It is explanatory drawing which shows the information display terminal of the information provision system which concerns on Example 1 of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the power consumption data which the information provision system which concerns on Example 2 of this invention uses. It is explanatory drawing which shows the information display terminal of the information provision system which concerns on Example 2 of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the power consumption data which the information provision system which concerns on Example 3 of this invention uses. It is explanatory drawing which shows the information display terminal of the information provision system which concerns on Example 3 of this invention.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

  First, the configuration of an information providing system according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the information providing system.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the information providing system 1 provides the user with information related to the refrigerator 2r, the washing machine 2w, and the air conditioner 2e, which are home appliances 2 used by the user in a house, for example, via a network such as the Internet. Information providing system. The information providing system 1 includes a home appliance 2 (for example, a refrigerator 2r, a washing machine 2w, an air conditioner 2e), a power consumption measuring and collecting device 3, an information providing device 4, and an information display terminal 5.

  The household electrical appliance 2 is a household electrical appliance such as a refrigerator 2r, a washing machine 2w, an air conditioner 2e, and the like used by a user in a house. The home appliances 2 each include a power plug 2p, and operate by receiving power from a commercial AC power supply by connecting it to an outlet (power outlet, not shown) provided in the house.

  The power consumption measurement / collection device 3 includes a power consumption measurement device 3a, a power consumption data collection device 3b, and a router 3c.

  The power consumption measuring device 3a is installed between the power plug 2p of each home appliance 2 and a power outlet. The power consumption measuring device 3a can be easily installed without requiring a license for electrical work. The power consumption measuring device 3a has a function capable of measuring the power consumption of each home appliance 2 via the power plug 2p. The power consumption measuring device 3a is provided with, for example, an LED lamp, and the operation state can be confirmed by turning on the LED lamp. The power consumption measuring device 3a transmits the measured power consumption data of the home appliance 2 to the power consumption data collecting device 3b by wireless communication or wired communication. In addition, you may decide to measure the power consumption of the household appliances 2 using a distribution board (not shown), without providing the power consumption measuring apparatus 3a.

  The power consumption data collection device 3b receives the power consumption data of each of the home appliances 2 from the power consumption measurement device 3a, collects and accumulates it. The power consumption data collection device 3b is set to pair with the power consumption measurement device 3a at the time of installation, and can freely increase or decrease the pairing. The power consumption data collected by the power consumption data collection device 3b is transmitted to the information providing device 4 via the router 3c.

  The router 3c is a communication device that interconnects two networks of a home and the Internet in a computer network. The router 3c transmits the power consumption data collected by the power consumption data collection device 3b to the information providing device 4 via the Internet. Further, the router 3c transmits information related to each home appliance 2 obtained from the information providing device 4 to the information display terminal 5 through wireless communication or wired communication.

  In the present embodiment, the power consumption measuring device 3a, the power consumption data collecting device 3b, and the router 3c of the power consumption measuring and collecting device 3 are separate devices, but the present invention is not limited to this mode. Any one of the power consumption measuring device 3a, the power consumption data collecting device 3b, and the router 3c may be configured integrally, or all may be configured integrally. Further, as described above, the function of the power consumption measuring device 3a may be provided in the distribution board.

  The information providing device 4 is connected to the Internet and stores information related to each home appliance 2. The information providing apparatus 4 receives power consumption data of each home appliance 2 via the Internet. The information providing device 4 compares the received power consumption data with the stored information related to each home appliance 2 and searches whether there is information related to each home appliance 2 corresponding to the received power consumption data. To do. Further, the information providing device 4 transmits information related to each of the home appliances 2 corresponding to the received power consumption data to the home that is the transmission source of the power consumption data via the Internet. The information providing apparatus 4 is, for example, a general server on the Internet, and a business operator that transmits information related to each stored home appliance 2 has an access right to the server.

  The information display terminal 5 is composed of, for example, a tablet-type terminal, and includes a display unit 5a composed of a liquid crystal display device or the like. The information display terminal 5 can be installed by leaning on a desktop or a wall surface, or can be picked up and operated by a user. The information display terminal 5 activates preinstalled application software, thereby receiving information on each home appliance 2 transmitted by the information providing device 4 via the Internet and the router 3c and displaying the information on the display unit 5a.

  Next, the information provision method using the information provision system 1 is demonstrated along the flow shown in FIG. FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing an information providing method using the information providing system 1.

  When the information providing system 1 is operated (start of FIG. 2), the power consumption measuring device 3a measures the power consumption of each home appliance 2 through the power plug 2p (step # 101 in FIG. 2). The power consumption data collection device 3b receives and collects the power consumption data of each home appliance 2 from the power consumption measurement device 3a (step # 102).

  The information providing system 1 determines whether or not a predetermined period (unit measurement period) set in advance has elapsed (step # 103). When the predetermined period, that is, the fixed measurement period has not elapsed (No in Step # 103), the process returns to Step # 101, and the measurement of the power consumption and the collection of the power consumption data of each home appliance 2 are continued.

  When the predetermined period has elapsed in step # 103 (Yes in step # 103), the information providing system 1 provides the power consumption data of each home appliance 2 collected by the power consumption data collection device 3b via the router 3c and the Internet. It transmits to the apparatus 4 (step # 104).

  The information providing device 4 compares the received power consumption data with the stored information related to each home appliance 2 (step # 105). Then, it is determined whether or not there is information relating to home appliance 2 to be transmitted to the home that is the transmission source of the power consumption data (step # 106). When there is no information related to the home appliance 2 to be transmitted (No in Step # 106), the process returns to Step # 101, and the measurement of the power consumption of each home appliance 2 and the collection of power consumption data are continued.

  When there is information related to the home appliance 2 to be transmitted in Step # 106 (Yes in Step # 106), the information providing apparatus 4 consumes information related to the home appliance 2 corresponding to the received power consumption data via the Internet. It transmits to the home which is a transmission source of electric power data (step # 107).

  The power consumption measuring and collecting apparatus 3 receives the information related to the home appliance 2 transmitted from the information providing apparatus 4 and transmits the information to the information display terminal 5 (step # 108). The information display terminal 5 displays the received information related to the home appliance 2 on the display unit 5a (step # 109). And it returns to step # 101 and the measurement of the power consumption of each household electrical appliance 2 and collection of power consumption data are continued.

  As described above, the information providing system 1 stores the home appliance 2 and information related to the home appliance 2, and compares the power consumption data of the home appliance 2 in use with the stored information related to the home appliance 2. The information providing apparatus 4 connected to the network that provides information related to the home appliance 2 corresponding to the power consumption data, and the power consumption of the home appliance 2 are measured and the power consumption data is collected and consumed via the network. A power consumption measuring and collecting device 3 for transmitting power data to the information providing device 4, and an information display terminal 5 for receiving and displaying information on the home appliance 2 corresponding to the power consumption data from the information providing device 4 via the network, and It is equipped with. Thereby, the information providing system 1 measures and collects the power consumption data of the home appliance 2 using the power consumption measuring and collecting device 3, and further transmits it to the information providing device 4 via the network. And the information provision system 1 acquires the information which concerns on the household appliances 2 corresponding to the power consumption data from the information provision apparatus 4, and provides it to a user via a network.

  That is, the information providing system 1 uses power consumption as a source for obtaining information related to the home appliance 2, and includes a power consumption measuring and collecting device 3 that is a communication device and a power consumption measuring device separate from the home appliance 2. ing. Therefore, the information providing system 1 does not need to incorporate in the home appliance 2 in advance a sensor for detecting the state of the home appliance 2 and a communication device for transmitting the detection data to the network.

  In addition, the power consumption measuring and collecting apparatus 3 includes a power consumption measuring apparatus 3a that measures the power consumption of the household electrical appliance 2 installed at the insertion port of the power plug 2p of the household electrical appliance 2, and power consumption data from the power consumption measuring apparatus 3a. The power consumption data collecting device 3b that receives and collects the power consumption data can be easily measured simply by inserting the power plug 2p of the home appliance 2 into the insertion port. It is possible to collect.

  Thus, according to the configuration of the above-described embodiment of the present invention, there is no need to previously incorporate a functional member for detecting and transmitting the state of the home appliance 2 into the home appliance 2, so that the cost of the home appliance 2 is reduced. It is possible to provide an information providing system 1 that provides information related to the home appliance 2 that can be easily applied to the existing home appliance 2 while suppressing the increase, and the information providing method thereof.

  Next, Example 1 of information provision using the information provision system 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4. FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing power consumption data used by the information providing system 1 of the first embodiment, and FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the information display terminal 5 of the information providing system 1.

  As Example 1 of information provision using the information provision system 1, here, provision of information including an advertisement related to a new product for the refrigerator 2r in use will be described.

  The power consumption data used by the information providing system 1 is as shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram showing temporal changes in power consumption of the refrigerator 2r in use. In FIG. 3, the horizontal axis indicates time, the vertical axis indicates power consumption, and represents a change in power consumption of the refrigerator 2r during a predetermined period, that is, a fixed measurement period. According to FIG. 3, the power consumption of the refrigerator 2r actually used is represented by a solid line waveform.

  On the other hand, the information providing device 4 stores, as information related to the refrigerator 2r, another refrigerator of the same type as the refrigerator 2r, that is, a new product for the refrigerator 2r and its power consumption data. The broken line waveform in FIG. 3 shows the power consumption data of the new product for the refrigerator 2r. Comparing the power consumption data (solid line waveform) of the refrigerator 2r in use with the power consumption data (dashed line waveform) of the new product for the refrigerator 2r, it can be seen that the new product for the refrigerator 2r has lower power consumption.

  In this way, when the power consumption data of the refrigerator 2r being used is compared with the power consumption data of the new product for the refrigerator 2r, the information providing system 1 is configured as shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 5, information including an advertisement related to a new product for the refrigerator 2r is displayed on the display unit 5a of the information display terminal 5. According to FIG. 4, information useful for the user regarding the new product for the refrigerator 2 r is displayed on the information display terminal 5.

  The information display terminal 5 displays information that, for example, a new refrigerator can save a monthly electricity bill. In addition, for example, information indicating that the new refrigerator has a larger internal space although the outer size is the same is displayed. Further, for example, a “purchase navigation” button for providing a navigation service when the user purchases a new refrigerator is displayed.

  As described above, according to this configuration, the information providing system 1 sends other home appliances in the same category as the refrigerator 2r based on the power consumption data of the refrigerator 2r being used, that is, advertisements for the new refrigerator to the information display terminal 5. It can be displayed and provided to the user. The information providing system 1 can give a user's understanding and a sense of security to the contents of the advertisement, unlike the advertisement of the general power saving product, by comparing with the home appliance 2 in use. Furthermore, it becomes possible to raise the user's awareness of product purchase.

  Next, Example 2 of information provision using the information provision system 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6. FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram illustrating power consumption data used by the information providing system 1 according to the second embodiment, and FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the information display terminal 5 of the information providing system 1. Since the basic configuration of this example is the same as that of the above-described embodiment and Example 1 described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4, the same reference numerals are assigned to the components common to these. The description of the drawings and the description thereof will be omitted.

  As a second example of information provision using the information provision system 1, here, description will be given of provision of information including troubles and malfunctions related to the refrigerator 2r in use, a maintenance method, and a repair guide.

  The power consumption data used by the information providing system 1 is as shown in FIG. FIG. 5 is a conceptual diagram showing temporal changes in power consumption of the refrigerator 2r in use. In FIG. 5, the horizontal axis represents time, the vertical axis represents power consumption, and represents a change in power consumption of the refrigerator 2r in a predetermined period, that is, a fixed measurement period. According to FIG. 5, the power consumption of the refrigerator 2r actually used is represented by a solid line waveform.

  On the other hand, the information providing device 4 stores specified power consumption data during normal operation of the refrigerator 2r, that is, the manufacturer specified power threshold value of the refrigerator 2r, as information related to the refrigerator 2r. The broken line in FIG. 5 indicates the manufacturer-specified power threshold value of the refrigerator 2r. When power consumption data (solid waveform) of the refrigerator 2r in use is compared with the manufacturer-specified power threshold (dashed line) of the refrigerator 2r, there is a time zone in which the power of the refrigerator 2r deviates below the manufacturer-specified power threshold. I understand that

  In this way, based on the comparison between the power consumption data of the refrigerator 2r in use and the manufacturer-specified power threshold value of the refrigerator 2r, the information providing system 1 displays the display unit 5a of the information display terminal 5 as shown in FIG. Information including a failure or malfunction of the refrigerator 2r being used, a maintenance method, and a repair guide is displayed. According to FIG. 6, information useful for the user regarding the current state of the refrigerator 2 r in use is displayed on the information display terminal 5.

  The information display terminal 5 displays information indicating that it is difficult to refrigerate the refrigerator 2r, for example. For example, a message that recommends repair of the refrigerator 2r is displayed. Also, for example, information about the current schedule for on-site repair is displayed. Further, for example, a “repair reception” button is displayed for the user to request repair of the refrigerator 2r.

  As described above, according to this configuration, the information providing system 1 detects a state such as a failure or malfunction of the refrigerator 2r based on the power consumption data of the refrigerator 2r in use, and displays the information on the information display terminal 5. Can be provided to the user. The information providing system 1 automatically and continuously monitors the power consumption of the home appliance 2 so that the user can deal with maintenance and repair at the time of the initial failure. Furthermore, by displaying the response method at the time of failure, it is easy for the user to understand a response such as a repair request and can be executed easily.

  Next, a third embodiment of information provision using the information provision system 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing power consumption data used by the information providing system 1 according to the third embodiment, and FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing the information display terminal 5 of the information providing system 1. Since the basic configuration of this example is the same as that of the above-described embodiment and Example 1 described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4, the same reference numerals are assigned to the components common to these. The description of the drawings and the description thereof will be omitted.

  As Example 3 of information provision using the information provision system 1, here, provision of information including the number of operations of the refrigerator 2r in use will be described.

  The power consumption data used by the information providing system 1 is as shown in FIG. FIG. 7 is a conceptual diagram showing temporal changes in power consumption of the refrigerator 2r in use. In FIG. 7, the horizontal axis represents time, the vertical axis represents power consumption, and represents a change in power consumption of the refrigerator 2 r in a predetermined period, that is, a fixed measurement period. According to FIG. 7, the power consumption of the refrigerator 2r actually used is represented by a solid line waveform.

  On the other hand, the information providing device 4 stores, as information relating to the refrigerator 2r, power consumption data during operation that embodies power consumption during user operation of the refrigerator 2r, that is, power consumption patterns when the door of the refrigerator 2r is opened and closed. ing. A power consumption pattern such as a range surrounded by a broken-line circle in FIG. 7 indicates that the user has opened and closed the door of the refrigerator 2r. Comparing the power consumption data (solid line waveform) of the refrigerator 2r in use with the power consumption pattern (inside the broken line circle) when the door of the refrigerator 2r is opened and closed, the door of the refrigerator 2r is opened and closed three times during a certain measurement period. I understand that.

  In this way, based on the comparison between the power consumption data of the refrigerator 2r in use and the power consumption pattern when the door of the refrigerator 2r is opened and closed, the information providing system 1 can display the information display terminal 5 as shown in FIG. Information including the number of times the door of the refrigerator 2r in use is opened and closed is displayed on the display unit 5a. According to FIG. 8, for example, information useful for the user regarding the operation status of the refrigerator 2 r in use at a remote place is displayed on the information display terminal 5.

  On the information display terminal 5, for example, the number of times the door of the refrigerator 2r is opened and closed, which is counted every day, is displayed as a bar graph. Based on the information, for example, information on the health condition of the elderly living in a remote place is displayed. In addition, for example, an “urgent care request” button is displayed for a user who has viewed the display to quickly request a care request.

  As described above, according to this configuration, the information providing system 1 identifies the operation status such as the number of times of opening and closing the door of the refrigerator 2r based on the power consumption data of the refrigerator 2r in use, and the information is displayed on the information display terminal 5. And can be provided to the user. The information providing system 1 can acquire the safety information of the elderly or single resident in the remote area from the natural living behavior for the family living away from the remote area.

  Here, the information related to the number of operations of the home appliance 2 (refrigerator 2r) is displayed on the information display terminal 5 and provided to the user. However, the information related to the operation results may be displayed on the information display terminal 5. good. The operation result includes information such as whether or not the operation has been performed even once in a predetermined period.

  Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the scope of the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.

  For example, in the first to third embodiments, the information provision using the information providing system 1 is described by taking the refrigerator 2r as an example of the home appliance, but the home appliance to which the present invention is applied is limited to the refrigerator 2r. The washing machine 2w and the air conditioner 2e may be used instead. Further, the home appliances are not limited to the refrigerator 2r, the washing machine 2w, and the air conditioner 2e, but may be other home appliances such as a lighting, a microwave oven, a rice cooker, a vacuum cleaner, and an air cleaner.

  The present invention can be used in an information providing system that provides information related to home appliances via a network.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Information provision system 2 Home appliance 3 Power consumption measurement collection device 3a Power consumption measurement device 3b Power consumption data collection device 3c Router 4 Information provision device 5 Information display terminal 5a Display part

Claims (9)

Home appliances,
Stores information related to the home appliance, and provides information related to the home appliance corresponding to the power consumption data by comparing the power consumption data of the home appliance in use with the stored information related to the home appliance An information providing device connected to the network;
A power consumption measuring and collecting device for measuring the power consumption of the home appliance and collecting the power consumption data and transmitting the power consumption data to the information providing device via a network;
An information display terminal that receives and displays information related to the home appliance corresponding to the power consumption data from the information providing apparatus via a network;
An information providing system comprising:   The power consumption measuring and collecting device receives the power consumption data from the power consumption measuring device that measures the power consumption of the home appliance installed in the outlet of the power plug of the home appliance, and the power consumption measurement device. The information providing system according to claim 1, further comprising: a power consumption data collecting device that collects the information.   The information related to the home appliance stored in the information providing device is another home appliance of the same category as the home appliance and its power consumption data, and the power consumption data of the home appliance in use and the other Compared with the power consumption data of home appliances, when the other home appliances have lower power consumption, information including an advertisement related to the other home appliances is displayed on the information display terminal. The information providing system according to claim 1 or 2.   The information related to the home appliance stored in the information providing device is specified power consumption data during normal operation of the home appliance, and the power consumption data of the home appliance in use and the specified consumption of the home appliance The information including a failure or malfunction of the household electrical appliance being used, a maintenance method, and a repair support guide is displayed on the information display terminal based on comparison with power data. Information providing system described.   The information related to the home appliance stored in the information providing device is power consumption data during operation that embodies power consumption during user operation of the home appliance, and the power consumption data of the home appliance in use The information including the number of operations of the household electrical appliance being used and the operation history is displayed on the information display terminal based on the comparison with the power consumption data during operation of the household electrical appliance. Item 3. The information providing system according to Item 2. An information providing method for providing information related to a home appliance in use via a network,
Collecting power consumption data by measuring the power consumption of the home appliance using a power consumption measuring and collecting device separate from the home appliance; and
Transmitting the power consumption data via a network to an information providing device that stores information related to the home appliance using the power consumption measurement and collection device;
Comparing the power consumption data with information related to the home appliance;
Transmitting information related to the home appliance corresponding to the power consumption data from the information providing device;
The information display terminal receives and displays information related to the home appliance, and
An information providing method characterized by comprising: The information related to the home appliance stored in the information providing device is another home appliance of the same category as the home appliance and its power consumption data,
Comparing the power consumption data of the household appliances in use with the power consumption data of the other household appliances;
When the other home appliance has lower power consumption, displaying information including an advertisement related to the other home appliance on the information display terminal;
The information providing method according to claim 6, further comprising: Information related to the home appliance stored in the information providing device is specified power consumption data during normal operation of the home appliance,
Comparing the power consumption data of the household electrical appliance in use with the specified power consumption data of the household electrical appliance;
Displaying information including failure or malfunction of the household electrical appliance in use on the information display terminal, a maintenance method, and repair support guidance;
The information providing method according to claim 6, further comprising: Information related to the home appliance stored in the information providing device is power consumption data during operation that realizes power consumption during user operation of the home appliance,
Comparing the power consumption data of the household electrical appliance in use with the power consumption data during operation of the household electrical appliance;
Displaying information including the number of operations of the home appliance in use on the information display terminal;
The information providing method according to claim 6, further comprising:

Images