JP2018005354A - Information system, facility use information management server and program collecting/providing information by anonymous communication using beacon and user authentication communication - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a novel information system that uses a beacon.SOLUTION: A server comprises: a beacon state management table that stores an ID of a beacon set in a facility and information on the facility in association with each other; and a beacon ID reception unit that receives the beacon ID transmitted by the beacon set in the facility from a network. Depending on presence or absence of reception of the beacon ID by the beacon ID reception unit, ON/OFF information on the beacon of the beacon state management table is updated to manage a use state if the facility. Further, the server comprises: an anonymous user communication unit that transmits/receives messages to/from a terminal of an anonymous user with the beacon ID of ON information as an identifier only about the beacon ID of ON information of the ON/OFF information of the beacon state management table; and a registry user communication unit that conducts login authentication of a registry user, and transmits service information complying with a service request from a terminal of the registry user to the terminal of the registry user regardless of the ON/OFF information via a route different from the anonymous user communication unit.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to an information system, a server, and a program for collecting information and providing information using a beacon.

  Recently, the use of beacons is expanding. A beacon is a facility for acquiring various types of information such as location by receiving radio waves and electromagnetic waves transmitted from a transmitter with a device mounted on a mobile object such as a mobile terminal or a car. Or technology. The beacon can be used for various services that provide information according to the user's location information (particularly indoor location information). Therefore, many techniques for managing / controlling information using beacons are also disclosed in the patent literature.

  For example, Patent Literature 1 discloses a beacon device management system that accumulates state information indicating the state of a beacon device without applying a load to a mobile terminal. In this system, the beacon device transmits a beacon signal, and the portable terminal that has received the beacon signal transmits the state information included in the beacon signal and the identification information of the beacon device to the server, and the identification information of the beacon device is transmitted. The received server transmits information corresponding to the received identification information to the portable terminal. Then, the mobile terminal processes information received from the server, and the server manages state information received from the mobile terminal.

  In Patent Document 2, while the mobile information terminal receives a beacon transmitted from a transmission source, it determines from the identification information whether or not access to a site specified by the signal is permitted. If it is determined that the terminal is permitted, the terminal accesses the site after changing to a state where the identification information is not permitted. If it is determined that access is not permitted, an access button that accepts an access instruction to the site is displayed while the signal is being received, and when an access instruction by the access button input is accepted, a portable information terminal that accesses the site It is disclosed.

JP2015-149526A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2015-210666

  In an information system using a beacon, a user wants to disclose his / her attribute information (personal information) and receive individual information that is most suitable for him / her, and does not disclose his / her attribute information but only the position. There is a case where information is provided or information is transmitted from the location. Such a viewpoint is not taken into consideration in a system such as the above-mentioned patent document.

  Therefore, in view of the above viewpoint, an object of the present invention is to provide a new information system that collects / provides information by anonymous communication using beacons and user authentication communication.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides the following solution.
(1) The first aspect of the present invention is a beacon status management table that stores an ID of a beacon installed in a facility and information on the facility in association with each other, and a beacon ID transmitted by a beacon installed in the facility A beacon ID receiving unit that receives the beacon ID from the network, updates beacon on / off information in the beacon status management table according to whether or not the beacon ID is received by the beacon ID receiving unit, and It is characterized by management.

(2) Also, in the configuration of (1) above, only for the beacon ID whose on / off information in the beacon status management table is on, the message transmission / reception process with the terminal of the anonymous user using the beacon ID as an identifier An anonymous user communication unit that performs login authentication of a registered user, and service information corresponding to a service request from the terminal of the registered user is associated with the on / off information through a route different from the anonymous user communication unit. And a registered user communication unit that transmits to the terminal of the registered user.

(3) According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided an information system in which a server for collecting and providing facility information and a user terminal of a user of the facility are connected in the configuration of (1). The facility includes a beacon that transmits radio waves, a facility use detection unit that detects a use of the facility by a user in conjunction with the beacon, and when the facility use detection unit detects the use of the facility, A beacon transmitter that transmits a beacon ID, and the user terminal transmits the beacon ID anonymously to the server using the short-range wireless communication as an identifier and the received beacon ID as an identifier. An anonymous communication unit that receives information on the facility associated with the ID of the beacon from a server, and a user authentication that transmits a user authentication request and a service request to the server. A communication unit, and the server uses the ID of the beacon transmitted by the beacon transmitter as an identifier, and transmits and receives the facility information associated with the ID of the beacon to and from the user terminal, Means for authenticating the user when the authentication request and the service request are received from a user terminal, and transmitting service information corresponding to the service request to the user terminal.

(4) In the configuration of (3), the server may control transmission of the facility information in accordance with the user attribute and the facility attribute.

(5) In the configuration of (3) or (4), the server may control transmission of the facility information according to a time zone.

(6) Further, in any one of the configurations (3) to (5), the server accumulates usage pattern information for each facility and facility, and according to the usage pattern of the facility and facility. The time until the equipment in use becomes available may be predicted.

(7) Further, in any one of the above configurations (3) to (6), when the number of user terminals received from a beacon of the facility exceeds a predetermined number of facilities in the facility, the server In addition, it may be determined that a queue has occurred in the facility and notify the user terminal.
(8) Further, in any one of the above configurations (3) to (7), the facility is a toilet facility, and the facility use detection means detects a door for opening / closing a door of a private room of the toilet facility. An open / close detection mechanism is provided, and the server determines a use situation for each private room of the toilet from the ID of the beacon, and the toilet information to be provided for each user according to the registration information of the user and the use situation of the toilet May be determined and transmitted to the user terminal.

(9) Further, in the configuration of (8), the server has, for a terminal of a user who is using a private room of the toilet facility, the number of users who want to use the toilet and the number of private rooms of the toilet facility. Based on the above, a release reminder for prompting the release of the private room may be transmitted.

(10) In the configuration of (7) or (9), the user terminal is connected to a wearable device that can predict the occurrence of abdominal pain, and when the occurrence of abdominal pain is notified from the wearable device, You may make it connect with the said server automatically, and acquire and display the information on the nearest toilet facility.

(11) Further, in any one of the above configurations (3) to (7), the facility is a cafeteria, and the facility use detection means includes a magnetic sensor provided in a tray used in the cafeteria, You may make it have the said beacon installed in the table of the said dining room.

(12) Further, in any one of the above configurations (3) to (7), the facility is a conference room, and the facility use detecting means includes a magnetic sensor installed on a door of the conference room or the You may make it have the said human body sensor and the said beacon installed in the meeting room.

(13) In the configuration of (12), the server may delete the reservation of the conference room if the conference room is empty even after a predetermined time has passed the reservation time of the conference room. .

(14) In the configuration of (12) or (13), the server is using the conference room when the conference room is in use even after a predetermined time before the conference room reservation time. A release reminder for prompting the user to release the conference room may be transmitted.

(15) According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a program for a user terminal of a user of the facility connected to a server that collects and provides facility information, wherein the facility transmits a beacon that transmits radio waves. And a beacon transmission that transmits the beacon ID when the facility use detector detects the use of the facility in conjunction with the beacon. And receiving the beacon ID transmitted by the beacon transmitter by short-range wireless communication to the user terminal and transmitting the received beacon ID anonymously to the server. Receiving information on the facility associated with the ID of the transmitted beacon from a server; and requesting authentication and service of the user. Wherein the step of transmitting to the server, and receiving the service information associated with the service request from said server, that is the execution.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the new information system which collects / provides information can be provided by anonymous communication and user authentication communication using a beacon.

It is a figure which shows the basic concept of the information system of this invention. It is a figure which shows the door opening / closing detection mechanism of the private room of a facility as an example of a facility use detection means. It is a figure which shows the outline of a toilet utilization condition confirmation system as the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of a toilet use condition confirmation system functional structure. It is a figure which shows the specific example of the data stored in the database (DB) of a toilet utilization condition confirmation system. It is a figure for demonstrating the time control function of a toilet use condition confirmation system. It is a figure which shows the utilization image of the map function of a toilet utilization condition confirmation system. It is a figure which shows the processing flow of the map function of a toilet use condition confirmation system. It is a figure which shows the utilization image of the release prompting function of a toilet utilization condition confirmation system. It is a figure which shows the processing flow of the release prompting function of a toilet use condition confirmation system. It is a figure which shows the outline of the dining room utilization condition confirmation system as the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the outline of a meeting room utilization condition confirmation system as the 3rd Embodiment of this invention.

  DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments for carrying out the present invention (hereinafter referred to as embodiments) will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the subsequent drawings, the same numbers or symbols are assigned to the same elements throughout the description of the embodiments. In the functional configuration diagram, an arrow between functional blocks represents a data flow direction or a process flow direction. In the process flow diagram (flowchart), the processing order of each step may be changed as long as the relationship between the input and output of each step is not impaired.

<Basic concept>
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the basic concept of the information system of the present invention. The information system includes facility use detection means for detecting that the facility is in use in a facility that the user wants to use or obtains information. Hereinafter, “facility” means the entire facility (building or place), or a private room or equipment in the facility. The facility use detection means is, for example, a device that combines a beacon transmitter and a switch mechanism provided in a facility. A beacon transmitter (sometimes simply referred to as a beacon) is a short-range wireless communication means, and assumes a wireless reachable range of several centimeters to 10 meters. The switch mechanism is various sensors that can detect that the user (also referred to as a user) is using the facility. For example, when the facility has a private room, a door opening / closing detection mechanism of each private room or a private room. It may be a human body detection mechanism that senses the human body, or if there is no private room, it may be a non-contact sensor or physical switch provided in each facility. The switch mechanism is designed to switch the power on and off depending on whether the private room or facility is in use or not. The beacon transmitter transmits the beacon ID of the beacon transmitter only when the switch is on. At this time, the beacon ID is transmitted to a server (facility use information management server) that manages beacons via a network via a beacon receiver in the facility.

  The beacon transmitter installed in the facility not only communicates with the server via the network, but can also perform near field communication directly with a nearby user terminal. The user terminal receives the beacon ID by the proximity beacon receiving unit, and stores the beacon ID in the beacon ID storage unit. When the use of the facility is finished and the adjacent beacon is turned off and the beacon ID cannot be received, the beacon ID stored in the beacon ID storage unit is cleared.

  The server includes a beacon ID receiving unit, manages a facility information (facility attribute and message) associated with a beacon ID (beacon ID) received from the facility side, and uses the facility. An anonymous user communication unit that performs communication using a user and a beacon ID as an identifier, and a registered user communication unit that provides a facility information service from the beacon status management table.

  The beacon status management table stores a beacon ID, on / off information, facility attributes, and a message for each beacon. The beacon ID is an identifier unique to the beacon transmission device. On / off information indicates whether the switch linked to the beacon is on or off. If it is on, it means that the facility is in use, and the user using the facility Anonymous communication using the beacon ID as an identifier becomes possible.

  The facility attribute is the attribute information of the facility. For example, if the facility is a toilet, the distinction for male / female, the number of private rooms, the availability of wheelchairs in each private room, the distinction of Western / Japanese style, diaper exchange Information such as the presence or absence of a stand. The message is arbitrary information regarding the facility, and includes information provided by the facility manager and information provided by the user. Moreover, the information which a system produces | generates may be included. The message may include, for example, not only information on the facility itself but also information and advertisements related to the facility, evaluation information from the user, and an anonymous message from the user to the user. In addition, the server includes an anonymous user communication unit that communicates with an anonymous communication unit on the user terminal side described later, a registered user communication unit that communicates with a user authentication unit on the user terminal side, and a database that stores facility information and user registration information. I have.

  The anonymous user communication unit uses the ID of the beacon provided in the facility as an identifier without depending on the registered user ID for the facility whose on / off information in the beacon status management table is on, that is, the facility being used. It is possible to perform anonymous communication with the user of the facility (Route A). Through the anonymous user communication unit, the server accepts a message delivery with a beacon ID associated with the facility as an identifier, and a message with the beacon ID as an identifier for a user who uses the facility, and responds to the request. Process. At the time of message distribution, it is possible to match the attribute information with the attribute of the facility user by adding the attribute information of the message, and the information can be conveyed more effectively to the facility user. These communications are valid only for the beacon ID of the facility whose on / off information is on, and the server does not process the communication using the ID of the beacon that is turned off as an identifier.

  The registered user communication unit provides (non-anonymous) communication based on user authentication (route B) with a user registered to use the facility information service. The registered user communication unit provides functions such as facility use status inquiry, facility use reservation, facility information provision, facility evaluation, message reference given to the facility, and message posting to the facility user. Used. In other words, the registered user communication unit performs login authentication of the registered user, and sends service information corresponding to the service request from the registered user's terminal to the on / off information of the beacon status management table through a route different from the anonymous user communication unit. Regardless, it is sent to the registered user's terminal.

  The user terminal logged in to the server and received the user authentication of the registered user communication unit, communicating with the anonymous user communication unit of the server without logging into the server (anonymous without disclosing the user ID) A user authentication communication unit for accessing the service is provided. The anonymous communication unit is a communication (route A) that uses the ID of a beacon installed in a facility used by the user as an identifier, the server distributes the beacon ID, the message, and the attribute information, and the user terminal receives the received message. The beacon ID and attribute information are matched with those of the user, and the matched message is displayed. The anonymous communication unit is used not only for push-type notification means that receives information from the facility and conveys it to the user, but also transmits a beacon ID and user request contents and attribute information to the server by the user's operation, as a user It can also be used as a means of posting a message anonymously or extracting necessary information from a server. On the other hand, the user authentication communication unit transmits an authentication request such as a user ID and a password in another route B different from the route A. When the authentication is normally completed, the user authentication communication unit sends a service request for requesting service information to the server. Send and receive its service information from the server. The user authentication communication unit is mainly used for two-way communication between the user and the facility side.

  The user attribute storage unit stores user attribute information, and stores gender, age, and other personal information. The user attribute storage unit may store a user ID and a password according to a user instruction. The user terminal itself may be a general smartphone or a portable PC, but the function of the user terminal is realized by installing a dedicated application (application). This app may be activated by the user, or if the communication function is turned on, it may be activated automatically upon receipt of any information.

  The aforementioned switch mechanism may use various means in principle, but may combine a magnetic proximity switch and iBeacon (registered trademark) as a beacon. The magnetic proximity switch is a proximity switch suitable for detecting opening and closing of a door used in a combination of a magnet element using a permanent magnet and a contact element. iBeacon (registered trademark) is a short-range wireless communication technology using Bluetooth (registered trademark) Low Energy (hereinafter referred to as "BLE"), and generally supports receiving beacons and receiving radio waves from beacons. It consists of a combination of apps on mobile devices such as smart phones. Here, the beacon transmits a radio wave including unique ID information set in advance, and catches the ID information when the user's mobile terminal approaches the reception range of the transmitted radio wave. The user's terminal retains the ID information while catching the ID information of the beacon, and is associated with the ID information by transmitting the ID information to a cloud or server that provides the service. Information can be received from the server and displayed on the screen of the mobile terminal.

  FIG. 2 shows an outline of a door opening / closing detection mechanism 110 for a private room when the facility has a private room as an example of the switch mechanism. This mechanism installs a magnet and a magnetic proximity switch (magnetic sensor) in the key part of the facility's private room, detects whether the private room is empty or in use, and sends the information via a beacon receiver to the server ( To the cloud) side. As shown in the example of installation in the figure, there are, for example, a locking method and a locking mechanism for locking the private room. In either case, the magnetic body 111a as the key portion is close to the magnetic proximity switch 111b. Then, the door key is closed (the private room is in use) and the beacon is turned on. As a result, the beacon transmission unit 112 (beacon transmitter) transmits a radio wave including the ID information of the beacon, and continues to transmit the radio wave until the door key is in an open state (a private room is empty). Since the door opening / closing detection mechanism 110 has such a simple structure, it can be installed on many private doors. In addition, the use of the magnetic proximity switch reduces the number of movable parts and reduces failure. In addition, by using a wireless device for communication, installation is easy without the need for wiring work or the like.

<Toilet information system (first embodiment)>
Hereinafter, as a first embodiment of the information system of the present invention, a toilet information system in which a target facility is a toilet used by an unspecified number will be described in detail.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a basic image of the toilet information system. The toilets covered by this system are in places where many people gather, such as airports, stations, highway parking areas, shopping malls, department stores, theatres, stadiums, theme parks, sightseeing spots, parks, public facilities, and office buildings. These are toilets that are installed and include not only permanent toilets but also emergency toilets such as temporary toilets. The target toilet facility is provided with a private room (booth), and a door opening / closing detection mechanism for detecting the opening / closing of the door is installed as a switch mechanism on the door of each private room. The toilet information includes information related to toilet facilities and equipment, as well as other information related to the use of the toilet.

  The toilet information system employs a mechanism that detects the opening and closing of the door and turns the beacon on and off using a magnetic proximity switch installed on the door of each private room of the toilet, which is simpler than the door opening and closing detection mechanism shown in FIG. doing. With this configuration, when the user enters the toilet and the door is closed, the beacon transmitter is turned on, and the ID information of the beacon transmitter is wirelessly transmitted to the beacon receiver connected to the Internet. Sends the ID information to the cloud server on the Internet, and the application on the cloud updates the toilet on / off information (whether in use or empty) that matches the received ID information, and the information is used by the toilet user. Anonymous communication with a portable terminal (user terminal) becomes possible.

  Cloud (cloud computing) is a convenient and on-demand access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources such as networks, servers, storage, applications, services, etc., with minimal administrative effort or between service providers This is one of the service provision models that can be provided and used quickly by interaction. The same can be realized by using a dedicated server or a rental server instead of the cloud, but by using the cloud, a system can be flexibly constructed at a low cost.

  The toilet information here refers to information on the usage status of each private room (vacant / in use, etc.), as well as the use of the toilet during cleaning or outside the business hours of the facility where the toilet is installed. Also includes information when it is in an incapable state. It also includes information on the location of the toilet, the type (for men, for women, for the handicapped, etc.), and detailed information on the equipment (Western, Japanese, with Washlet (registered trademark), etc.).

(Functional configuration)
FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of the toilet information system. This system includes a toilet facility 100, a user terminal 200 which is a terminal carried by a person who wants to use the toilet or who is using the toilet, and a cloud 300 (also referred to as a “cloud server”) which is a virtual server on the Internet. ) And an administrator terminal 350 for managing the cloud configuration and various databases. However, it is not limited only to these components. The components described in FIG. 1 are omitted because they are duplicated. Hereinafter, each component will be described in order.

  In the toilet facility 100, as well as the facilities for functioning as a toilet, as described above, the door opening / closing detection mechanism 110 is installed in each private room, and includes the beacon transmission unit 112 interlocked with the locking mechanism 111. . Further, the beacon receiver 120 is installed at a distance (for example, a ceiling or the like) where the BLE radio wave from the beacon transmission unit 112 can be received. The beacon receiver 120 includes a network communication unit 121 for connecting to the Internet, and a beacon receiving unit 122 that receives BLE radio waves from the beacon transmission unit 112.

  A user terminal 200 (hereinafter sometimes simply referred to as a “terminal”) is a high-performance portable terminal such as a general smartphone, and includes a BLE receiving unit 201 that receives BLE radio waves, a GPS radio wave, and a terminal. It is assumed that a GPS receiving unit 202 for positioning the position information and a network communication unit 203 are provided as standard equipment. In addition, it is assumed that a toilet information application 204, which is a dedicated application for displaying toilet information provided by the present system on the terminal side, is installed in advance.

  The cloud 300 includes a user location information acquisition unit 301, a nearest toilet extraction unit 302, a toilet usage status control unit 303, and a toilet information transmission unit 304 as an information processing unit, and a user information DB 311 as a database. A facility master DB 312, a local map DB 313, a regional map DB 314, and a usage pattern information accumulation DB 315.

  First, each database will be described. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a specific example of data stored in a database (DB) in this system.

  The user information DB 311 is a database that stores information on users registered for services provided by the present system. Specifically, the registered information of the user includes a name, a nickname, a gender, an age, a commitment condition regarding a toilet (for example, a toilet with Washlet (registered trademark), etc.) as shown in the figure, but a nickname ( Registration of information other than (user identifier) and gender is optional.

  The facility master DB 312 is a database that stores detailed information related to the facilities where the toilet facilities are installed and the toilets in the toilet facilities. For example, if the facility is a building, the number of men's and women's toilets on each floor, the facilities of the entire toilet (for example, whether there is a diaper changing table or a powder room), the date of construction or renovation, the color of the walls, the facility information for each individual room (Japanese / Western style, presence / absence of Washlet (registered trademark), availability of wheelchair support, toilet color, etc.) are stored together with the ID information of the beacon of the private room. In addition, the facility master DB 312 may store not only information on toilets but also business hours of the facilities, available hours, or times when the entrances and exits of the facilities are closed. The ID information of the beacon includes a 128-bit UUID (Universally Unique Identifier), a 16-bit major code, and a minor code. In particular, since the major code and minor code can be set on the facility side, it is possible to identify the building or floor where the toilet is installed, the type of toilet, and the like.

  The campus map DB 313 is a map database that stores map data of the facility campus. The area map DB 314 is a map database that stores map data of the entire area and the surrounding area of the facility. Both are used for guiding the position of the toilet and the moving route, but specifically, a known map information technique is used, and details thereof are omitted.

  The usage pattern information storage DB 315 includes usage patterns for each day of the week and time of day for each toilet facility, usage patterns for each individual room in each toilet facility, equipment in the individual room, date of new installation / renovation for each toilet facility, wall It is a database for storing various information such as the colors of equipment and facilities.

  Returning to the description of the cloud 300 in FIG. The user position information acquisition unit 301 receives radio waves from GPS satellites outdoors and measures the position information of the user terminal 200. In indoor locations where GPS radio waves do not reach, location information from beacons, WiFi access points, technology using visible light, and indoor location measurement technology such as SiRFusion may be used in combination.

  The nearest toilet extraction unit 302 refers to the location information of the user terminal 200 and searches for the nearest toilet or a surrounding toilet within a predetermined distance (for example, within a radius of 100 m) and extracts one or more pieces of information on appropriate toilets. The location of each toilet and the route from the current location will be guided. The position information of the terminal is not necessarily the current position, and the toilet may be searched based on a specific place designated by the user.

  The toilet usage status control unit 303 manages information related to various toilets that can be acquired on the cloud side, and performs a central function of providing appropriate toilet information according to the status for each registered user. It is also the core for overall control of the functions of various services described below.

  The toilet information transmission unit 304 transmits the toilet information to the user terminal 200 under the control of the toilet usage status control unit 303. That is, the information that the toilet use status control unit 303 determines to provide to the user is matched with the ID information of the private room of each toilet, and data matched with the ID information is transmitted to the user terminal 200.

(Service provided)
Although illustration is omitted, this system has various functions and provides comprehensive services related to toilets. Specifically, this system has a map function, a release reminder function, a free time prediction function, a queue occurrence notification function, a time control function, an attribute control function (attribute matching function), an advertisement sending function, and a nearest toilet display during abdominal pain It has a function. These functions are mainly controlled by the toilet use state control unit 303, but other function units are linked.

  The map function displays available toilet positions on a map, provides toilet facility information, and provides users with information on using the toilet facility. The map function is a basic function of this system. Details of the map function will be further described with reference to the following drawings.

  The release prompting function is a function for transmitting a release reminder for prompting the release of a private room (prompt early termination). In this function, the number of the person who wants to use the toilet (user who wants to use the toilet) or some interested person is notified to the terminal of the user (user) who is using the toilet. It is possible to respond to some information from the terminal carried by the person. Some information includes, for example, an estimated time until the end of use of a private room in use, an evaluation of a toilet facility, a private room facility, etc. for notifying a user of interest. The user terminal in the private room uses Route A, which is an anonymous communication, and exchanges information linked to the ID information of the beacon installed in the private room. do not do. That is, once the user leaves the toilet, the communication with the beacon is interrupted, so the ID history of the terminal using the toilet does not remain on the system. The release prompting function will be described in detail with reference to the following drawings.

  The free time prediction function stores various types of information in the usage pattern information storage DB 315 on the cloud side, so that usage patterns for each day of the week and time zone, usage patterns for each individual room (for example, a long-stay person in the back of a private room) By analyzing the combination of other conditions (Japanese / Western style, presence of Washlet (registered trademark), newness of toilet, color, etc.) It is a function to notify. Beautiful toilets tend to be used for a long time, such as reading and playing with smartphones, in addition to their original purpose. A function is required.

  A person who arrives at a toilet facility and tries to use the terminal reacts to a beacon installed in the private room. The queue generation notification function is used to send data from the terminal when the number of private rooms is full and the number of private rooms is significantly exceeded (exceeded the specified number). This is a function for judging that a queue is generated in the toilet facility on the cloud side and notifying other users' terminals of the information. This makes it possible to grasp in advance the congestion status of each toilet without going to the place where the toilet is located. For example, while traveling on an expressway, you can know in advance the service stations and parking areas that have relatively free toilets, so you could park in the nearest service area, but have to line up in a long line. You can avoid the situation of disappearing.

  The time control function is a function for controlling information provided for each time zone in cooperation with an operation schedule of a facility such as a building where a toilet is installed. For example, the system is stopped during a time period when it is not necessary to provide empty information on the toilet. This function is also important for crime prevention in the toilet. The toilet information system notifies the user of the availability of use by synchronizing the time with the operation of the physical key at the entrance of the facility. For example, if an unspecified number of people know that a girls' toilet is in use at night, it is not good for crime prevention. In such a case, do not display information on the terminal that may indicate the usage status of the toilet. To control. In places where the lock is locked in the public toilet at night, it will be displayed as “Unavailable” when the toilet closes. Alternatively, “cleaning” is displayed during the cleaning time. In this way, information on toilets that are not in an available state is not guided.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining the time control function. For example, in the facility operation schedule, a time zone indicated by a black arrow indicates a time zone in which it is a problem in terms of crime prevention that a situation in use can be confirmed by an unspecified number of people. Moreover, it is preferable to operate this time slot | zone according to the time when the entrance of a facility is locked, and business hours. The time zone indicated by the white arrow is a time zone that is controlled so as to be able to display the location of the toilet, although it is not necessary until the empty information of the toilet. By doing so, the position of the toilet can be grasped even in a closed facility.

  The attribute control function (attribute matching function) is a function that controls the display of toilet availability and other information for each type, location, and time of the toilet according to the user's attributes (profile). . That is, it is a function that performs matching between facility attributes and user attributes on the server side, extracts information, and filters and displays messages on the terminal side with facility attributes and user attributes. For example, for nighttime women's toilets, it is possible to control the usage status to be displayed only for specified girls (for example, girls working in the facility) for crime prevention.

  The advertisement sending function is a function that uses the above-described attribute control function in route A, which is anonymous communication, to display an advertisement that matches the user's attribute on the toilet user's terminal. For example, if the facility where the toilet is installed is a commercial facility such as a shopping mall, department store, fashion building, etc., only female users will be able to display information for women, floor information, trends, sale information, etc. be able to.

The nearest toilet display function at the time of abdominal pain is a device that is attached to the user's body and has a function that can predict the occurrence of abdominal pain and the terminal is connected, and when the terminal receives a notification of predicted abdominal pain from the device, This is a function that automatically activates the application on the terminal and obtains information on the nearest empty toilet in the terminal. For a wearable device that predicts abdominal pain, a known technique is used. For example, see the URL below.
http://matome.naver.jp/odai/2142508523407166601

  The functional configuration described with reference to FIG. 4 is merely an example, and one functional block (database and functional processing unit) may be divided or a plurality of functional blocks may be configured as one functional block. Good. Each function processing unit is stored in a storage device such as a ROM (Read Only Memory), a flash memory, an SSD (Solid State Drive), or a hard disk by a CPU (Central Processing Unit) built in a server or terminal device on the cloud This is realized by a computer program that is read out and executed by the CPU. That is, in each function processing unit, this computer program reads and writes necessary data such as a table from a database (DB; Data Base) stored in a storage device or a storage area on a memory, and may be related in some cases. This is realized by controlling hardware (for example, an input / output device, a display device, and a communication interface device). Further, the database (DB) in the embodiment of the present invention may be a commercial database, but it simply means a collection of tables and files, and the internal structure of the database itself is not questioned.

  Hereinafter, the map function and the release prompting function among the functions of the service provided by the system will be described in detail.

(Map function)
FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an image of using the map function. When the user displays the current position on the map or designates the target position, the position of the toilet around that position is displayed on the map. When the user selects a specific toilet position from this map, information on the toilet facility is displayed. You may display an external appearance, an internal photograph, etc. as information on facilities. When the user further selects a facility by touching a photograph or the like, the facility information (Japanese / Western style, presence / absence of Washlet (registered trademark), etc.) in the private room is further displayed. You may make it display the photograph etc. of a private room as detailed information of a private room. When the user confirms the facilities of the facility or the private room and decides the toilet to go to, the movement route from the designated position (including the current position) to the toilet may be displayed.

  When the user decides on the toilet, the cloud side collates with the information in the facility master DB, and increases the desired number of use of the facility information table by the desired number. In addition, if the predetermined time elapses, the number of desired uses is reduced. The predetermined time here is individually determined by the time required from the current position of the user to the desired toilet. In addition, it may be possible to post a “like” or impression on the SNS after use and measure the evaluation of the toilet.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a processing flow of the map function terminal and the cloud. When the user activates the application (dedicated application) from the terminal (user terminal), the activation signal is notified to the cloud side (S10), the cloud side detects the activation of the application (S20), and the location information of the terminal ( The designated position is specified (S21).

  Next, when the user selects toilet search (S11), a predetermined range of toilet facilities is extracted from the designated position (S22), and the terminal side displays it (S12). At this time, the distance to the toilet and the required time may be measured and displayed.

  When the user selects a toilet from the display screen (S13: Y), a toilet information transmission request is issued (S14). On the cloud side, information on each toilet facility and each individual room is obtained from the ID information of the toilet beacon. Collected (S23) and transmitted as toilet information (S24). The toilet information includes information on the entire toilet facility and usage status of each private room.

  When the user determines a toilet based on the toilet information displayed on the terminal side, the travel route from the designated position to the toilet is guided (S25). Thereafter, when the user ends the application (S15: Y), the cloud side ends the connection with the terminal upon detecting the end of the application (S26: Y), and returns to S20.

(Release reminder function)
FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an image of using the release prompting function. The release prompting function is a function that prompts the person who wants to go to the toilet to tell the person using the toilet that the private room is released. The person who wants to go to the toilet (including those who are only interested) and the person who is using the toilet perform the following procedure, and each user's terminal and cloud perform the processing corresponding to that procedure.

The person who wants to go to the toilet (the numbers in the figure correspond to the following steps)
(1) Check the toilet you want to go to, such as the vicinity of your place, from the toilet information map.
(2) Refer to toilet facility information (may include user's impressions) to determine the current toilet availability. At this time, the distance and time to go to the corresponding place are displayed.
(3) The facility information of the toilet that the user wants to use is transferred to the cloud, and the data in the facility information master DB and the corresponding toilet are matched.
(4) Add the desired number of use of the facility information table to the toilet of the corresponding facility information.
(5) The desired number of use is subtracted when the time to arrive at the toilet has elapsed from the time checked by the user. At this time, the number of people who wished but did not actually use it and the number of people who actually used it are calculated.

The person using the toilet (1) The application of the terminal of the person using the toilet is automatically activated in response to the radio wave of the beacon installed in the private room, and acquires the ID from the beacon (in the figure, the toilet 1 ID). The beacon ID is stored in the beacon ID storage unit.
(2) The terminal application sends a beacon ID to the cloud and inquires about the message.
(3) On the cloud, the transferred ID is matched with the ID of the facility master DB, and data associated with the ID is acquired (for example, “4 people want to use this toilet. Message ").
(4) If all the private rooms in the facility are in use, the message and the corresponding ID are sent to the terminal application all at once.
(5) The application of each terminal collates the transmission ID from the cloud with the ID received from the beacon of the private room in use, and displays a release prompt message (message “4 people on this toilet I want to use ").
In the above step, step (2) is not necessary, and the cloud automatically refers to the beacon status management table, and the data associated with the facility with the beacon ID whose on / off information is on is stored. It is good also as a mechanism which takes out and transmits.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a processing flow of the release prompting function. The user terminal 1 is a terminal of a user who wants to go to the toilet, and the user terminal 2 is a terminal of a user who is using the toilet. The processing of the user terminal 1 is the same as in the case of FIG. 7, but the cloud side determines whether release prompting is necessary based on the desired number of use in the facility information table (S26), and if necessary, releases A process of sending a reminder (S27) is added.

  The user terminal 2 detects the radio wave of the beacon installed in the toilet and automatically starts the application (S30). When it is detected that there is transmission from the cloud (S31: Y), ID matching is determined (S32). ID matching is processing for determining whether or not the ID transmitted from the cloud matches the ID of the beacon of the private room in use. Further, as described above, matching between the beacon ID, the facility attribute, and the user attribute is performed. At this time, the radio wave reach distance of the beacon is about 10 m in the case of BLE, so that radio waves from a plurality of beacons such as adjacent private rooms are caught, but the ID of the beacon that has the highest radio wave intensity is used. Judged as ID.

  If the IDs do not match, the process returns to S31 without doing anything. If they match, the release prompt information (information related to the release prompt) is received and displayed (S33). When responding to the prompt (S34: Y), a response message is transmitted to the cloud side by selecting a predetermined menu displayed on the terminal (S35). The selection here is, for example, a button such as “I'll come soon”, “Wait a little more”, “Even if so much” or a button corresponding to the expected end time (for example, within 3 minutes, 3-5 Minute, 5 minutes or more). Alternatively, instead of a predetermined message, the user may freely enter a message and respond. Of course, you don't have to respond to a release reminder.

<Canteen usage status confirmation system (second embodiment)>)
In the following, as a second embodiment of the information system of the present invention, the restaurant usage situation when the target facility is a cafeteria facility such as an employee cafeteria or an underground mall having a plurality of simple cafeterias (self-service cafeteria) The confirmation system will be described.

  FIG. 11 shows an outline of the restaurant usage status confirmation system. The second embodiment is basically the same as the first embodiment, but the facility use detection means is not a door opening / closing detection mechanism for detecting the opening / closing of a door, but a tray or tray for a cafeteria. The difference is that a magnetic sheet, which is a magnetic proximity switch, is pasted on the back and a beacon transmitter is installed on the back of the table. In this case, when the facility use detecting means puts this tray or the like on the table of the cafeteria, the magnetic sheet and the beacon react to detect that the seat is in use. Therefore, it can be determined for each seat on the table whether it is in use or empty.

  In the cafeteria usage status confirmation system, a function that controls the transmission of information on facilities to be provided (attribute matching function) according to the user's attributes and facility attributes, using the same mechanism as the toilet information system. Functions that control information according to time (time zone control function), functions that predict the time until seats are available (empty time prediction function), functions that detect queues (queue generation notification), etc. Can be realized. With such a function, it is possible to solve the problems of the cafeteria, such as wanting to know the vacancy of the cafeteria seats in a timely manner or wanting to eat while shifting the crowded time zone.

<Confirmation of meeting room usage status (third embodiment)>
In the following, as a third embodiment of the information system of the present invention, a meeting room use status confirmation system in which a target facility is a meeting room such as a company office building will be described.

  FIG. 12 shows an example in which a door opening / closing detection mechanism of a conference room is used as the facility usage detection means, but a human body sensor may be used. Further, a door opening / closing detection mechanism and a human body sensor may be used in combination. In the former case, if the door of the conference room is open, it is determined that the room is empty, and if the door is closed, it is determined that it is in use. However, since a person enters and exits during the meeting, it is not determined that opening and closing of the door within a predetermined time is in use or empty. In the case of a human body sensor, it is determined that it is in use if it is detected that it is empty for a predetermined time or more when it is not detected for a predetermined time or more. In this case, only one beacon transmitter may be installed at a position where radio waves reach all the attendees' terminals, for example, in the middle or ceiling of the conference room table. In this way, it is also possible to identify attendees and send a message from the outside to the attendee's terminal. For example, meeting progress can be heard directly from attendees.

  In addition, the conference room usage status confirmation system is linked with the existing conference room reservation system so that the usage status of the conference room can be grasped at all times. If this continues, the reservation may be deleted. Alternatively, an alert may be transmitted to a user terminal that is using the conference room a predetermined time before the reserved end time to prompt the end of the conference (release prompt). With such a function, there are many conference rooms that have been reserved but are not actually used, the free time cannot be used even though the meeting ended earlier than scheduled, and the change in usage status is not known unless you go to the site It is possible to solve the problems of the conference room.

(Effect of embodiment)
As described above, according to the system of the first embodiment, it is possible to deal with each situation without specifying an individual for a user who wants to use a toilet or a user who is currently using a toilet. It is possible to easily provide a toilet information system capable of comprehensively providing appropriate information. For example, the map function can not only display the nearest toilet to a person who wants to use the toilet, but also can provide detailed information on the toilet facility and facility information for each individual room. Further, the release prompting function can increase the rotation rate and use efficiency of the toilet when there are a large number of people who want to use the specific toilet. This is particularly effective as a countermeasure for people who use toilets outside their intended purpose. In addition, the availability time prediction function can predict and notify the time until the toilet becomes empty according to the usage pattern of the toilet. In addition, the queue generation notification function can grasp the situation of a crowded toilet without going to the spot. In addition, the time control function can control the provision of toilet information in the facility in accordance with the closing time and business hours of the toilet facility, which is useful for crime prevention. Moreover, the toilet control according to a user's attribute can be provided by an attribute control function. In addition, the advertisement sending function can provide useful information such as floor information to the user who is using the toilet. In addition, the nearest toilet display function during abdominal pain can reduce anxiety about an emergency toilet.

  Moreover, according to the dining room utilization condition grasping system of the second embodiment, the above-described problem of the dining room can be solved. Specifically, the free time prediction function can grasp the time zone where meals can be avoided while avoiding congestion, and the congestion status can be known by the queue occurrence notification function. In addition, when there are multiple dining rooms in the facility, the time control function can provide appropriate dining room information (such as today's special menu) according to the opening hours of the dining room. In addition, the attribute control function can provide information on the cafeteria according to the user's attributes. In addition, the advertisement sending function can provide information on nearby facilities to users who are eating.

  Moreover, according to the meeting room utilization condition grasping | ascertainment system of 3rd Embodiment, the various subject of the above-mentioned meeting room can be solved.

As mentioned above, although this invention was demonstrated using embodiment, it cannot be overemphasized that the technical scope of this invention is not limited to the range as described in the said embodiment. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications or improvements can be added to the above embodiment. Further, it is apparent from the scope of the claims that the embodiments added with such changes or improvements can be included in the technical scope of the present invention.
In the above embodiment, the toilet information system has been described with the present invention as a product invention. However, the present invention can also be understood as a method invention or a computer program invention.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Toilet facility 110 Door opening / closing detection mechanism 111 Locking mechanism 111a Magnetic body 111b Magnetic proximity switch 112 Beacon transmission part 120 Beacon receiver 121 Network communication part 122 Beacon reception part 200 User terminal 201 BLE reception part 202 GPS reception part 203 Network communication part 204 Toilet information application 300 Cloud 301 User location information acquisition unit 302 Nearest toilet extraction unit 303 Toilet usage status control unit 304 Toilet information transmission unit 311 User information DB
312 Facility Master DB
313 On-site map DB
314 Regional Map DB
315 Usage pattern information storage DB
350 Administrator terminal

Claims (15)

A beacon status management table for storing the ID of a beacon installed in a facility and the information of the facility in association with each other;
A beacon ID receiving unit that receives a beacon ID transmitted from a beacon installed in the facility from a network;
With
A facility usage information management server that updates beacon on / off information in the beacon status management table according to whether or not the beacon ID is received by the beacon ID receiving unit, and manages the usage status of the facility. Only for the beacon ID for which the on / off information of the beacon status management table is on, the anonymous user communication unit that performs message transmission / reception processing with the terminal of the anonymous user using the beacon ID as an identifier,
Registered user login authentication is performed, and service information corresponding to a service request from the registered user's terminal is sent to the registered user's terminal through a different route from the anonymous user communication unit regardless of the on / off information. A registered user communication unit to transmit;
The facility use information management server according to claim 1, comprising: An information system in which a server for collecting and providing facility information and a user terminal of a user of the facility are connected,
The facility is
A beacon that transmits radio waves,
In conjunction with the beacon, facility use detection means for the user to detect the use of the facility;
A beacon transmitter that transmits the ID of the beacon when the facility use detection means detects the use of the facility;
The user terminal is
Means for receiving the ID of the beacon by short-range wireless communication;
Anonymous communication unit that transmits the received beacon ID anonymously to the server as an identifier, and receives information on the facility associated with the beacon ID from the server;
A user authentication communication unit that transmits a user authentication request and a service request to the server,
The server
Means for transmitting and receiving information on the facility associated with the ID of the beacon with the user terminal, using the ID of the beacon transmitted by the beacon transmitter as an identifier;
Means for authenticating the user when the authentication request and the service request are received from the user terminal and transmitting service information corresponding to the service request to the user terminal;
An information system comprising: The server
The information system according to claim 3, wherein transmission of information on the facility is controlled according to the attribute of the user and the attribute of the facility. The server
5. The information system according to claim 3, wherein transmission of information on the facility is controlled according to a time zone. The server
The information on the usage pattern for each facility and equipment is accumulated, and the time until the equipment in use is available is predicted according to the usage pattern of the facility and equipment. The information system according to any one of the above. The server
When the number of user terminals received from the beacon of the facility exceeds a predetermined number of facilities in the facility, it is determined that a queue is generated in the facility, and the user terminal is notified. The information system according to any one of claims 3 to 6. The facility is a toilet facility,
The facility use detection means includes a door opening / closing detection mechanism for detecting opening / closing of a door of a private room of the toilet facility,
The server
Based on the ID of the beacon, the usage status of each toilet room is determined, and the toilet information to be provided for each user is determined according to the registration information of the user and the usage status of the toilet, and transmitted to the user terminal. The information system according to any one of claims 3 to 7, characterized in that: The server
Based on the number of users who want to use the toilet and the number of private rooms in the toilet facility, a release reminder for prompting the release of the private room is transmitted to the terminal of the user who is using the private room in the toilet facility The information system according to claim 8. The user terminal is
When connected to a wearable device that can predict the occurrence of abdominal pain, and when the wearable device is notified of the occurrence of abdominal pain, it automatically connects to the server and acquires and displays information on the nearest toilet facility The information system according to claim 7 or 9, wherein The facility is a canteen,
The said facility use detection means has the magnetic sensor with which the tray used in the said cafeteria was equipped, and the said beacon installed in the table of the said cafeteria, In any one of Claim 3-7 characterized by the above-mentioned. The described information system. The facility is a meeting room,
The said facility use detection means has a magnetic sensor installed in the door of the said meeting room or a human body detection sensor installed in the said meeting room, and the said beacon, The any one of Claim 3-7 characterized by the above-mentioned. Information system described in the section.   13. The information system according to claim 12, wherein the server deletes the reservation of the conference room if the conference room is empty even after a predetermined time has passed the reservation time of the conference room.   The server prompts the user terminal that is using the conference room to release the conference room when the conference room is in use even if the conference room is in a predetermined time before the reservation time of the conference room. 14. The information system according to claim 12, wherein a release reminder is transmitted. A program for a user terminal of a user of the facility connected to a server that collects and provides information on the facility,
The facility is
A beacon that transmits radio waves,
In conjunction with the beacon, facility use detection means for detecting that the user has used the facility;
A beacon transmitter that transmits the ID of the beacon when the facility use detection means detects the use of the facility;
In the user terminal,
Receiving a beacon ID transmitted by the beacon transmitter by short-range wireless communication;
Anonymously transmitting the received beacon ID to the server;
Receiving from the server information on the facility associated with the ID of the transmitted beacon;
Sending the user authentication request and service request to the server;
Receiving service information associated with the service request from the server;
A program characterized by having executed.

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