JP2023140599A - Product specification selection support system, terminal device, product specification selection support method, terminal program, server device, and server program - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a product specification selection support system capable of presenting an appropriate product specification to a user who selects a product specification according to a condition under which the product is used, and to provide a terminal device, a product specification selection support method, a terminal program, a server device, and a server program.SOLUTION: A product specification selection support system 1 includes: a terminal device 10 in which condition information representing a condition under which a product is used is entered; and a server device 20 which refers to a database 30 associating a previously selected product specification and the condition information, extracts a product specification associated with the condition information entered into the terminal device 10, performs statistical processing on the extracted product specifications and presents the terminal device 10 to obtain a recommended product specification.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to a product specification selection support system, a terminal device, a product specification selection support method, a terminal program, a server device, and a server program.

For products that are manufactured after receiving a customer's order (made-to-order products), the customer selects the product specifications (hereinafter referred to as "product specifications") and requests the manufacturer to create a quotation. In most cases, an order is placed after the customer approves the contents of the written quotation. The product specification options that are available vary from product to product, with some having an extremely large number of choices and others having only a few choices.

For example, since a wide variety of field devices are used in plants and the like, there are a wide variety of product specification options available. When a user of a field device requests the creation of a written estimate, he or she needs to select one that matches his or her usage conditions from such a wide variety of specification options.

The following Patent Document 1 discloses that when a customer selects a product specification, information that serves as a clue is presented so that the customer can accurately and easily select the product specification even if the customer does not have sufficient product knowledge. A technique for doing so has been disclosed. In this technology, selection candidates are ranked and presented to the user based on past order record information, such as increases and decreases in orders for individual products.

Patent No. 4303164

By the way, appropriate product specifications for products such as field devices vary depending on the conditions under which the product is used (usage environment, use industry, measurement target, etc.). For example, in a field device that measures the flow rate, pressure, differential pressure, etc. of a fluid, the optimal material for the wetted part (portion that comes into contact with the fluid) differs depending on the type of fluid. The technology disclosed in Patent Document 1 mentioned above does not take into consideration the conditions under which such a product is used, so there is a problem in that it is not possible to present appropriate product specifications according to the conditions under which the product is used. There is.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and provides a product specification selection support system and a terminal device that can present a user who selects a product specification with appropriate product specifications according to the conditions in which the product will be used. , a product specification selection support method, a terminal program, a server device, and a server program.

In order to solve the above problems, a product specification selection support system (1) according to one aspect of the present invention includes a terminal device (10) into which condition information indicating conditions under which a product is used is input, With reference to the database (30) in which the condition information is associated with the product specifications, the product specifications to which the condition information input into the terminal device is associated are extracted, and the extracted product specifications are extracted. and a server device (20) that obtains and presents recommended specifications, which are the product specifications recommended, to the terminal device by performing statistical processing on the product specifications.

Further, in the product specification selection support system according to one aspect of the present invention, the server device performs statistical processing to obtain the frequency with which the extracted product specifications have been selected in the past, and recommends the product specifications according to the obtained frequency. present the rate to the terminal device.

Further, in the product specification selection support system according to one aspect of the present invention, the condition information is information indicating the type of industry in which the product is used.

Alternatively, in the product specification selection support system according to one aspect of the present invention, the product is a field device, and the condition information is information indicating a measurement target of the field device.

Further, in the product specification selection support system according to one aspect of the present invention, the terminal device communicates with an input unit (11) into which the condition information is input, and the server device, so that the condition information is input into the input unit. a communication unit (14) that transmits the condition information to the server device and receives the recommended specifications transmitted from the server device; and a display unit (12) that displays the product specifications received by the communication unit. ) and.

A terminal device (10) according to one aspect of the present invention includes an input unit (11) into which condition information indicating conditions under which a product is used is input, and a terminal device (10) that inputs condition information input to the input unit, and a terminal device (10) that inputs condition information indicating conditions under which a product is used. transmits the product specifications to the server device (20) that refers to the database (30) in which the condition information is associated with the product specifications, and receives the recommended specifications that are the recommended product specifications sent from the server device. and a display section (12) that displays the recommended specifications received by the communication section.

In the product specification selection support method according to one aspect of the present invention, an input unit (11) inputs condition information indicating conditions under which the product is used (S13), and a communication unit (14) inputs condition information to the input unit. a step (S15) of transmitting the input condition information to a server device (20) that refers to a database (30) in which the condition information is associated with product specifications selected in the past; includes a step (S16) of receiving recommended specifications, which are the recommended product specifications transmitted from the server device; and a step (S16) of displaying the recommended specifications received by the communication unit in the display unit (12). S17).

A terminal program according to an aspect of the present invention connects a computer to an input means (11) into which condition information indicating conditions under which a product is used is input, and a terminal program that inputs the condition information inputted into the input means to a computer that has been selected in the past. transmits the product specifications to the server device (20) that refers to the database (30) in which the condition information is associated with the product specifications, and receives the recommended specifications that are the recommended product specifications sent from the server device. and a display means (12) for displaying the recommended specifications received by the communication means.

The server device (20) according to one aspect of the present invention refers to a database (30) in which condition information indicating conditions under which the product is used is associated with product specifications selected in the past. The product specifications that are associated with the condition information input in are extracted, statistical processing is performed on the extracted product specifications to obtain recommended specifications that are recommended product specifications, and the recommended specifications are presented to the terminal device.

The server program according to one aspect of the present invention causes a computer to refer to a database (30) in which condition information indicating conditions under which a product is used is associated with product specifications selected in the past, and The product specifications associated with the condition information input in (10) are extracted, the extracted product specifications are subjected to statistical processing, and the recommended specifications, which are the product specifications to be recommended, are obtained and sent to the terminal device. It functions as a server device for presentation.

According to the present invention, it is possible to present appropriate product specifications according to the conditions under which the product will be used to a user who selects product specifications.

1 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of a product specification selection support system according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a database used in a product specification selection support system according to an embodiment of the present invention. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a product specification selection support method according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a product specification selection screen displayed on a terminal device in an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a state in which recommended specifications and the like are displayed on a product specification selection screen of a terminal device in an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a written estimate created in an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a first modification of a product specification selection screen displayed on a terminal device in an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a second modification of the product specification selection screen displayed on the terminal device in an embodiment of the present invention.

EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION Hereinafter, a product specification selection support system, a terminal device, a product specification selection support method, a terminal program, a server device, and a server program according to embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Below, an overview of an embodiment of the present invention will first be described, and then details of the embodiment of the present invention will be described.

〔overview〕
Embodiments of the present invention enable a user who selects a product specification to be presented with appropriate product specifications according to the conditions under which the product will be used. For example, it is possible to present appropriate product specifications according to the type of industry in which the product is used.

When a user requests a product manufacturer to create a quotation, it is necessary to select one that matches the user's usage conditions from a wide variety of product specification options. While performing this task, the user may not be able to decide which of the prepared options to select. In such cases, the user can choose between two options: thoroughly understanding each of the product specifications provided and selecting the one that meets his/her usage conditions; One possible method is to select one.

In the former method, since the product specifications that match the user's own usage conditions are selected, the accuracy of the estimate can be increased, but there is a problem in that it takes time to request the creation of an estimate. In the latter method, although it is possible to quickly request the creation of a quotation, there is a problem in that the accuracy of the quotation decreases because the product specifications that match the user's usage conditions are not selected.

Here, the product specifications to be selected are often biased depending on the conditions under which the product will be used. For example, when a product is used in an industry such as a chemical industry or an industry that produces petroleum products, the material of the product is often biased toward specific specifications due to the characteristics of the substances handled. The present embodiment utilizes such characteristics to present appropriate product specifications according to the conditions under which the product is used.

In the embodiment of the present invention, first, condition information indicating the conditions under which the product is used is input. Next, the input condition information is sent to a server device that refers to a database in which condition information is associated with previously selected product specifications, and the recommended product specifications sent from the server device. Receive recommended specifications. The recommended specifications received by the communication section are then displayed. Thereby, appropriate product specifications according to the conditions under which the product will be used can be presented to the user who selects the product specifications.

[Embodiment]
<Product specification selection support system>
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of a product specification selection support system according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the product specification selection support system 1 of this embodiment includes a terminal device 10, a server device 20, and a database 30, and supports a user who operates the terminal device 10 to select a product specification. conduct.

The terminal device 10 and the server device 20 are communicably connected via a network N. The server device 20 is capable of referencing at least the database 30. The server device 20 and the database 30 may be configured separately or may be configured integrally. Note that the server device 40 in FIG. 1 is a server device prepared for creating a product quote, and is communicably connected to the terminal device 10 via the network N.

In this embodiment, in order to facilitate understanding, it is assumed that the product for which an estimate is created is a field device installed at a plant site. Here, the field device is, for example, a sensor device such as a flow meter, a temperature sensor, or a pressure gauge. Field devices include valve devices such as flow control valves and on-off valves, actuator devices such as fans and motors, imaging devices such as cameras and videos that capture the situation and objects inside the plant, and abnormal noises inside the plant. The device may be an audio device such as a microphone or a speaker that emits alarm sounds or the like, a position detection device that outputs position information of each device, or other devices.

Plants where field devices are installed include chemical and other industrial plants, plants that manage and control wellheads and their surroundings in gas fields, oil fields, etc., plants that manage and control power generation such as hydropower, thermal power, nuclear power, etc., and solar power plants. There are plants that manage and control energy harvesting such as light and wind power, and plants that manage and control water, sewage, dams, etc.

The network N is, for example, the Internet, a LAN (Local Area Network), a WAN (Wide Area Network), or the like. Note that the network N may be a wired network, a wireless network, or a mixed network of wired and wireless networks. It is assumed that the terminal device 10 is connected to the network N by wire. Below, the terminal device 10 will be explained first, and then the database 30 and the server device 20 will be explained.

<Terminal device>
The terminal device 10 includes an operation section 11 (input section, input means), a display section 12 (display means), a storage section 13, a communication section 14 (communication means), and a processing section 15. Such a terminal device 10 is realized by, for example, a desktop, notebook, or tablet computer.

Note that the functions of the terminal device 10 are realized in software, for example, by installing and executing programs (terminal programs) that realize those functions. That is, the functions of the terminal device 10 are realized by the cooperation of software and hardware resources. Here, the functions of the terminal device 10 realized by software include, for example, a user who operates the terminal device 10 to select the specifications of a field device (product specifications), and requests the creation of a quotation. One example is the function of providing support. Of course, the functions of the terminal device 10 may be realized using hardware such as FPGA, LSI, and ASIC.

The operation unit 11 includes, for example, an input device such as a keyboard or a pointing device, and outputs an instruction (instruction to the terminal device 10 ) according to an operation by a user using the terminal device 10 to the processing unit 15 . The display section 12 includes, for example, a display device such as a liquid crystal display device, and displays various information output from the processing section 15. Note that the operation section 11 and the display section 12 may be physically separated, or may be physically integrated, such as a touch panel liquid crystal display device that has both a display function and an operation function. It's okay.

The storage unit 13 includes, for example, an auxiliary storage device such as an HDD (hard disk drive) or an SSD (solid state drive), and stores various information. The storage unit 13 stores, for example, information indicating product specification items that need to be determined when estimating field devices, information necessary for requesting the server device 40 to create a quote, and the server device. The estimate information obtained from 40 and other information are stored. Note that the storage unit 13 may store a program that implements the functions of the terminal device 10.

The communication unit 14 is connected to the network N by wire, and performs communication via the network N under the control of the processing unit 15. For example, the communication unit 14 transmits information (condition information) indicating the type of industry in which the field device is used to the server device 20 connected to the network N, and receives field device recommendations sent from the server device 20. Receive specifications (recommended product specifications). The communication unit 14 also requests the server device 40 connected to the network N to create an estimate for the field device, and receives the estimate transmitted from the server device 40 .

The processing unit 15 centrally controls the operation of the terminal device 10 based on operation instructions input from the operation unit 11 . The processing unit 15 includes a display control unit 15a, a target industry acquisition unit 15b, a product specification selection unit 15c, and a requesting unit 15d, and performs processing to support the user in selecting specifications of field devices and creation of an estimate. Perform the necessary processing.

The display control section 15a performs display control on the display section 12. For example, the display control unit 15a uses the information stored in the storage unit 13 to cause the display unit 12 to display items of product specifications that need to be determined when estimating a field device. Furthermore, when the recommended specifications for the field device are obtained from the server device 20, the display control section 15a causes the display section 12 to display the recommended specifications. Further, the display control unit 15a causes the display unit 12 to display the estimate obtained from the server device 40 in response to an instruction from the operation unit 11.

The target industry acquisition unit 15b acquires industry information (condition information) that is information indicating the industry in which the field device as a product is used. This industry information is input by the user operating the operation unit 11, for example. For this reason, the target industry acquisition unit 15b acquires industry information input by operating the operation unit 11, for example. When acquiring industry information, the target industry acquisition unit 15b controls the communication unit 14 to transmit the industry information to the server device 20.

Here, the above-mentioned industry information is divided into major classifications (main) that roughly classify industries, and small classifications (sub) that further finely categorize the roughly classified industries. Major classifications include, for example, "chemical industry," "petroleum products," "steel," and "transport machinery." When the major category is "chemical industry," the minor categories include, for example, "inorganic chemistry," "organic chemistry," and "pharmaceuticals." Note that the information indicating the type of industry in which the field device is used may be only a major classification (main), or may be divided into more finer categories than minor classifications (sub).

The product specification selection unit 15c selects the product specification displayed on the display unit 12 according to the operation content of the operation unit 11. Here, as described above, the display unit 12 displays items of product specifications that need to be determined when estimating a field device. Therefore, the product specification selection unit 15c selects product specifications for all items according to the operation details of the operation unit 11.

The quotation requesting unit 15d controls the communication unit 14 to request the server device 40 to create a quotation. Specifically, the quotation requesting unit 15d acquires the product specifications selected by the product specification selection unit 15c, controls the communication unit 14, and generates a quotation that includes information such as the acquired product specifications, the requester, and the desired delivery date. A request to create a document is sent to the server device 40.

<Database>
The database 30 is a database that stores information regarding users of field devices. The database 30 stores, for example, information indicating an order record, information indicating a maintenance record, and information indicating a service record for each user of a field device. The information indicating the order record includes information indicating the specifications of field devices ordered in the past and the type of industry in which they are used. The information indicating the maintenance record includes information indicating the specifications of field devices maintained in the past and the type of industry in which they were used. The information indicating service performance includes information indicating the specifications of field devices that have been serviced in the past and the type of industry in which they are used.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a database used in the product specification selection support system according to an embodiment of the present invention. The database 30 illustrated in FIG. 2 is one in which product information and industry information are associated with each other. Information regarding the product includes "product name," "basic specifications," and "selected specifications." Further, the industry information includes "industry main" and "industry sub."

“Product name” is the product name of the field device as a product. "Basic specifications" are the basic specifications of the field device. For this basic specification, multiple product specification options are available. For example, for the basic specification of "wetted parts material," options such as "Hastelloy," "tantalum," and "monel" are provided. The "selected specifications" are product specifications selected by the user in the past. “Industry main” is a major classification (main) of the aforementioned industry information, and “industry sub” is a minor classification (sub) of the aforementioned industry information.

Here, the "selected specification" included in the information regarding the product is a product specification that was selected in the past. Further, industry information is one type of condition information indicating conditions under which a product is used. Therefore, the database 30 can be said to be one in which condition information indicating the conditions under which the product is used is associated with product specifications selected in the past.

<Server device>
When industry information is transmitted from the terminal device 10, the server device 20 obtains recommended specifications, which are product specifications recommended in the industry indicated by the industry information, and returns the obtained recommended specifications to the terminal device 10. The server device 20 refers to the database 30, extracts the product specifications associated with the industry information transmitted from the terminal device 10, and performs statistical processing on the extracted product specifications to obtain the above-mentioned recommended specifications. .

Note that if the industry information transmitted from the terminal device 10 is only information indicating the major classification (main), the server device 20 refers to the database 30 and assigns information corresponding to the major classification (main). Extract the product information that is listed. If the industry information transmitted from the terminal device 10 indicates a major classification (main) and a minor classification (sub), the server device 20 refers to the database 30 and selects the major classification (main). Extracts product information that is associated with a subcategory (sub) of the subcategory.

As the above statistical processing, the server device 20 performs a process of determining the frequency with which the product specifications extracted from the database 30 have been selected in the past, and sets the product specification with the highest frequency as the recommended specification. Further, the server device 20 calculates a recommendation rate of the product specifications according to the determined frequency, and transmits the calculated recommendation rate to the terminal device 10 together with the above-mentioned recommended specifications. Note that a specific example of the statistical processing performed by the server device 20 will be described later.

Note that the functions of the server device 20 are realized in software, for example, by installing and executing a program (server program) that realizes those functions. In other words, the functions of the server device 20 are realized through cooperation between software and hardware resources. Of course, the functions of the server device 20 may be realized using hardware such as FPGA, LSI, and ASIC. The server device 20 may be realized by a cloud computing system.

<Product specification selection support method>
FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a product specification selection support method according to an embodiment of the present invention. The process shown in FIG. 3 is started, for example, when the user of the terminal device 10 operates the operation unit 11 of the terminal device 10 and inputs an instruction to start creating an estimate for a field device. When the process of the flowchart shown in FIG. (see FIG. 4) is displayed (step S11).

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a product specification selection screen displayed on a terminal device in an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 4, the product specification selection screen G1 is provided with an industry selection area R1 and a specification selection area R2. Further, the product specification selection screen G1 is provided with an automatic specification selection button B1 and an estimate button B2.

The industry selection area R1 is an area for selecting the industry in which the field device that performs the estimation is used. In the example shown in FIG. 4, major classifications and minor classifications of industries are displayed in a list format along with check boxes CB. For example, "chemical industry," "petroleum products," "steel," and "transport machinery" are displayed as major categories. "Inorganic chemicals," "organic chemicals," and "pharmaceuticals" are displayed as subcategories of "chemical industry," and "petroleum refining" and "other petroleum products" are displayed as subcategories of "petroleum products." ing. In addition, subcategories of "steel" include "pig iron, crude steel, and steel products," and "other steel products," and subcategories of "transportation equipment" include "automobiles," "automobile parts," and "other transportation "Device" is displayed.

The specification selection area R2 is an area for selecting the specification of the field device for which an estimate is to be made. In the example shown in FIG. 4, the "basic specification" of the field device, "specification" which is an option of "basic specification", and "selection" which means the selection box SB are displayed in a list in association with each other. Here, in the specification selection area R2 of the product specification selection screen G1, all of the product specification items that need to be determined when estimating a field device are displayed. If all of the product specification items cannot be displayed at once in the specification selection area R2, a scroll bar (not shown) is provided for the specification selection area R2. By operating the scroll bar, the user can display any item in the specification selection area R2.

The automatic specification selection button B1 is a button for automatically selecting an appropriate product specification according to the industry selected in the industry selection area R1. When the specification automatic selection button B1 is pressed, industry information indicating the industry selected in the industry selection area R1 is acquired by the target industry acquisition section 15b shown in FIG. 1 and transmitted to the server device 20. The estimate button B2 is a button for requesting the creation of an estimate. When the quote button B2 is pressed, the quote requesting unit 15d shown in FIG. 1 requests the server device 40 to create a quote.

When the product specification selection screen G1 shown in FIG. Step S12). For example, when the user operates the operation unit 11 and instructs to select one of the selection boxes SB displayed in the specification selection area R2, the product specification selection unit 15c is selected by the user's operation. Select the product specification associated with the selected selection box SB.

The target industry acquisition unit 15b provided in the processing unit 15 of the terminal device 10 determines whether industry information has been input by the user's operation (step S13). Specifically, it is determined whether the specification automatic selection button B1 is pressed while the checkbox CB associated with the industry displayed in the industry selection area R1 of the product specification selection screen G1 shown in FIG. 4 is selected. do. Note that the check boxes CB may be selected only for those associated with the major classification of the industry, or for both the major classification and the minor classification of the industry.

If the target industry acquisition unit 15b determines that industry information has not been input (if the determination result in step S13 is “NO”), the product specification selection unit 15c determines whether the selection of product specifications has been completed or not. (Step S14). For example, it is determined whether an instruction to cancel selection of product specifications has been given or whether an estimate button B2 has been pressed. If the product specification selection unit 15c determines that the selection of product specifications has not been completed (if the determination result in step S14 is "NO"), the process returns to step S12 and follows the user's instructions. A selection of product specifications is made.

On the other hand, when the target industry acquisition unit 15b determines that industry information has been input (when the determination result in step S13 is "YES"), the target industry acquisition unit 15b selects the industry information selected in the industry selection area R1. Obtain information indicating the industry type. The target industry acquisition unit 15b then controls the communication unit 14 to transmit the acquired industry information to the server device 20. Here, it is assumed that industry information indicating an industry whose major classification is "chemical industry" and whose minor classification is "organic chemistry" is acquired and transmitted to the server device 20.

Upon receiving the industry information transmitted from the terminal device 10, the server device 20 refers to the database 30, extracts the product specifications associated with the received industry information, and performs statistical processing on the extracted product specifications. Go and ask for recommended specifications. As the above statistical processing, the server device 20 performs a process of determining the frequency with which the product specifications extracted from the database 30 have been selected in the past, and sets the product specification with the highest frequency as the recommended specification. Further, the server device 20 calculates a recommendation rate of the product specifications according to the determined frequency, and transmits the calculated recommendation rate to the terminal device 10 together with the above-mentioned recommended specifications.

For example, when the database 30 is shown in FIG. 2, the server device 20 is associated with industry information indicating an industry whose major classification is "chemical industry" and whose minor classification is "organic chemistry." The product specifications shown below are extracted as the product specifications. Specifically, as shown below, "Hastelloy" and "Tantalum" were extracted for "wetted parts materials," and "general use (silicon oil)" and "high temperature use (for sealed liquids)" were extracted. Extract silicone oil). Further, the server device 20 performs the process of calculating the frequency described above, thereby obtaining the number of times shown below.

・Wetted parts material Hastelloy: 3 times Tantalum: 1 time ・Filled liquid General use (silicon oil): 1 time High temperature use (silicon oil): 3 times

Based on the results of the above statistical processing, the server device 20 recommends "Hastelloy", which is the most frequently used material, for "liquid-wetted parts material," and recommends "High-temperature (silicon)", which is the most frequently used material, for "filled liquid." oil)” is the recommended specification. In addition, regarding "Hastelloy", which is the recommended specification for "wetted parts material," the server device 20 has applied it four times in the industry whose major classification is "chemical industry" and whose minor classification is "organic chemistry." Since it has been selected three times, we calculate a recommendation rate of 75%. Similarly, the server device 20 also has the recommended specifications for "filling liquid" for "high temperature use (silicon oil)" in an industry whose major classification is "chemical industry" and whose minor classification is "organic chemistry." , has been selected 3 out of 4 times, so we calculate a recommendation rate of 75%. When the above processing is completed, the recommended specifications and recommendation rate obtained by the server device 20 are transmitted to the terminal device 10.

After the industry information is transmitted to the server device 20, the processing unit 15 of the terminal device 10 determines whether the recommended specifications etc. transmitted from the server device 20 are received by the communication unit 14 (step S16). . If the processing unit 15 determines that the recommended specifications etc. have not been received by the communication unit 14 (if the determination result in step S16 is “NO”), it repeats the process of step S16. On the other hand, if the processing unit 15 determines that the recommended specifications etc. have been received by the communication unit 14 (if the determination result in step S16 is “YES”), it controls the display control unit 15a to The recommended specifications received in step S14 are displayed on the display unit 12 (step S17).

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a state in which recommended specifications and the like are displayed on a product specification selection screen of a terminal device in an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 5, there is a selection box SB corresponding to "Hastelloy" for "wetted parts material" and a selection corresponding to "High temperature use (silicon oil)" for "filled liquid", which are recommended specifications in the server device 20. A check mark is attached to box SB to indicate that it is a recommended specification. Further, a speech bubble BL in which a recommendation rate is written is attached to the selection box SB with a check mark attached thereto. The user of the terminal device 10 can intuitively know what the recommended specifications are for the selected industry by referring to the check mark attached to the selection box SB, and by referring to the balloon BL, The recommendation rate of recommended specifications can also be easily grasped.

When the recommended specifications and the like are displayed, the product specification selection unit 15c determines whether or not the selection of product specifications has been completed (step S14). If the product specification selection unit 15c determines that the selection of product specifications has not been completed (if the determination result in step S14 is "NO"), the process returns to step S12 and follows the user's instructions. A selection of product specifications is made. On the other hand, if the product specification selection unit 15c determines that the selection of product specifications has been completed (if the determination result in step S14 is "YES"), the series of processes shown in FIG. 3 ends.

Note that, in step S14, if the product specification selection unit 15c determines that the selection of product specifications has been completed due to the quote button B2 being pressed with a check mark attached to the selection box SB, After the series of processes shown in 3 are completed, the quotation requesting section 15d requests the creation of a quotation. Specifically, the quotation requesting unit 15d acquires the product specifications selected by the product specification selection unit 15c (the product specifications with a check mark in the selection box SB), controls the communication unit 14, and selects the acquired product. A request for creating an estimate including information such as specifications, requester, desired delivery date, etc. is transmitted to the server device 40. Note that the estimate created by the server device 40 is transmitted to the terminal device 10 and stored in the storage unit 13 of the terminal device 10.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a written estimate created in an embodiment of the present invention. The quotation Q illustrated in FIG. 6 includes a description column F1 in which "Product Name" is the name of the product selected by the user, "Specifications" is the product specification selected by the user, and A description field F2 in which a price is written is provided. Note that the quotation Q shown in FIG. 6 was created when the automatic specification selection button B1 shown in FIG. 5 was pressed and the appropriate product specification, that is, the recommended specification, was automatically selected. .

As described above, in this embodiment, when industry information indicating the industry in which a product (for example, a field device) is used is input, the terminal device 10 transmits the input industry information to the server device 20. There is. When the server device 20 receives the industry information transmitted from the terminal device 10, it refers to the database 30, extracts product information associated with the industry information, and performs statistical processing on the extracted product specifications. We are looking for recommended specifications, which are recommended product specifications. Then, the server device 20 transmits the obtained recommended specifications to the terminal device 10 that transmitted the industry information.

Thereby, the user of the terminal device 10 can know appropriate product specifications according to the industry in which the product is used, simply by inputting industry information indicating the industry in which the product is used. In this way, in this embodiment, it is possible to support a user who operates the terminal device 10 to select product specifications. In addition, in this embodiment, it is possible to quickly learn the appropriate product specifications according to the type of industry in which the product will be used, so it is possible to request the creation of a quotation in a short time and achieve high quotation accuracy. can do.

The product specification selection support system, terminal device, product specification selection support method, terminal program, server device, and server program according to the embodiments of the present invention have been described above. The present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and can be freely modified within the scope of the present invention.

For example, the embodiment described above presents appropriate product specifications according to the type of industry indicated by the type of industry information input to the terminal device 10. However, the present invention is not limited to presenting appropriate product specifications according to the type of industry, but can be applied to presenting appropriate product specifications according to the conditions under which the product is used. The conditions under which the product is used include, for example, the country or region or company where the product is used, the laws and regulations of the place where the product is used (Radio Law, explosion-proof standards, waste law, etc.), and the objects to be measured (substances, range, etc.).

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a first modification of the product specification selection screen displayed on the terminal device in an embodiment of the present invention. The product specification selection screen G2 shown in FIG. 7 is obtained by replacing the industry selection area R1 of the product specification selection screen G1 shown in FIG. 4 with a measurement target selection area R3. The measurement target selection area R3 is an area for selecting the measurement target of the field device to be estimated.

In the example shown in FIG. 7, major classifications and minor classifications of measurement targets of field devices are displayed in a list format along with check boxes CB. For example, "fluid material" and "fluid temperature" are displayed as major categories. "Liquid", "Gas", and "Steam" are displayed as subcategories of "Fluid material", and "-40℃~120℃" and "-70℃~315℃" are displayed as subcategories of "Fluid temperature". ℃" is displayed.

Note that in order to present appropriate product specifications according to the conditions under which the product is used (for example, the object to be measured), the contents of the database 30 need to be changed according to the conditions. For example, the database 30 illustrated in FIG. 2 has information about products and industry information associated with each other, but information about products and condition information indicating the conditions under which the product is used (for example, measurement target) are associated with each other. It is necessary to change it to one that is associated with .

When the user of the terminal device 10 presses the specification automatic selection button B1 while selecting the check box CB associated with the measurement target displayed in the measurement target selection area R3, the measurement target selected in the measurement target selection area R3 is pressed. Information indicating this is acquired by the target industry acquisition unit 15b shown in FIG. 1 and transmitted to the server device 20.

The server device 20 refers to the database 30, extracts product specifications associated with the received information indicating the measurement target, and performs statistical processing on the extracted product specifications to obtain recommended specifications. As the above statistical processing, the server device 20 performs a process of determining the frequency with which the product specifications extracted from the database 30 have been selected in the past, and sets the product specification with the highest frequency as the recommended specification. Further, the server device 20 calculates a recommendation rate of the product specifications according to the determined frequency, and transmits the calculated recommendation rate to the terminal device 10 together with the above-mentioned recommended specifications.

Thereby, a display similar to the specification selection area R2 of the product specification selection screen G1 shown in FIG. 5 is displayed in the specification selection area R2 of the product specification selection screen G2 of the terminal device 10. That is, a check mark is attached to the selection box SB corresponding to the "specification" that is set as a recommended specification to indicate that the specification is a recommended specification, and a speech bubble BL in which a recommendation rate is written is also attached.

Further, in the embodiment described above, the major classification and minor classification of industries listed in the industry selection area R1 provided on the product specification selection screen G1 shown in FIG. 4 are selected using check boxes CB. However, it may also be possible to input the industry type in a free word format.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a second modification of the product specification selection screen displayed on the terminal device in an embodiment of the present invention. The product specification selection screen G3 shown in FIG. 8 is obtained by replacing the industry selection area R1 of the product specification selection screen G1 shown in FIG. 4 with an industry input area R4. The user can input any word into the industry input area R4 by operating the operation unit 11.

When such a product specification selection screen G3 is displayed, the target industry acquisition unit 15b specifies the industry based on the word input in the industry input area R4. For example, the target industry acquisition unit 15b specifies the industry by performing natural language processing on the word input in the industry input area R4. Alternatively, the target industry acquisition unit 15b may identify the industry by utilizing AI (artificial intelligence) such as machine learning.

Further, the database 30 in the above-described embodiment stores, for example, information indicating the order record, information indicating the maintenance record, and information indicating the service record for each user of the field device. However, the database 30 may store information indicating estimation results, information indicating specification selection results, and information indicating other results.

Furthermore, in the embodiment described above, an example has been described in which the display control unit 15a of the terminal device 10 uses the information stored in the storage unit 13 to display the product specification selection screen G1 (see FIG. 4). However, when the terminal device 10 accesses the server device 20, the server device 20 may display the product specification selection screen G1 on the terminal device 10.

Furthermore, in the embodiment described above, an example has been described in which the terminal device 10 requests the server device 40 to create an estimate. However, the terminal device 10 may not only request the server device 40 to create an estimate, but also place an order for a product with the server device 40.

Furthermore, in the above-described embodiments, field devices have been described as examples of products for which estimates are performed. However, the products for which estimation is performed are not limited to field devices, and estimation can be performed for any product. For example, the product for which an estimate is made may be a car. When the product to be estimated is a car, when selecting optional specifications for the car, recommended optional specifications based on the purpose of use, family composition, budget, etc. may be presented to the user.

1 Product specification selection support system 10 Terminal device 11 Operation unit 12 Display unit 14 Communication unit 20 Server device 30 Database

Claims (10)

a terminal device into which condition information indicating the conditions under which the product is used is input;
With reference to a database in which the condition information is associated with product specifications selected in the past, the product specifications to which the condition information input into the terminal device is associated are extracted, and the extracted product specifications are a server device that performs statistical processing on product specifications to obtain and present recommended specifications, which are the product specifications, to the terminal device;
Product specification selection support system. The product according to claim 1, wherein the server device performs statistical processing to determine the past selection frequency of the extracted product specifications, and presents the terminal device with a recommendation rate of the product specifications according to the determined frequency. Specification selection support system. 3. The product specification selection support system according to claim 1, wherein the condition information is information indicating a type of industry in which the product is used. The product is a field device,
3. The product specification selection support system according to claim 1, wherein the condition information is information indicating a measurement target of the field device. The terminal device includes an input unit into which the condition information is input;
a communication unit that communicates with the server device, transmits the condition information input to the input unit to the server device, and receives the recommended specifications transmitted from the server device;
a display unit that displays the product specifications received by the communication unit;
The product specification selection support system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, comprising: an input section into which condition information indicating conditions under which the product is used is input;
The condition information input into the input section is transmitted to a server device that refers to a database in which the condition information is associated with product specifications selected in the past, and recommendations sent from the server device are transmitted. a communication unit that receives the recommended specifications that are the product specifications;
a display unit that displays the recommended specifications received by the communication unit;
A terminal device equipped with. the input unit inputting condition information indicating conditions under which the product is used;
a step in which the communication unit transmits the condition information input to the input unit to a server device that refers to a database in which the condition information is associated with product specifications selected in the past;
a step in which the communication unit receives recommended specifications that are the recommended product specifications transmitted from the server device;
a display unit displaying the recommended specifications received by the communication unit;
A product specification selection support method having computer,
an input means for inputting condition information indicating conditions under which the product is used;
The condition information input into the input means is transmitted to a server device that refers to a database in which the condition information is associated with product specifications selected in the past, and recommendations sent from the server device are transmitted. a communication means for receiving recommended specifications that are the product specifications;
Display means for displaying the recommended specifications received by the communication means;
A terminal program to make it work. Referring to a database in which condition information indicating the conditions under which the product is used is associated with the product specifications selected in the past, the product specifications are associated with the condition information input into the terminal device. A server device that extracts the extracted product specifications, performs statistical processing on the extracted product specifications, obtains recommended specifications that are the recommended product specifications, and presents the recommended specifications to the terminal device. computer,
Referring to a database in which condition information indicating the conditions under which the product is used is associated with the product specifications selected in the past, the product specifications are associated with the condition information input into the terminal device. a server device that extracts the extracted product specifications, performs statistical processing on the extracted product specifications, obtains recommended specifications that are the recommended product specifications, and presents the recommended specifications to the terminal device;
A server program to function as

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