JP4971210B2 - Service providing system, service providing method, and computer program - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention comprises a server computer to which communication terminals (user terminals) of a plurality of users can be connected via a communication network, and exchanges messages such as text and / or images within a group to which a plurality of users belong as members. The present invention relates to a service providing system for providing a possible virtual community service on a WEB site, a method executed by the system, and a computer program for causing a computer system to execute the method.

  Traditionally, as a virtual community where a large number of participants can exchange information in a virtual space using communication networks such as the Internet and e-mail, chat rooms, electronic bulletin boards (BBC), mailing lists, blogs with trackback functions, social networks Various services such as a service (SNS) are provided. These services are roughly classified into a type in which a member is registered in advance and a specific number of communities are constructed, and a type in which an unspecified number of people can freely enter and exit. Regardless of the type, a large number of users browse and post articles, and write comments (less) on other people's articles, thereby communicating among a large number of users and forming a virtual community. it can. The user uses these services as a tool for communication between old friends and acquaintances, or as a means for building new human relationships through common items such as hobbies, preferences, residential areas, and schools of origin.

  On the other hand, as an advertising medium for businesses that pretend to be an individual who pretend to be an anonymity that is an advantage of the virtual community, vandalize bulletin boards and threads, illegal acts (such as infringement of privacy, slander, slander, copyright infringement) Inappropriate use that is not intended by the operator, such as the use of, is unending. Therefore, in order to maintain the order of the community in accordance with the will of the manager (administrator) and the sender of information, for example, various measures shown in the following Patent Documents 1 to 3 have been proposed.

JP 2002-157203 A JP 2004-13341 A JP 2006-48558 A

  By the way, the user of the virtual community service actually uses a plurality of services (Web sites) depending on the purpose. For example, in a community where security is robust and personal information is strictly protected, the real name is actively disclosed to try to build a dense relationship close to the real world, but conversely, you can participate without revealing any personal information. In the community, you can enjoy a rare relationship for the moment. Also, the service usage forms are completely different depending on attributes such as age, gender, job type, and region. Therefore, a new community service is always desired to satisfy various needs of users with various attributes. Furthermore, it is necessary not to impair the advantages of the virtual community, such as the speed and real-time nature of information exchange, the flexibility of system operation, and the management of personal information according to community attributes (user will).

  The present invention has been made to solve such a problem, and an object of the present invention is to provide an unprecedented novel virtual community service without impairing the advantages of the virtual community. The more detailed objective is to provide a service that can maintain the order within the group by strictly enforcing group participation conditions while respecting the autonomy of the group and basically respecting the group's autonomy.

  According to the first main aspect of the present invention, a plurality of users' communication terminals (user terminals) are configured by server computers that can be connected via a communication network, and a plurality of users belong to a group as members. And / or a system for providing a virtual community service capable of exchanging messages such as images on the WEB site, identification information given to a user registered as a user in this service, identification information of a group to which the user belongs, and A user information storage unit that stores user information including the email address of the user terminal, a group information storage unit that stores identification information and nicknames of all users belonging to the group in association with the group identification information, and a group From the user terminal of the user (inviting user), Member invitation accepting means for obtaining user information and group identification information of other users (invited users) who want to participate in and accepting invitations of new members, user information storage unit and group information based on the group identification information An invitation notification delivery unit that identifies all members belonging to the target group from the storage unit, generates an invitation email including the nicknames of the invited user and the invited user, and delivers them to the email addresses of other members other than the invited user; An invitation email sending means for sending an invitation email to the group to the email address of the invited user when receiving approval of participation in the group for the invited user from all members of the group, and the invitation email When a request to join the group is received from an invited user who received A group information updating means for storing the invited user as a member of the group in the group information storage unit, a method executed by the system, and a server computer for executing the method A computer program is provided.

  Further, according to the second main aspect of the present invention, the communication terminal (user terminal) of a plurality of users is configured by a server computer that can be connected via a communication network, and the plurality of users belong to a group as a member. A system for providing a virtual community service on the WEB site that can exchange messages such as text and / or images on the WEB site, identification information given to a user registered for this service, identification information of a group to which the user belongs And a user information storage unit that stores user information including an email address of the user terminal, a group information storage unit that stores identification information and nicknames of all users belonging to the group in association with the group identification information, and a group From the user terminal of the user to which he belongs (inviting user) A member invitation receiving means for acquiring user information and group identification information of another user (invited user) who wants to participate in the loop and receiving an invitation of a new member, a user information storage unit and a group based on the group identification information Invitation notification delivery means for identifying all members belonging to the target group from the information storage unit, generating an invitation email including the nicknames of the invited user and the invited user, and delivering them to the email addresses of other members other than the invited user And an invitation email sending means for sending an invitation email to the group addressed to the email address of the invited user when the approval of participation in the group is received from all members belonging to the group. When a refusal to join the group is received from the invited user, or any Participants who receive a participation non-approval from a member, generate a participation non-approval email indicating that the invited user's participation in the group has not been approved, and distribute it to the email address of the invited user and / or other members A non-approval notification delivery means is provided, a method executed by the system, and a computer program for causing a server computer to execute the method.

  According to the present invention, when adding a member to an existing group in a virtual community service such as a chat room, BBS, or SNS, the consent of all the members is required. As a result, friendship within the group can be raised and effective communication tools can be provided. In addition, when the presence or attribute of a group can be set to be private, it is possible to further increase the sense of friendship within the group.

  According to one embodiment of the present invention, the participation non-approval notification delivery unit makes the received participation refusal information or non-participation non-approval information private to any group member including the invited user.

  As a result, only the person who caused the reason why the invitee did not participate (cannot) can not be known, so members (including invitees and other members), invitees and invitees The influence on any human relationship between the member other than the inviter and the invitee and the invitee can be minimized. Therefore, members and invitees can express their acceptance or refusal to join at their own will, and as a result, become responsible for the management of the group.

  In another embodiment of the present invention, the group information storage unit stores profile information of the group created by any member belonging to the group. The system further includes: When user identification information and group profile editing information are acquired from the user terminal of any member who belongs, profile update means for updating the profile of the group information storage unit is provided. With such a configuration, all the members can edit the group profile, and a sense of belonging to the group and a sense of unity can be enhanced to maintain a close relationship between the members.

  In another embodiment of the present invention, the group information storage unit stores information on a user (administrator) having a setting change authority determined by a predetermined rule for each group in association with identification information of the user. The system further includes group-related information such as a group name and group profile, member-related information such as nicknames and number of members, and messages exchanged between users from the user terminal of the administrator. Among the above information, set by collating non-public item selection accepting means for accepting selection of items to be made private together with user identification information and group identification information, and information registered in the group information storage unit and the accepted information Authentication means for authenticating change authority, and selection of the group when setting change authority is authenticated And a private information registration means for storing information for such items private to the group information storage unit. Here, the group information storage unit registers the order of appointment to the manager determined by the predetermined rule, and when the manager withdraws from the group, the system further performs the following in accordance with the rank of appointment. It is preferable to provide an administrator updating means for determining and updating the manager.

  In this way, group members are treated equally in basic parts such as article viewing and posting, new member approval, etc., while allowing group members to perform the minimum management necessary for group operation and Management can be realized easily.

  Further, in another embodiment of the present invention, when an application for establishing a group and selection of an existing group to which the user belongs are received from a user belonging to any group, the selected existing group Information of one or more members, group profile, or information of a specific message is duplicated to generate new group information, and the group information is stored in association with newly assigned group identification information New group registration means for registering in the department is provided.

  Thereby, when a new group is established, it is possible to reduce the trouble of inputting the name and profile of the group and information (ID, nickname, etc.) of the member desired to participate. This is particularly effective when it is desired to divide a group to which a large number of members belong, to integrate a plurality of groups, or to subdivide a group theme or member and establish a parent-child relationship or a sibling relationship related group. When a parent-child group or sibling group is established, a new group may be associated with the original group, and group information, member information updates, and the like may be shared among the groups.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a network configuration diagram according to an embodiment of the present invention. The service providing system denoted by reference numeral 1 in this figure is composed of a host computer installed and managed by a provider 2 that provides a WEB service. The system 1 can be connected to a communication terminal (user terminal) 4 such as a mobile phone, a PC, or a PDA owned by the user 3 via a public line communication network such as the Internet or an e-mail network. In the following, a mobile phone will be exemplified and described as the user terminal 4. In addition, the host computer is configured by linking one or more computers having functions such as a conventionally known WEB server, e-mail server, database server, and file server. Note that illustrations and descriptions of well-known devices such as a firewall within a business operator, a base station of a mobile phone communication network, and a communication carrier system are omitted.

  The service providing system 1 provides a plurality of registered member members (users) to a registered member member (user) through a user information management function, a group information management function, and an image control function, which will be described later. A virtual communication service (hereinafter referred to as “the present service”) that can exchange information within a group to which the user 3 belongs is provided.

  The service providing system 1 according to the present embodiment increases the sense of fellowship within the group by adding the consent of all the members of the group and the consent of the invitee when adding the members of the group. It is characterized by realizing deep communication. As will be described later, most users 3 belong to one of the groups, and communicate within the group through exchanging opinions and providing / viewing images. In addition, it is free to establish a group or leave a group. Outlaws that do not belong to any group are allowed, but messages can not be written and the information that can be viewed is limited to the information published in the group settings, so the advantage of using this service is It seems small. In particular, in the present embodiment, since the existence of the group itself can be made private, it is impossible to know what kind of property / attribute group exists and what user belongs.

In order to exhibit the above-described functions, the service providing system 1 of the present embodiment has a configuration as shown in FIG.
That is, the system 1 includes an external storage device such as a RAM 13, a ROM, an HDD, and a magnetic disk via a system bus 12 via a CPU 11 built in the host computer of the business operator 2, as shown in FIG. 14 and an input / output interface (I / F) 15 are connected. The input / output I / F 15 includes an output device 16 such as a display, an input device 17 such as a keyboard and a mouse, a communication device 18 such as a modem, and a drive 20 for a removable recording medium 19 such as a CD-ROM or DVD-ROM. Each is connected. As shown in FIG. 2B, the external storage device 14 includes a data storage area 14a and a program storage area 14b. Each is a certain storage area secured in the storage device.

  In such a hardware configuration, a software program installed in the program storage area 14b of the storage device 14 is received by the CPU 11 by receiving various commands from the user terminal 4 via the communication I / F, the communication device 18 and the like. By being called on the RAM 13 and executed, the functions of the present invention are achieved in cooperation with the OS (operation system).

  The data storage area 14a is a storage area in which results calculated by software (each unit) described later and information acquired from the client (user terminal 4) via the communication device 18 or the like are described and updated as needed. Specifically, a user information storage unit 21, a group information storage unit 22, and a message storage unit 23 are provided.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the user information storage unit 21 includes identification information (user ID) given to a user registered as a user for this service, identification information of one or more groups to which the user belongs (group ID), one or more The user information including the nickname, the e-mail address of the user terminal 4 and the unique information of the user terminal 4 is stored. Here, the user ID is unique information given when the member registration of this service is performed, and the user cannot arbitrarily change or add thereafter. Further, only one e-mail address set by the user can be registered, but it can be changed thereafter. On the other hand, the addition (participation) and deletion (withdrawal) of affiliated groups are not restricted by the number of affiliated groups or the number of updates.

  In addition, the unique information of the user terminal 4 is a mobile phone manufacturing number, a subscriber ID, a terminal serial number, and the like, which are made up of a character string of a predetermined number of digits and a number given by a carrier or a terminal manufacturer. When the user terminal 4 connects to the system 1, this terminal ID is acquired and terminal authentication and session authentication are executed in the background.

  Here, the “nickname” in the present specification is synonymous with a handle name or user name used in a conventional electronic bulletin board or the like, or the “nickname” shown in the figure. This nickname is used when communicating within a group, and need not be unique like a user ID. Therefore, in the present embodiment, a plurality of nicknames can be registered for one user ID (user IDs 1111 and 2222 in FIG. 3). Therefore, when the user 3 belongs to a plurality of groups, the user 3 can use a nickname for each group or stock a favorite nickname. The group ID is not associated with the stocked nickname (see “Weekday-kun” in user ID: 1111). Also, when inviting a user to a group, if a member with the same nickname as that user already belongs, the invitation procedure can proceed using the other nickname of the invitee .

  Furthermore, it is allowed that a user belonging to a certain group registers the same nickname with another user belonging to another group. That is, the nickname is unique only within the group members. In the example of FIG. 3, the same nickname “Mr. Sat & Sun” is registered for the user with the user ID: 1111 and the user with the user ID: 3333, but the groups in which these nicknames are registered are different. Is done.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the group information storage unit 22 includes the IDs and nicknames of all users belonging to each group, the manager inauguration order (mngr_odr) in the group determined in the order of joining the group, The group profile information created by any member belonging to the group and the image data uploaded by any member belonging to the group are associated with the group identification information (ID) given when the group was established. To store. Only the user with the highest ranking can change various group settings described later, or delete (dissolve) the group. In this rank of office, the user who founded the group is number 1 and the members added after that are the second, third, etc. in order, but the rank of the lower rank members changes whenever the higher rank rank member leaves. Move up.

  Here, the setting change of the group information includes a setting (un_opng_code) for opening / closing a specific item. For example, when all items including the group existence itself are to be kept private (code: 00), all items except the group name are kept private (code: 01), all items are made public (code) : 99), and the like can be set in detail. In the example of FIG. 4, the group with ID: aaa-0 is set to private except for the group name and profile (code: 02), and the group with ID: ccc-1 is set to private for all items. (Code: 00). When a group is established, all items are set as private by default (code: 00).

  Also, as will be described later, if you want to add a member to a group, the inviter will be temporarily registered when entering the required items such as the email address of the invitee, and "1" will be registered in the temporary registration field (tmp_reg_flg) Is done. Furthermore, when the temporary registration is completed, “1” is registered in the approval waiting field (un_appr_flg) of all members other than the invitees belonging to the group. Both flags are deleted when an approval / non-approval response is received or when the invitee's participation is approved.

  The message storage unit 23 stores the information of the message written from the terminal 4 of the user 3 belonging to any group and the written date and time in association with the user ID and the ID of the group selected by the user. It is. A predetermined number of messages are displayed on the top page of My Page in the order of writing date and time (see FIG. 6A). When the message is deleted or edited by the user who posted the message, the date and time of editing or deletion is also registered. Further, when the message is edited, the editing date is replaced with the posting date and the display order is changed.

  The software program shown in FIG. 2 mainly has a function generally called groupware, and includes a user information management function, a group information management function, and an image control function. In the following, the functions related to the present invention will be mainly described. Here, the image control function is an existing WEB server such as a function for generating an HTML file from data calculated and processed by each function unit of the present invention, a browser function for displaying a transmitted HTML file on a display, Since this is a conventionally known function implemented in a mail server, OS, etc., further detailed description is omitted.

<User information management function>
As a user information management function, a user registration means 25, a user information update application acceptance means 26 (nickname update application acceptance means), a user information update means (nickname update means) 27, and an authentication means 28 are provided.

  When the user registration unit 25 acquires the unique information of the user terminal 4 and the nickname arbitrarily set by the user 3 from the user terminal 4, the user registration unit 25 uses a random number or the like to combine a character string or symbol having a predetermined number of digits. A user ID is generated and registered in the user information storage unit 21 in association with the acquired information. When the user ID is acquired from the user terminal 4 and an application for withdrawal is accepted, the user information storage unit 21 and the group information storage unit 22 are searched with this user ID, and all groups to which the user 3 belongs are searched. It identifies and notifies to the group information update means 32 mentioned later. As will be described later, when the person invited to the group (invitee) is not registered in the service and accepts the invitation (joins the group), the user registration unit 25 sets the user as a new user. be registered.

  Of the user information registered in the user information storage unit 21, the user information update application accepting means 26 is registered in the group information storage unit 22, changing the e-mail address, the unique information of the user terminal 4, and the login password. Applications for adding, changing, or deleting nicknames are accepted. Here, regarding the change of the e-mail address and the addition of the nickname, the information after the change and the user ID are acquired and the application is accepted. The terminal-specific information does not need to be input by the user 3 and is automatically acquired in the background by logging in from a new terminal (mobile phone). When changing the password, the old and new passwords are entered to ensure security.

  On the other hand, when changing the nickname, it is necessary to acquire the nickname to be changed, the ID of the group being used, and the new nickname together with the user ID. In addition, when it is desired to change a nickname (including a stock nickname) that is not associated with a specific group, an old and new nickname and a user ID are acquired. It is preferable to set an upper limit on the number of registered nicknames for which a group is not specified, because there is a risk of impersonation or irresponsible remarks when unlimited registration of nicknames that are not associated with a group is allowed.

  The user information update unit 27 specifies the update target group from the user information storage unit 21 and the group information storage unit 22 based on the acquired group ID and user ID, and sets the nickname of the user 3 in the specified group. Update to the acquired nickname. At this time, the nickname identical to the nickname acquired from the user 3 is not registered in the specified group so that confusion does not occur in the identification of the poster or the administrator of the message. Is accepted and the group information storage unit 22 is updated.

  The authentication means 28 performs login authentication to the system 1 and authentication of the setting change authority. Any authentication is performed by comparing information received from the user terminal 4 with information registered in the user information storage unit 21 or the group information storage unit 22. After logging in to this service, you can refer to the user information while the session continues. Therefore, when accessing the bulletin board of each group, you can be a member of the group in the background based on the user information. Authentication is performed.

<Group information management function>
Next, as the group information management function, group registration means 29, member request reception means 30 (member invitation reception means, private item selection reception means), notification means 31 (invitation notification distribution means, invitation mail transmission means, participation non-participation) Approval notice distribution means) and group information update means 32 (administrator update means, group profile update means, private information registration means).

  When the group registration unit 29 obtains a group name or profile from the user terminal 4 and receives an application for establishing a new group, the group registration unit 29 issues a group ID and generates a group record according to the obtained information and the user ID. Are registered in the group information storage unit 22 (see FIG. 5B). In this embodiment, when a new group is established, selection of an existing group to which the user belongs and selection of items to be inherited such as member information, group profile, and a specific message are accepted (FIG. 11A ( C)), and also has a function of duplicating the selected item to generate a new group record. As a result, the burden of group establishment can be reduced, and the establishment of related groups such as parent-child relationships and sibling relationships under a common theme, the division of huge groups, and conversely the integration of multiple groups. It becomes easy.

  The member request accepting means 30 is a function known in the art, in addition to the function of accepting a message related request posted (edited / deleted) from a member and updating the message storage unit 23. It has a reception function, a private item selection reception function, and a group withdrawal application reception function. The member invitation reception function is configured to obtain user information (nickname, e-mail address, etc.) and group ID of another user (invited user) who wants to participate in the group from the user terminal 4 of the user (inviting user) belonging to the group. This is a function for acquiring and accepting invitations from new members (see FIG. 13). In addition, the private item selection reception function is used for group-related information such as group existence / name / profile, member-related information such as nickname / number / favorite / recommendation of members, etc. This is a function of accepting selection of an item to be kept secret from the information of messages exchanged between users together with a user ID and a group ID. Furthermore, the withdrawal application acceptance function is a function for accepting withdrawal from a group from members belonging to the group (see FIG. 8). If you leave all groups, you will be unaffiliated, but user registration (account) and registered nickname will be maintained.

  The notification means 31 generates and transmits various electronic mails to the user terminals 4 of the group members. Specifically, in addition to the function of notifying other members when a message is posted from any member as in the conventional mail server (see FIG. 6D), the function unique to the present invention As an invitation reception mail distribution function, an invitation mail transmission function, and a participation non-approval mail distribution function. Even when the manager leaves the group and is replaced by another member, it is preferable to notify all members of the group to that effect.

  When the member request receiving means 30 receives information on a user who wants to join a group from any user (inviter), the invitation reception mail delivery function is based on the group ID and the user information storage unit 21 and A function that identifies all members belonging to the target group from the group information storage unit 22, generates an invitation email including the nicknames of the invited user and the invited user, and delivers them to the email addresses of other members other than the invited user Yes (see FIG. 5B and FIG. 14A).

  The invitation e-mail transmission function is a function for transmitting an invitation e-mail to the group to the e-mail address of the invited user when the approval of participation in the group is received from all the members belonging to the group. (See FIG. 15A).

  Participation non-approval notice distribution function is approved when participation rejection to the group is received from the invited user or when participation non-approval is received from any member This is a function of generating a participation non-approval mail to the effect that there has not been, and delivering it to the email addresses of the invited user and other members (see FIGS. 14E and 15F). In this case, the participation refusal information received from the referee or the participation unapproved information received from any member is not disclosed to the inviter, other group members, and the invitee. . Therefore, the inviter cannot know whether the cause that the introducer did not join the group is non-approval by any member or rejection of the introducer's participation. Thereby, the human relationship between groups and the human relationship between the introducer and the invitee are not impaired.

  The group information update means 32 has a group member update function, a group profile update function, and a private information registration function. Any update function is preferably recorded as an update history in association with the update date and the user ID of the user who requested the update.

  First, the group member update function stores the invited user in the group information storage unit 22 as a group member when a request to join the group is received from the invited user who has received the invitation email. (See FIGS. 13D, 14D, and 15E). Further, when a member leaves the group, the user information (nickname, ID, etc.) of the member is deleted from the group information storage unit 22, and if it is a group administrator having the setting change authority, The next manager is determined and updated according to the order of appointment registered in the information storage unit 22 (see FIG. 8). Further, if the member who has withdrawn is a user other than the administrator, the member with the lower rank in office is moved up and updated.

  In addition, when the group profile update function acquires the user ID and group profile editing information (profile or image after addition / modification / deletion) from the user terminal 4 of any member belonging to the group, This is a function for updating the profile of the group information storage unit 22 (see FIGS. 6B and 6C). When the profile is updated, the notification unit 31 may transmit an update notification to all managers and all members of the group.

  In addition, the private information registration function is configured to provide information (flags, symbols, etc.) for making a selection item private for the group when the authentication means 28 authenticates the setting change authority of the user (administrator). The setting change date and time) is stored in the group information storage unit 22 (see FIG. 9). Conversely, the same processing is performed when a non-public item is made public.

(Example of display screen of the present invention)
Next, basic functions of the service provided by the present invention will be described with reference to examples of display screens shown in FIGS.
First, when the user terminal 4 connects to the WEB site of this service, the top screen of FIG. 5A is displayed. On this screen, the names of groups that are set to be public, a part of the profile, etc. are displayed in order from the newest. When the user clicks “member's entrance” on this screen and the user 3 inputs and transmits the user ID and password on the login information input screen (not shown), the authentication means 28 performs login authentication, and this The login information and the terminal identification information of the user terminal 4 are stored in the memory.

  If the authentication is positive, the user's My Page shown in FIG. 5B is displayed. This My Page includes a member addition approval wait notification 40, a group invitation notification 41, a new group creation (establishment) application 42, a user information (nickname, password, etc.) change application 43, and a new note (not shown). And a service menu of this service such as a group list 44 of the user 3 is displayed. The hyperlink of each WEB page is set to the character string or icon on this screen. The processing when the member addition approval waiting notification 40 and the group invitation notification 41 are pressed will be described in detail later.

  First, when an arbitrary group name is selected from the belonging group list 44 of this service menu, the screen changes to the group top screen of FIG. Here, an example in which “Mr. A and his friends” is selected is shown. On the group top page, menus 45 and 46 for changing a group profile (prof), a note (writing) 47, and a group information changing menu 48 are displayed. Here, in the change menu 48, “public / private setting” 48c and “delete (delete) group” 48d are displayed only when the user is an administrator of this group. Note that up to five latest notes 47 can be displayed, and the past 47 can be displayed as “previous five”.

  When the group profile 46 is selected on the group top screen, the explanatory text and image of the group profile in FIG. 6B and the member list are displayed. When “edit” 49 is selected on this screen, the screen changes to the profile editing screen shown in FIG. When the profile is edited on this screen and the “decision” button 50 is pressed, the profile of the group in the group information storage unit 22 is updated by the member request receiving means 30 and the group information updating means 32.

  On the group top page (FIG. 6A), when the user inputs a message into the note input field 51 and presses the “write” button 52, the member request receiving means 30 and the group information updating means 32 store the message. Information input to the unit 23 is registered together with a user ID and a group ID. In addition, the notification means 31 transmits an update information notification mail shown in FIG. 6D to the e-mail addresses of all members.

  When the user selects “change nickname” 48a in the change menu 48 on the group top page (FIG. 6A), the screen changes to the screen in FIG. 7A. When a new nickname (nickname) is input on this screen and the “change” button 53 is pressed, the screen shown in FIG. 7B is displayed. The user information update application acceptance means 26 and the user information update means 27 allow the user to The nickname of the user in the group registered in the information storage unit 21 and the group information storage unit 22 is changed.

  When the user selects “leave group” 48b in the change menu 48 on the group top page (FIG. 6A), the screen changes to the screen in FIG. 8A. When the “Exit” button 54 is pressed on this screen, the user information update application accepting means 26 and the user information updating means 27 perform the user registration in the user information storage unit 21 and the group information storage unit 22 in the corresponding group. Information is deleted. In this example, since the user is a manager in the group, the group information update unit 32 determines the next manager in accordance with the manager appointment rank of the group information storage unit 22, and the notification unit 31 includes all the managers. A mail for changing the manager shown in FIG. 8B is sent to the member.

  Further, when the user selects “public / private setting” 48c in the change menu 48 on the group top page (FIG. 6A), the screen changes to the screen in FIG. On this screen, when the user who is an administrator selects the “public” and “private” radio buttons and presses the “change” button 55, a confirmation screen of FIG. 9B is displayed, and the member request accepting means 30. The group information update unit 32 updates the public / private setting of the group registered in the group information storage unit 22. Although illustration is omitted, in actuality, public / private can be selected for each item such as group presence, name, profile, affiliation member, and notes.

  When the user selects “delete group” 48d in the change menu 48 on the group top page (FIG. 6A), the screen changes to the screen in FIG. In this screen, when the user who is an administrator presses the “delete” button 56, the record of the group registered in the group information storage unit 22 is deleted by the member request receiving unit 30 and the group information updating unit 32. . In addition, a standard e-mail not shown is sent to all members, “Group deleted by administrator”.

  On the other hand, when the user selects “Create new group” 42 on the My Page in FIG. 5B, the screen transitions to the creation screen in FIG. When the “Create” button 58 is pressed after inputting each in the “Group name input field” 57a and “Nickname input field” 57b of this screen, the screen changes to the confirmation screen of FIG. When the information entered on this screen is confirmed and the “Create” button 59 is pressed, a completion notification screen shown in FIG. 11C is displayed and a group ID is generated and inputted by the group registration means 29. A new group record is created based on the information and registered in the group information storage unit 22.

  Here, in the creation screen of FIG. 11A, when the information of the existing group to which the user belongs is to be shared or duplicated by a new group, the information of the group is input to the input field 60 and a “Search” button is entered. When 61 is pressed, the screen transits to the shared information selection screen in FIG. On this screen, when the information to be shared / replicated is selected with a radio button and the “Create” button 62 is pressed, the member request accepting means 30 and the group registering means 29 retrieve the target group and the selected item is retrieved. This is displayed in the “group name input field” 56 and / or the “nickname input field” 57 in FIG. As a result, the user can easily establish a new group, and can integrate, divide, and establish related groups.

  In this way, when the establishment of the new group is completed, the notification means 31 transmits a standard group registration completion mail shown in FIG. 11E to the mail address of the user who is the founder. When a group is established, it is set to private by default. However, as described above, the group administrator can switch between public / private at any time from the “public / private setting” 48c. In addition, this group registration completion e-mail contains a QR code or URL that allows other users who do not know this group to change the setting to public or friends who are not registered in this service, etc. It is included.

(Flow chart of member addition process)
Next, the group member addition process according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 12 and examples of the display screens of FIGS. In the following example, it is assumed that the person to be invited (invitee: Y) has already completed user registration for this service and has been given a user ID. Further, in FIG. 12, only one member (B) of the group who requests approval of participation is displayed in order to simplify the description while avoiding the complexity of the drawing. Here, FIG. 13 shows an example of a screen displayed on the terminal 4 of the user (A) who is an inviter, and FIG. 14 shows an example of a screen displayed on the terminal 4 of the user (B) who is a member of the group. Reference numeral 15 denotes an example of a screen displayed on the terminal 4 of the user (Y) who is an invitee.

  First, when a member (inviter user A) belonging to a group wants to make another user (invitee Y) join the group, “call a friend” 45 on the group top page of FIG. To display the member addition screen shown in FIG. On this screen, when the nickname, comment (approval request text), user ID, and e-mail address of the invitee Y are entered in the input fields 63 to 66 and the send button 67 is pressed (step S1), the member request is accepted. The means 30 acquires the information and accepts a member addition application (step S2). Here, the nickname is not unique information unlike an e-mail address or the like. Therefore, when inputting a nickname, it is preferable to display a list of users of the corresponding nickname together with the group to which the user belongs, a user ID, and the like, and allow the user (inviter) to select it.

When the member addition application is accepted, the confirmation screen shown in FIG. 13B is displayed. When the invitee presses the “Send” button 68 on this screen, the group information updating means 32 assigns the invitee Y to the group. While temporarily registering (step S3), the temporary registration completion screen of FIG. 13C is displayed on the user terminal 4 of the invitee A (step S4). The notification means 31 searches the group information storage unit 22 for all members (B) and mail addresses based on the group ID (step S5) and sets the total number of members (n ₀ ) in the memory. Next, the notification means 31 includes the nicknames of the invitee A and the invitee Y, the approval request text entered by the inviter A on the member addition screen of FIG. 13A, and the member addition approval waiting list screen (FIG. 14). An approval request mail including the URL of (A)) is generated and transmitted to the addresses of all members (step S6). Further, the group information updating unit 32 sets the “waiting for approval” flag: 1 in the field (“un_appr_flg” in FIG. 4) of each member of the group information storage unit 22. Thus, when the member accesses the My Page (FIG. 5B), “waiting for member addition approval” 40 is displayed (step S7).

  When member B clicks on the URL included in the transmitted mail or selects the “waiting for approval” 40 from My Page, the member addition approval waiting list screen of FIG. 14A is displayed. On this screen, when member B presses “Approve” button 69 or “Do not approve” button 70 (step S8), a member addition approval confirmation screen (see FIG. 14B) is displayed (step S9). When member B presses “Confirm” button 71 on this screen, the screen changes to the member addition approval result screen (FIG. 14C), and this approval result is transmitted to the present system 1 (step S10). 14B and 14C show the case of “approve”, but the same screen is displayed also in the case of “not approve”.

  Then, the group information updating unit 32 deletes the approval waiting flag registered in the item of the member B of the group information storage unit 22 and removes it from the approval waiting list (step S11). As a result, for this member B, the group approval wait is deleted from the member addition approval wait list in FIG.

When the received answer is “approved” (No in step S12), 1 is added to “approved number (n ₁ )” (n ₁ → n ₁ +1). These processes (steps S10 to S12) are continued until responses are received from all the members (n ₁ = n ₀ ) (step S13).

  If all the members approve (Yes in step S13), the notification means 31 includes an invitation mail (FIG. 15B) including the nickname and group name of the invitee A and the invitee Y and the URL of the invitation group list screen in FIG. 15 (A)) is generated and transmitted to the email address of the invitee Y (step S14). In addition, “Invited to a group!” 41 is displayed on the invitee Y's My Page (see FIG. 5B) (step S15). In this manner, unless all the members approve, the invitee Y is not notified. Therefore, even if the invitee is not approved by any member, the invitee Y does not know it.

  The invitee Y accesses the input screen of FIG. 15B from the My Page or the URL of the invitation mail, presses the “Join” button 72 or the “Do not participate” button 73, and FIG. When the “Send” button 74 is pressed on the confirmation screen), a result confirmation screen shown in FIG. 15D is displayed (step S17). FIGS. 15C and 15D show the case of “participating”, but the same screen is displayed when “not participating”.

  In addition, the system 1 receives an answer from the invitee Y and passes it to the user information update unit 27 (step S18). When the received answer is “participate” (Yes in step S19), the user information update unit 27 uses the temporary registration flag (“tmp_reg_flg” in FIG. 4) registered for the invitee Y in the group information storage unit 22. ”) Is deleted, the registration date is registered in the user information storage unit 21 and the group information storage unit 22, and the process proceeds to the main registration (step S20). In addition, the notification means 31 transmits a member addition notification mail shown in FIGS. 13D and 14D to all members including the invitee A (steps S21 and S22). Further, a “member registration completion mail” (FIG. 15E) including the URL of the top page of the group is also transmitted to the invitee Y.

On the other hand, when the answer received from the member B in step S10 is “not approved” (Yes in step S12), the group information updating unit 32 sets 1 to “non-approved number (n ₂ )”. Add (n ₂ → n ₂ +1). Since the present invention is subject to the approval of all group members, when this unapproved number (n ₂ ) becomes 1, the invitee Y is not invited to the group, and the group information storage unit 22 is temporarily Registration is also deleted (step S23). However, if the result of “Invitee is not participating” is notified without a sufficient period of time to receive responses from all members and invitee Y, invitee A will identify the member who did not approve. May be predictable or may recognize that any member did not approve. Therefore, when a non-approved response is received (n ₂ = 1, 2,...), The non-approval result is not immediately notified, and a sufficient period of time has passed to receive the responses from all members and invitees Y. It is preferable to wait and send an “approval result”.

  If the response from the invitee Y received in step S18 is “do not participate” (No in step S19), the temporary registration flag in the group information storage unit 22 is: 1 is deleted (step S23), and "approval result" is transmitted to all group members including the invitee A (steps S21 and S22). As shown in FIGS. 13E and 14E, the “approval result” in this case is that the reason why the invitee Y did not participate is due to the member's non-approval or the rejection of the invitee Y The text cannot be specified. Therefore, the inviter and the approved member can only know the result that the invitee Y has not been added to the group. This does not impair the human relationship between the members and between the invitee and the member. Further, the same “approval result” is also transmitted to the invitee Y for confirmation (see FIG. 15F).

  In addition, this invention is not limited to said embodiment, A various deformation | transformation is possible in the range which does not change the summary of invention.

  For example, in the above embodiment, an example of a screen assuming a mobile phone as the user terminal 4 has been shown. However, when using another communication terminal such as a PC or a PDA, the layout of the display screen needs to be changed as appropriate. There is.

  In addition, the order of appointment of the group manager, the authority of the manager, the number of persons, and the like can be changed as appropriate. For example, an administrator can be set for each authority, and a plurality of members may be administrators.

FIG. 1 is a network configuration diagram of an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the service providing system. FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically showing the data configuration of the user information database (DB). FIG. 4 is a diagram schematically showing the data configuration of the group information database (DB). 5A and 5B are screen examples of the top page of this service and the user's My Page. FIGS. 6A to 6D are diagrams showing an example of screen transition of this service and an example of an electronic mail to be transmitted. FIGS. 7A and 7B are diagrams showing examples of screen transition of this service. FIGS. 8A and 8B are diagrams showing an example of screen transition of this service and an example of an electronic mail to be transmitted. FIGS. 9A and 9B are diagrams showing examples of screen transition of this service. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of screen transition of this service. FIGS. 11A to 11E are diagrams showing an example of screen transition of this service and an example of an electronic mail to be transmitted. FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing processing steps when a member is added. FIGS. 13A to 13E are diagrams showing an example of screen transition of this service and an example of an electronic mail to be transmitted. FIGS. 14A to 14E are diagrams showing an example of screen transition of this service and an example of an electronic mail to be transmitted. FIGS. 15A to 15F are diagrams showing an example of screen transition of this service and an example of an electronic mail to be transmitted.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Service provision system 2 ... Business operator 3 ... User 4 ... User terminal 11 ... CPU
12 ... System bus 13 ... RAM
14 ... External storage device 14a ... Data storage area 14b ... Program storage area 15 ... Input / output interface (I / F)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 16 ... Output device 17 ... Input device 18 ... Communication device 19 ... Removable recording medium 20 ... Drive 21 ... User information storage part 22 ... Group information storage part 23 ... Message storage part 25 ... User registration means 26 ... User information update application acceptance means 27 ... User information update means 28 ... Authentication means 29 ... Group registration means 30 ... Member request acceptance means 31 ... Notification means 32 ... Group information update means

Claims (11)

A virtual community composed of server computers to which communication terminals (user terminals) of a plurality of users can be connected via a communication network, and in which a plurality of users can exchange messages such as text and / or images within a group to which the users belong as members A system for providing services on a WEB site,
A user information storage unit for storing user information including identification information given to a user registered as a user of this service, identification information of a group to which the user belongs, and an email address of a user terminal;
A group information storage unit for storing identification information and nicknames of all users belonging to the group in association with the group identification information;
Member invitation receiving means for acquiring user information and group identification information of other users (invited users) who want to participate in the group from the user terminals of users (inviting users) belonging to the group and receiving invitations for new members When,
Based on the group identification information, specify all belonging members of the target group from the user information storage unit and the group information storage unit, generate an invitation email including the nicknames of the invited user and the invited user, and other than this invited user An invitation notification delivery means to deliver to the email addresses of members,
An invitation email sending means for sending an invitation email to the group to the email address of the invited user when receiving approval of joining the group from all members of the group with respect to the invited user;
And a group information update unit that stores the invited user as a member of a group in the group information storage unit when receiving a request to join the group from the invited user who has received the invitation mail. System. A virtual community composed of server computers to which communication terminals (user terminals) of a plurality of users can be connected via a communication network, and in which a plurality of users can exchange messages such as text and / or images within a group to which the users belong as members A system for providing services on a WEB site,
A user information storage unit for storing user information including identification information given to a user registered as a user of this service, identification information of a group to which the user belongs, and an email address of a user terminal;
A group information storage unit for storing identification information and nicknames of all users belonging to the group in association with the group identification information;
Member invitation receiving means for acquiring user information and group identification information of other users (invited users) who want to participate in the group from the user terminals of users (inviting users) belonging to the group and receiving invitations for new members When,
Based on the group identification information, specify all belonging members of the target group from the user information storage unit and the group information storage unit, generate an invitation email including the nicknames of the invited user and the invited user, and other than this invited user An invitation notification delivery means to deliver to the email addresses of members,
An invitation email sending means for sending an invitation email to the group to the email address of the invited user when receiving approval of joining the group from all members of the group with respect to the invited user;
When a rejection of participation in the group is received from the invited user, or when a participation non-approval is received from any member, a participation non-approval email indicating that the participation of the invited user in the group has not been approved And a non-participation notice distribution means for generating and distributing to an email address of an invited user and / or another member. The system of claim 2, wherein
The participation non-approval notice distribution means makes the received participation refusal information or non-participation non-approval information private to any group members including invited users. The system according to claim 1 or 2,
The group information storage unit stores profile information of the group created by any member belonging to the group,
The system further includes profile updating means for updating the profile of the group information storage unit when user identification information and group profile editing information are acquired from a user terminal of any member belonging to the group. A system characterized by having. The system according to claim 1 or 2,
The group information storage unit stores information of a user (administrator) having a setting change authority determined by a predetermined rule for each group in association with the identification information of the user,
This system further
From the administrator's user terminal, group-related information such as group name and group profile, member-related information such as nicknames and number of members, information on messages exchanged between users, items to be kept private Private item selection accepting means for accepting selection together with user identification information and group identification information;
Authentication means for authenticating the setting change authority by comparing the information registered in the group information storage unit with the received information;
A system comprising: secret information registration means for storing, in the group information storage unit, information for making the item to be selected private when the setting change authority is authenticated. The system of claim 5, wherein
The group information storage unit registers the inauguration order to the manager determined by the predetermined rule,
This system further
A system comprising: an administrator updating means for determining and updating the next manager in accordance with the appointment order when the manager leaves the group. The system according to claim 1 or 2,
Furthermore, when an application for establishing a group and a selection of an existing group to which the user belongs are received from a user belonging to any group, information on one or more members of the selected existing group, A group new registration unit is provided that creates information of a new group by duplicating at least one information of a profile or a specific message, and registers it in the group information storage unit in association with newly assigned group identification information. A system characterized by that. A virtual that is executed by a service providing system in which communication terminals (user terminals) of a plurality of users can be connected via a communication network, and in which a plurality of users can exchange messages such as texts and / or images within a group to which the users belong as members A method of providing community services on a WEB site,
The service providing system includes:
A user information storage unit for storing user information including identification information given to a user registered as a user of this service, identification information of a group to which the user belongs, and an email address of a user terminal;
A group information storage unit for storing identification information and nicknames of all users belonging to the group in association with the group identification information, and
This method
The member invitation receiving means of the service providing system acquires user information and group identification information of other users (invited users) who want to participate in the group from the user terminals of the users (inviting users) belonging to the group. A member invitation receiving process for receiving new member invitations,
Invitation notice distribution means of the service providing system specifies all belonging members of the target group from the user information storage unit and the group information storage unit based on the group identification information, and includes invitation users and invited user nicknames An invitation notification delivery step of generating an email and delivering it to the email addresses of other members other than the invited user;
When the invitation email transmission means of the service providing system receives approval of participation in the group for all invited members from the group members, the invitation email to the group is sent to the email address of the invited user An invitation email sending process,
When the group information updating unit of the service providing system receives a request to join the group from the invited user who has received the invitation email, the invited user is stored in the group information storage unit as a member of the group. And a group information updating step. A virtual that is executed by a service providing system in which communication terminals (user terminals) of a plurality of users can be connected via a communication network, and in which a plurality of users can exchange messages such as texts and / or images within a group to which the users belong as members A method of providing community services on a WEB site,
The service providing system includes:
A user information storage unit for storing user information including identification information given to a user registered as a user of this service, identification information of a group to which the user belongs, and an email address of a user terminal;
A group information storage unit for storing identification information and nicknames of all users belonging to the group in association with the group identification information, and
This method
The member invitation receiving means of the service providing system acquires user information and group identification information of other users (invited users) who want to participate in the group from the user terminals of the users (inviting users) belonging to the group. A member invitation receiving process for receiving new member invitations,
Invitation notice distribution means of the service providing system specifies all belonging members of the target group from the user information storage unit and the group information storage unit based on the group identification information, and includes invitation users and invited user nicknames An invitation notification delivery step of generating an email and delivering it to the email addresses of other members other than the invited user;
When the invitation email transmission means of the service providing system receives approval of participation in the group for all invited members from the group members, the invitation email to the group is sent to the email address of the invited user An invitation email sending process,
When the participation non-approval notice distribution means of the service providing system receives a rejection of participation in the group from the invited user, or when a non-participation of the participation is received from any member, A participation non-approval notice distribution step of generating a participation non-approval mail indicating that the participation is not approved and distributing the mail to the email address of the invited user and / or other members. Messages such as texts and / or images within a group to which a plurality of users belong as members are added to a service providing system configured by a server computer to which a plurality of user communication terminals (user terminals) can be connected via a communication network. A computer program for executing processing steps for providing an exchangeable virtual community service on a WEB site,
The service providing system includes:
A user information storage unit for storing user information including identification information given to a user registered as a user of this service, identification information of a group to which the user belongs, and an email address of a user terminal;
A group information storage unit for storing identification information and nicknames of all users belonging to the group in association with the group identification information, and
This computer program
A member invitation receiving step of acquiring user information and group identification information of another user (invited user) who wants to join the group from the user terminal of the user (inviting user) belonging to the group and receiving an invitation of a new member When,
Based on the group identification information, specify all belonging members of the target group from the user information storage unit and the group information storage unit, generate an invitation email including the nicknames of the invited user and the invited user, and other than this invited user Invitation notice delivery process to deliver to members' email addresses,
Invitation email sending step of sending an invitation email to the group to the email address of the invited user when receiving approval of joining the group from all members belonging to the group about the invited user;
When receiving a request to join the group from the invited user who has received the invitation email, the server computer executes a group information update step of storing the invited user as a member of the group in the group information storage unit. A computer program characterized by causing Messages such as texts and / or images within a group to which a plurality of users belong as members are added to a service providing system configured by a server computer to which a plurality of user communication terminals (user terminals) can be connected via a communication network. A computer program for executing processing steps for providing an exchangeable virtual community service on a WEB site,
The service providing system includes:
A user information storage unit for storing user information including identification information given to a user registered as a user of this service, identification information of a group to which the user belongs, and an email address of a user terminal;
A group information storage unit for storing identification information and nicknames of all users belonging to the group in association with the group identification information, and
This computer program
A member invitation receiving step of acquiring user information and group identification information of another user (invited user) who wants to join the group from the user terminal of the user (inviting user) belonging to the group and receiving an invitation of a new member When,
Based on the group identification information, specify all belonging members of the target group from the user information storage unit and the group information storage unit, generate an invitation email including the nicknames of the invited user and the invited user, and other than this invited user Invitation notice delivery process to deliver to members' email addresses,
Invitation email sending step of sending an invitation email to the group to the email address of the invited user when receiving approval of joining the group from all members belonging to the group about the invited user;
When a rejection of participation in the group is received from the invited user, or when a participation non-approval is received from any member, a participation non-approval email indicating that the participation of the invited user in the group has not been approved A computer program that causes the server computer to execute a participation non-approval notification distribution step that generates and distributes to an email address of an invited user and / or another member.

Images