JP6748510B2 - Information providing system, information providing method, and information providing program - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a method of providing information from a business operator to a user, and a program and system for realizing the information providing method.

With the widespread use of communication terminals such as computers and mobile phones and the dramatic development of communication networks, much of the communication between business operators and customers or users (hereinafter collectively referred to as users) who provide various services. Has come to take place over communication networks. However, the direct or telephone conversation between the business operator and the user is still a highly reliable method and can give a great sense of security to the customer.

The business operator responds to inquiries, inquiries, or requests (generally referred to as inquiries) from users by telephone (also called a call center, customer center, contact point, or contact point. Are often installed. As a result, not only convenience for the user is improved, but also an employee (hereinafter referred to as an operator) who handles the user can be efficiently arranged, and as a result, business efficiency can be improved. However, as the business scale increases, inquiries are often subdivided for each service to be provided in order to provide detailed support for users. On the contrary, such subdivision means that the inquiry destination becomes complicated for the user, and it is not always a method capable of maintaining customer satisfaction. Further, if many users concentrate on some of the inquiries, inconvenience such as inability to make a telephone connection or an increase in the time required for connection will occur, and the user will become dissatisfied.

As a method of avoiding such a decrease in user satisfaction, it is disclosed that the congestion status of the inquiry destination is disclosed to the user's communication terminal and the timing at which the user calls the inquiry destination is dispersed (Patent Document 1). reference).

JP, 2007-243657, A

One of the problems of the present invention is to reduce the time required for a call with a business operator without exhausting the human resources of the business operator, and to provide a service of high quality and high added value to a user in a timely manner. It is to provide an information providing method for providing.

One of the embodiments of the present invention is an information providing system. The information providing system transmits a communication state to the first communication terminal and a processing unit that estimates the communication status of the inquiry destination specified as an input value by the user's first communication terminal based on information obtained from the inquiry destination. And a receiving unit for receiving a request for a return call transmitted from the first communication terminal, and an information providing program designated by the first communication terminal or the user when a request for the return call is made. And a setting unit for setting to activate the second communication terminal.

The information providing system further outputs the input information input by the user to the first communication terminal or the second communication terminal via the information providing program, and the first communication terminal or the second communication terminal. The communication management unit may store the output information associated with the input information. The information providing system may further include a display device associated with the input value for displaying the input information and the output information.

The information providing system further includes a voice recognition unit that recognizes the voice information of the user, a dialogue unit that selects a reply message to the voice information from a plurality of messages, and the selected reply message at least one of voice information and character information. It may further comprise a combining unit, one of which is arranged to transmit to the communication terminal.

One of the embodiments of the present invention is an information providing method. The information providing method estimates a communication status of an inquiry destination specified as an input value in the user's first communication terminal based on information obtained from the inquiry destination, transmits the communication status to the first communication terminal, and Receiving a request for a return call transmitted from the communication terminal, and activating the information providing program in the first communication terminal or the second communication terminal designated by the user when there is a request.

The information providing method outputs the input information input by the user to the first communication terminal or the second communication terminal and the first communication terminal or the second communication terminal via the information providing program. , And may further include storing output information associated with the input information. The information providing method may further include displaying the input information and the output information on a display device associated with the input value.

The information providing method is such that the voice recognition unit recognizes the voice information of the user, the dialogue unit selects a reply message to the voice information from a plurality of messages, and the synthesis unit selects at least the voice information and characters from the selected reply message. It may further include transmitting as any one of the information to the communication terminal.

One of the embodiments of the present invention is to receive a communication status of an inquiry destination specified as an input value by a user's first communication terminal, display the communication status, and perform a display for accepting a request for a return call, It is a program that causes the first communication terminal to execute a request for a return call and, after sending a request for a return call, start the information providing program on the first communication terminal.

The program may be configured to cause the first communication terminal to cause the second communication terminal designated by the user to start the information providing program.

The program may be configured to cause the communication terminal to transmit the voice information of the user to the voice recognition unit and receive a reply message to the voice information as at least one of the voice information and the character information. Good.

The information providing program can be configured so that an answer to the user's inquiry can be found through the interaction with the user. The information providing program can be configured such that the dialog with the user is performed while displaying the image on the first communication terminal or the second communication terminal. The image may be a virtual operator.

An information providing method for timely providing a high-quality, high-value-added service to a user by reducing the time devoted to a call with the operator without consuming the operator's human resources, and It is possible to provide a system or program for realizing this.

The structural example of the information provision system of embodiment of this invention. 1 is a configuration example of a communication terminal of an information providing system according to an embodiment of the present invention. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an information providing method according to an embodiment of the present invention. An example of the image displayed in the information provision method of embodiment of this invention. An example of the image displayed in the information provision method of embodiment of this invention. An example of the image displayed in the information provision method of embodiment of this invention. An example of the image displayed in the information provision method of embodiment of this invention. An example of the image displayed in the information provision method of embodiment of this invention. An example of the image displayed in the information provision method of embodiment of this invention. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an information providing method according to an embodiment of the present invention. An example of the image displayed in the information provision method of embodiment of this invention. An example of the image displayed in the information provision method of embodiment of this invention. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an information providing method according to an embodiment of the present invention. An example of the image displayed in the information provision method of the Example of this invention. An example of the image displayed in the information provision method of the Example of this invention.

An information providing system according to an embodiment of the present invention, an information providing method using the same, and a program for realizing the same will be described with reference to the drawings.

[1. Information provision system]
FIG. 1 shows an example of an information providing system 100 which is one of the embodiments of the present invention. The information providing system 100 includes an information processing server (or information processing unit) 120. The information processing server 120 can be connected to the communication terminal (first communication terminal) 110 owned by the user via a network or a telephone line. Therefore, the information providing system 100 can be recognized as including the communication terminal 110.

The information processing server 120 has a transmission unit 121 for transmitting a signal to the communication terminal 110, a reception unit 122 for receiving a signal from the communication terminal 110, a setting unit 123 for setting a command to be transmitted to the communication terminal 110, and the like. ..

The information processing server 120 can be connected to the inquiry destination 170 of the business operator via a network or a telephone line, and can be configured to grasp the communication status including the congestion status of the line of the inquiry destination 170. For example, the information processing server 120, the terminal monitor 124 for monitoring the operation status of the terminal of the operator of the inquiry destination 170, the skill of the operator, or the database 125 capable of storing the operator's state and schedule in real time, these. It is possible to have a processing unit or the like that grasps the information and statistically calculates the time until the operator becomes available to a new user from the past history. Here, the operator's state is information indicating whether or not the user is being handled, waiting, or taking a break. The schedule includes working hours and attendance status. The terminal monitor 124, the database 125, and the processing unit may be installed in the inquiry destination 170, and these may be connected to the information processing server 120 via a network, a telephone line, or the like.

The information providing system 100 further includes a communication server (or a communication unit) 130 and a voice recognition server (or a communication server) 130 used for a call with an operator via the communication terminal 110 and a dialog with a user at the time of starting an information providing program described later. It may include a voice recognition unit 140, a dialogue server (or dialogue unit) 150, a synthesis server (or synthesis unit) 160, and the like. As will be described in detail later, the information providing program is a program for inputting various queries and eliciting answers to them in an interactive manner. The dialogue may be performed with the image displayed. The dialogue is performed using voice information or character information, and it is a program that can grasp the user's inquiry contents through the dialogue and guide the user to the answer to the inquiry. Further, in the present specification, the dialogue includes not only an oral dialogue between a user and an operator through a telephone line or a network, but also a dialogue using text information, a dialogue using both text information and voice information, or voice information. Includes conversations using only. The latter can be performed between the user and the dialogue server via the communication terminal 110.

The communication server 130 enables a call between the communication terminal 110 of the user and the terminal of the operator via the communication network. The communication server 130 has a communication status management unit (or communication management unit) 132 for storing the content and history of the dialogue with the user. The communication server 130 may be configured to connect the communication terminal 110 of the user and the terminal of the operator by a telephone line, or may be provided by a provider that provides a broadband service and connect the communication terminals to each other via a network. It may be configured to use a so-called IP telephone. In the latter case, the voice of the user or operator is compressed by various methods, and this is transmitted via the network.

The voice recognition server 140 is a server that analyzes voice information transmitted by the user via the communication terminal 110 and converts the voice information into character data (text). The voice recognition server 140 has, for example, a feature amount extraction unit 141, a decoder 142, a text output unit 143 as a voice recognition engine. The feature amount extraction unit 141 analyzes the transmitted voice information and extracts a feature amount parameter. The decoder 142 calculates the best candidate from the feature parameter while referring to a database such as the language model 144, the acoustic model 145, and the vocabulary dictionary 146, and outputs it as a recognition result. The output recognition result is converted into text by the text output unit 143 and output.

The dialogue server 150 is a server that generates and selects an appropriate answer for the text generated by the voice recognition server 140. The dialogue server 150 may include a dialogue engine, an information database 158, and the like. The dialogue engine can include a controller 152, a selector 156, a response generator 154, and the like. The controller 152 controls the dialogue engine, and has a function of grasping the user's intention and causing the selector 156 to select an appropriate message 159. The selector 156 has a function of narrowing down and selecting a message 159 suitable for the user's intention understood by the controller 152. The selector 156 is also called a refinement engine. The response generation unit 154 has a function of generating an answer to the user based on the selected message 159. The response generation unit 154 may combine a plurality of messages 159 to create one message.

The information database 158 can store terms, knowledge, situations, etc. related to the business of the business, and is referred to by the dialogue engine. For example, it is possible to store parameters such as the function and location information of the store, information about the services that can be provided, and parameters that change over time such as the congestion status of the store and the stock status of products. The information database 158 may store personal information such as standard data of biometric information of the user. The response generation unit 154 may appropriately fuse the selected message 159 with the personal information stored in the information database 158 to generate the response message. Note that the dialogue server 150 may be connected to the communication server 130 that stores dialogue contents and history between the user and the dialogue server. Further, the message 159 in the dialogue server 150 may be stored in the database 125 of the information processing server 120 and selected by the selector 156.

The message 159 selected by the selector 156 is an answer message corresponding to various questions from the user, and can be prepared and managed as character information. Alternatively, when the answer message cannot be narrowed down, it may be an inquiry message for asking a question to the user.

A function as artificial intelligence may be installed in the dialogue server 150 and a new answer message may be created by learning through dialogue with the user. That is, a function of newly obtaining a conclusion from a dialogue with a user and a function of learning from a dialogue history with a user may be provided to the dialogue server 150, and an answer message may be created by using these functions. ..

The synthesis server 160 is a server for converting the message 159 selected by the dialogue server into voice information and transmitting it to the user's communication terminal 110, or for transmitting the message 159 as text to the user's communication terminal 110. The synthesis server 160 has, for example, a text input unit 162, a language analysis unit 164, and a waveform generation unit 166 as a voice synthesis engine.

In the text input unit 162, the character information of the message 159 selected by the dialogue server is input. This character information is linguistically analyzed in the linguistic analysis unit 164, and the position of the accent, reading information, etc. are analyzed with reference to the language dictionary 165 which is a database. The waveform generation unit 166 refers to the voice synthesis database 167 created using the waveform data obtained from the actually recorded voice, and generates a voice waveform. The voice data generated by the waveform generation unit 166 is transmitted to the communication terminal 110 via the network or the telephone line.

The above-described configurations included in the information providing system 100 are not limited to the subordinate relationship shown in FIG. Therefore, each configuration may belong to any server, and a certain configuration may be distributed and included in a plurality of servers. Also, a plurality of servers may function as one server.

The communication terminal 110 is a terminal that can be operated by a user, and examples thereof include a stationary (desktop) computer, a notebook computer, and a mobile communication terminal such as a mobile phone, a tablet, and a smartphone. A configuration example of the communication terminal 110 is shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, the communication terminal 110 includes a CPU (central processing unit) 111, a memory 112, a display unit 113, an input unit 114, a voice input unit 115, a voice output unit 116, a communication unit 117, and an image capturing device 118. Etc. are included.

The CPU 111 has a function of interpreting and executing various programs stored in the communication terminal 110. The memory 112 has a function of storing information such as programs and data, and includes a nonvolatile memory element such as a flash memory. The display unit 113 has a liquid crystal display device, an EL organic device, and the like, and functions as a user interface. The input unit 114 has a function as an interface for a user to input information to the communication terminal 110 through physical contact, and typically includes a touch panel, a keyboard, an input button, and the like. The voice input unit 115 has a function of capturing voice and transmitting the input voice information to the communication unit 117. The voice output unit 116 has a function of reproducing voice information transmitted from the server and voice information transmitted from another communication terminal through a communication network such as a telephone line. The communication unit 117 has a function of transmitting/receiving voice information, character information, etc. to/from a server or another communication terminal via a network.

[2. Information provision method]
The information providing method of this embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

[2-1. start]
The user who makes an inquiry to the business operator first activates a dedicated program provided by the business operator (step 200). The program can be installed in the communication terminal 110 owned by the user. Hereinafter, this information providing method will be described as being executed using a program, but this information providing method can also be performed within a site provided by a business operator through a network without using a dedicated program.

When the program is activated, various services provided by the business operator via the network are displayed on the screen 300 of the display unit 113 of the communication terminal 110. The screen display at this time is called an initial screen. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, a plurality of icons 302 classified by service are displayed on the screen 300.

[2-2. inquiry]
A user who wants to make an inquiry starts an inquiry operation by selecting an icon (for example, icon 304 in FIG. 4) for shifting to a screen in which it is possible to select whether to display a list of inquiry destinations. It should be noted that an operation button simply displayed as text may be displayed on the screen 300 instead of displaying an area having a specific shape such as an icon on the screen 300.

FIG. 5 shows an example of a screen on which it is possible to select whether to display a list of inquiries. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, an icon 320 for shifting to a screen in which a list of inquiries can be displayed can be displayed on the screen 300. A user who makes an inquiry operates this icon 320 (step 202 in FIG. 3), and the program communicates in accordance with this operation so that the business operator sends a list of inquiries to the information processing server 120 that manages all or part of the information. Request the terminal 110. In addition, the program is configured so that the initial screen (FIG. 4) is directly moved to the screen where the list of inquiries is displayed without going through the screen (FIG. 5) in which it is possible to select whether to display the list of inquiries. May be.

FIG. 6 shows an example of a screen 300 displaying a list of inquiries. Inquiry contents of the user are different for each user. Therefore, in this information providing method, as shown in FIG. 6, a list of a plurality of inquiries that can be provided by the business operator is displayed on the screen 300 so that the user can quickly select the optimum inquiries 170. To do. Normally, when a user makes an inquiry to a business operator by telephone, first, a connection is attempted to a line that controls the business operator's inquiry. When the line is connected, the recorded message provided by the operator is played. The recorded message will sequentially introduce the inquiries that meet various inquiries. This requires the user to listen carefully to the recorded message. In addition, it is not always easy to intuitively and intuitively determine the optimum inquiry destination only by using the recorded message, which is information that depends only on hearing. In some cases, it is necessary to repeatedly listen to a very long recorded message.

On the other hand, in the information providing method of the present embodiment, the inquiries are collectively displayed on the screen 300 of the communication terminal 110 as a list. For example, as shown in FIG. 6, an icon 330 corresponding to each inquiry destination can be displayed on the screen 300. With such a display, the user can instantly understand the entire image of information by sight. Therefore, it is possible to easily determine the inquiry destination 170 that best suits the user's inquiry, and it is possible to significantly reduce the stress on the user.

The user selects the optimum inquiry destination 170 for the inquiry on the screen 300 and operates the corresponding icon (step 204 in FIG. 3). That is, the user specifies the selected inquiry destination 170 as an input value. According to this operation, the program requests the information processing server 120 to send the selection result of the user to the information processing server 120 and the communication status of the inquiry destination 170 that responds to the inquiry to the communication terminal 110. In response to the request from the communication terminal 110, the information processing server 120 acquires the communication status of the inquiry destination 170 selected by the user from the processing unit 126 that estimates the communication status based on the information obtained from the inquiry destination 170, and the transmission unit 121. To the communication terminal 110. After that, the communication terminal 110 receiving this information displays the information on the screen 300 (step 206 in FIG. 3). For example, as shown in FIG. 7, the information can be displayed in the upper area 340 of the screen 300.

The communication status is until the number of other users (waiting users) who have successfully connected to the inquiry destination 170 but have not started the dialog with the operator, or until all the waiting users have completed the dialog with the operator. Can include expected time (expected waiting time). The expected waiting time is estimated by the processing unit 126 of the information processing server 120.

By disclosing the communication status such as the congestion status of the inquiry destination 170 to the user, the user can estimate the time when the dialog with the operator can be started. Normally, when the inquiries from the user are concentrated on the inquiry destination of the business operator, even if the line is connected to the inquiry destination, the user follows the instruction in the recording message and the operator keeps the line connected and the operator You may be forced to wait a long time until you are available. In this case, the time to start the interaction with the operator cannot be predicted, which is the biggest cause of frustration for the user. On the other hand, by clearly indicating the communication status of the inquiry destination 170 to the user's communication terminal 110, not only the frustration of the user can be reduced, but also various actions are selected for the user as described below. (Behavior option) Can give an opportunity.

For example, as shown in FIG. 7, not only an icon 350 for directly calling the inquiry destination 170 but also an icon 352 for reserving a call (return call) from the inquiry destination 170 to the user, or a direct operator Although not interacting, the program may be configured to display an icon 354 for activating the above-described information providing program, an icon 356 for moving to a site for installing the information providing program on the communication terminal 110, or the like. it can. Furthermore, an icon 358 for shifting to a screen in which inquiries (FAQ: Frequently Asked Questions) frequently made by many users are posted may be displayed. This can provide an action option in which the user himself/herself searches for an answer to the inquiry. By giving the opportunity to select various actions in this way, the user does not need to spend a long waiting time meaninglessly, and the time can be effectively utilized.

[2-3. Call by user]
The user who wants to give the highest priority to the dialogue with the operator of the inquiry destination 170 may operate the icon 350 to call the inquiry destination 170 directly (step 208 in FIG. 3 ). For example, when the inquiry includes an urgent matter, or when the communication status of the inquiry destination 170 is within the user's allowable range, the user can operate the icon 350 to directly call the inquiry destination 170. According to this operation, the program causes the communication terminal 110 to call the inquiry destination 170 via the communication server 130. The user can then get an answer to the inquiry through interaction with the operator.

[2-4. Call back reservation]
On the other hand, when the communication status of the inquiry destination 170 is outside the allowable range of the user or in the environment where the user cannot call, the user operates the icon 352 to make a call request signal to reserve a return call. May be transmitted (step 210 in FIG. 3). According to this operation, the program can be configured to display a screen for reserving a call back as shown in FIG. 8, for example. Before or after the screen shown in FIG. 8 is displayed, a screen for selecting whether or not the user agrees to the disclaimer of the carrier regarding the return call may be displayed. Examples of the exemption items here include restrictions on the number of call backs and dates, and cases in which the operator is exempted from the failure of the line connection caused by the user.

When making a reservation for a call back, the program displays a pop-up window 360 for inputting the user's name and the telephone number of the call back, or selecting a desired time or time zone for the call back, as shown in FIG. Can be configured. Although not shown, the program may be configured so that the telephone number of the communication terminal 110 and the name of the user can be automatically input. The user may request the call to the communication terminal 110, or may specify a communication terminal (second communication terminal) different from the communication terminal 110 to request the call. The call request signal from the user is received by the receiving unit 122.

The desired time for the return call can be appropriately set according to the business form of the business operator. For example, as shown in FIG. 8, selection may be made in a time zone of several hours, or a specific time may be designated. When the remaining time of the selected time zone or the time until the designated time is short, a signal for disabling the corresponding time zone or time may be transmitted from the information processing server 120 to the communication terminal 110. Alternatively, based on the judgment of the processing unit 126, information is provided so that the time and time zone in which it is known in advance that the inquiries from users are concentrated or the time and time zone in which a sufficient number of operators cannot be assigned to the inquiry destination cannot be selected. The signal may be transmitted from the processing server 120 to the communication terminal 110. According to this signal, the program adjusts the pop-up window 360 so that the corresponding time zone or time cannot be selected. Further, the pop-up window 360 may be provided with an option so that the user does not specify the time for the call back. In this case, the system may be constructed so that the returning call is started by the operator after all the waiting users have finished the conversation at the time when the reservation of the returning call is completed. After inputting the necessary items, the user can confirm and register the return call reservation using the icon 362 (step 210 in FIG. 3). After the operation of the icon 362, a display may be displayed to inform the user that the reservation for the return call has been completed (see FIG. 9). After that, the communication between the communication terminal 110 and the information processing server 120 is once disconnected. Alternatively, based on the determination of the processing unit 126, a signal may be transmitted from the information processing server 120 to the communication terminal 110 so that the icon 352 cannot be selected depending on the congestion status of the inquiry destination 170 displayed in the area 340.

[2-5. Use of information provision program]
FIG. 10 shows a flow after the information providing program is activated. In the information providing method of the present embodiment, before the operator makes a call back call, the communication terminal 110 is provided with a signal in response to the call request signal for reserving the call back sent from the user's communication terminal 110. The communication terminal 110 that has transmitted and received this signal can execute the information providing program (step 220 in FIG. 3). Specifically, when the user specifies the time zone for the return call reservation, the setting unit 123 of the information processing server 120 sets the time to start the information providing program on the communication terminal 110 of the user. According to the setting of the setting unit 123, the information processing server 120 sends a command from the transmitting unit 121 to the communication terminal 110 or the second communication terminal specified by the user, and the information providing program causes the information providing program to communicate with the communication terminal 110 or the second communication terminal according to the command. Start with the communication terminal. It should be noted that, in the time zone designated by the user, the operator himself/herself who responds to the user may transmit a command for starting the information providing program from the information processing server 120 to the communication terminal 110.

Alternatively, the information processing server 120 may call the communication terminal 110 or the second communication terminal designated by the user from the transmission unit 121 according to the setting of the setting unit 123. The program may be configured to automatically start the information providing program when the user responds to the call. More specifically, after the communication unit 117 of the communication terminal 110 (or the second communication terminal) receives the call signal transmitted by the information processing server 120, the display unit 113 of the communication terminal 110 receives the call. The image indicating that is displayed. The image may include, for example, an icon or a slider for responding to a call. The response to the call is made by the user operating an icon or a slider. At this time, the program can be configured such that the information providing program is activated by these operations by the user as a trigger. In this case, the two operations of responding to the call and starting the information providing program can be achieved by a single operation.

When the user responds to the above-mentioned calling, a message prompting the user to start the information providing program may be output using the voice output unit 116 of the communication terminal 110. According to this message, the user operates the communication terminal 110 (or the second communication terminal) by himself to activate the information providing program.

Alternatively, the notification signal may be transmitted from the transmission unit 121 to the communication terminal 110 during the time period designated by the user. When the communication terminal 110 receives the communication signal, the operating system (OS) installed in the communication terminal 110 notifies the user that the notification signal has been received. Display using icons, popup dialogs, etc. At the same time, a voice may be output from the voice output unit 116 to notify the user of the reception of the notification signal. According to this display, the user operates the communication terminal 110 (or the second communication terminal) by himself to activate the information providing program. The program may be configured such that the information providing program is automatically started by directly operating this display.

Alternatively, the program may be configured such that the time of the return call designated by the user is stored in the memory 112 of the communication terminal 110, and the communication terminal 110 starts the information providing program at this time. In this case, the snooze function may be added to the program, and if the user cannot respond at the time, the information providing program may be started again after a certain time. The snooze function may be configured to function only within a time period selected by the user. Note that the program may be configured such that the information providing program is activated in the second communication terminal at this time. In this case, when the user specifies the second communication terminal, the program transmits a command to the second communication terminal at the time, and the second communication terminal receiving this command activates the information providing program. To do.

The information providing program is activated in the communication terminal 110 of the user by the various triggers described above (step 400). At the same time, the communication terminal 110 may notify the user that the information providing program has been activated, using voice or vibration.

When started, the information providing program can be configured to display an image for dialogue with the user on the screen 300 of the communication terminal 110. The image may be a static icon, or part or all of it may be moving regularly or irregularly. The movement may be non-mechanical. For example, the image may be a virtual operator imitating an employee who handles users (see FIG. 11A). At this time, the virtual operator may be set to perform a natural human motion (for example, change in facial expression, head and hand movements, etc.), and the program may be configured to give the user a sense of familiarity. Although the utterance of the virtual operator is displayed as text in FIG. 11A, the utterance may be reproduced as voice instead of the text display or simultaneously with the text display. At this time, the information providing program may be configured to display or reproduce the name of the user. This makes it possible to give the user a stronger sense of familiarity. Hereinafter, description will be made using an example in which a virtual operator is used as an image for dialogue.

The information providing program is configured to display, for example, the icon 370 in addition to the virtual operator. This icon 370 is an icon that allows the user to input a voice, and the information providing program can activate the voice input unit 115 incorporated in the communication terminal 110 according to the operation of the icon 370 to input the voice of the user. As a result, the user can input the inquiry content as voice information by an extremely simple operation without being forced to perform a complicated operation of inputting the inquiry content as text. Further, as an arbitrary configuration, the information providing program may be configured to display the icon 372 for shifting to the screen displaying the store information of the business operator on the screen 300. By using this icon 372, for example, the information providing program may be configured to display the service content provided by each store of the business operator, the congestion status and position of the store, the route to the store, and the like.

The inquiry input by the user is transmitted as voice information or text to the voice recognition server 140 by the communication unit 117 of the communication terminal 110 (step 404), and the voice information is analyzed by the voice recognition server 140 and converted into text. The interaction server 150 generates an answer to the query and sends it to the composition server 160. In the synthesis server 160, the message 159 selected by the dialogue server is converted into voice information, or the message 159 is transmitted as text to the communication terminal 110 of the user. As shown in FIG. 11B, the voice information of the reply message may be reproduced on the communication terminal 110, or the text of the reply message may be displayed as a dialog 376 on the screen 300 (step 406 in FIG. 10). ). At the same time, the inquiry content input by the user and analyzed by the voice recognition server 140 may be displayed as a dialog 374 on the screen 300.

When the answers are not narrowed down to one and a plurality of answer messages are displayed (see FIG. 11(B)), the user operates the dialog 376 showing the optimum answer or inputs a voice to select the corresponding answer. I do. By repeating these processes in an interactive manner between the user and the virtual operator, the user can be guided to the answer that best fits the user's inquiry (step 222 in FIG. 3).

The history of the dialogue between the user and the virtual operator, that is, the information (input information) input by the user to the communication terminal 110 or the communication terminal specified by the user, and the information output in the state in which the virtual operator that is an image is displayed (output Information) can be recorded and managed by the communication status management unit 132 in the communication server 130. Further, the dialog history can be provided to the inquiry destination 170 via the communication network at any time, and the system can be configured so that the operator can view it on the display device 172 associated with the inquiry destination 170. As a result, the operator in charge of the return call can monitor the dialog with the virtual operator, accurately grasp the content of the user's inquiry, and prepare an appropriate answer. Further, it becomes possible to rearrange the optimum operator for the inquiry based on the dialogue history.

Although not shown, the program may be configured to shift to a screen for canceling the call back request when the user obtains a satisfactory answer through the dialogue performed by the information providing program. In this case, since the inquiry of the user ends at this stage, the operator does not have to respond to the request for the return call. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the burden on the operator and avoid the consumption of the human resources of the business operator, and as a result, it is possible to improve the efficiency of work, improve productivity, and improve customer service.

Note that, as shown in FIG. 3, the user may directly start the information providing program and provide an opportunity to solve an inquiry item without making a reservation for a return call. For example, such an action option can be taught to the user by displaying the icon 354 for starting the information providing program on the screen showing the communication status of the inquiry destination (see FIG. 7). The display of the icon 354 is not limited to the screen of FIG. 7, and for example, the initial screen of FIG. 4 or a screen in which it is possible to select whether to display the list of inquiries shown in FIG. 5 or the list of inquiries of FIG. 6 is displayed. It may be displayed on the screen.

[2-6. Dialogue with the operator]
On the other hand, depending on the information providing program, if a satisfactory answer cannot be obtained, or if a satisfactory answer is obtained to some extent but more detailed information is desired, it is possible to switch to a dialogue with the operator (step in FIG. 3). 224).

It is possible to switch to the dialogue using various triggers. For example, the information providing program may display a response message on the communication terminal 110, or may output a voice and then display a screen for selecting whether to start a dialogue with the operator. In this case, as shown in FIG. 12A, the program may be configured to display a dialog 378 that prompts the virtual operator to make the above selection.

Alternatively, the call may be returned to the user by the operator himself/herself who monitors the dialog with the virtual operator. It is effective for the operator to make a return call by such a trigger when the dialogue between the user and the virtual operator is stagnant, or when the virtual operator determines that the virtual operator does not provide an appropriate answer. In this case, for example, as shown in FIG. 12B, the command may be transmitted to the communication terminal 110 via the information processing server 120 so as to display a notice that the operator in charge will make a return call. In accordance with this command, the program displays a dialog 380 of a call back notice from the operator on the screen 300.

Even if the user makes a reservation for a return call by designating a time or a time zone in advance, the user cannot always respond to the return call. In that case, the program may be configured to display a screen for re-booking a call back again and give the user an opportunity to re-book a call back.

As described above, the interaction between the user and the virtual operator can be monitored by the operator on the display device 172 of the contact 170. Therefore, the operator does not need to inquire the user about the details of the inquiry again, and the user is similarly freed from the trouble of repeating the inquiry. Therefore, the operator can efficiently provide the user with an appropriate answer, and the user can also promptly obtain an appropriate answer from the operator. As a result, the burden on the business operator can be reduced, work efficiency can be improved, and user satisfaction can be improved.

[2-7. Installation of information provision program]
When the information providing program is not installed in the communication terminal, the program of the present embodiment may display an icon 356 that can lead to a site for installing the information providing program on the screen 300. The icon 356 may be displayed, for example, in a screen showing the communication status of the inquiry destination (see FIG. 7), or the program may be configured to be displayed in the initial screen in FIG. Alternatively, the program is configured to check whether the information providing program is installed in the user's communication terminal before moving to the screen shown in FIG. 7 or moving to the call back reservation screen (FIG. 8). You may. If the information providing program is not installed, the program may be configured to automatically move to a site for installing the information providing program.

As described above, in the information providing method described in the present embodiment, the user can visually browse the list of inquiries provided by the business operator. Therefore, the optimum inquiry destination for each user can be grasped quickly and intuitively, and the user does not feel bothered. The information providing method provides a communication status including information about the congestion status of the selected inquiry destination, and at the same time provides the user with an opportunity to select various actions. Therefore, each user can select various actions in accordance with his/her taste and environment without causing the victim's psychology of "waiting". One of the actions that the user can select is to request the operator to make a call back at the time and time zone that the user desires, so that the time spent for the line connection between the user operators can be reduced. It is possible to prevent the user from being wasted, and to ensure that the user can interact with the operator. In addition, prior to the call back, the user can obtain an optimal answer to the inquiry by obtaining uniform and abundant information in real time through the interaction with the virtual operator. Can be accurately grasped. Therefore, it is possible to efficiently guide the user to the optimum answer without waste in the interaction between the user and the operator, and not only to improve the self-solving rate by the user but also to greatly improve the user satisfaction. be able to. Further, for the business operator, it is possible to avoid the consumption of human resources due to user correspondence, and it is possible to efficiently operate the inquiry destination, and as a result, it is possible to realize the efficiency of work and the improvement of productivity. ..

[3. Concrete example]
Hereinafter, an example of operation of the system described in the present embodiment will be described assuming a case where a user changes an address registered in a bank as an example of a business operator. Here, an example will be described in which the user mainly performs the operation on the business operator's site via the communication network. However, as described in the present embodiment, an inquiry is made using the dedicated application provided by the business operator. You may go. FIG. 13 shows a flowchart in this assumed case.

First, the user operates the communication terminal 110 to access the site provided by the business operator via the communication network. At that time, a display as shown in FIG. 4 can be performed on the screen 300 of the communication terminal 110. The user further operates the icon 304 for making an inquiry, and proceeds to the inquiry screen (see FIG. 5).

Next, the user operates the icon 320 (see FIG. 5) for displaying the list of inquiries. This requests the communication terminal 110 information processing server 120 to transmit information including the list of inquiries (step 500 in FIG. 13). The information processing server 120 transmits the corresponding information to the communication terminal 110 according to the request from the user's communication terminal 110 (step 502). The communication terminal 110 displays the received information on the screen 300. FIG. 14 shows an example of the display at this time. Here, a plurality of icons 382 in which expected user inquiries are classified by item are displayed. According to the conventional inquiry method, after the user directly makes a call to the business operator, he carefully listens to the recorded message created by the business operator and, after understanding the content, can determine the corresponding contact. On the other hand, by applying the embodiment of the present invention, it becomes possible to instantly determine the optimum inquiry destination for the user.

The user selects the inquiry destination 170 most suitable for his/her inquiry from the inquiry destinations displayed in the list. According to this operation, the communication terminal 110 transmits the selection result of the user to the information processing server 120 (step 504), and then the information processing server 120 transmits the communication status of the inquiry destination 170 to the communication terminal 110 (step 510). When the terminal monitor 124 or the processing unit 126 is installed in the inquiry destination 170, the communication destination is requested to the inquiry destination 170 (step 506), and the inquiry destination 170 transmits the communication state to the information processing server 120 (step). 508). The communication terminal 110 displays the congestion status on the screen 300 and, at the same time, provides a user with various action options (see FIG. 7).

Here, the user operates the icon 352 in order to make a reservation for a return call after grasping the communication status. The user can input necessary information and a desired time zone of the return call on the screen regarding the return call reservation (see FIG. 8) that continues to appear. After these pieces of information are input, the communication terminal 110 transmits a request signal for a return call to the information processing server 120 (step 512). These pieces of information may be input to the setting unit 123 and further transmitted to the inquiry destination 170 directly from the information processing server 120 or via the communication server 130 (step 514). Thereafter, as an arbitrary configuration, a disclaimer may be displayed or a display indicating that the reservation for the return call is completed (see FIG. 9). At this stage, the user can interrupt the operation on the web to disconnect the communication between the communication terminal 110 and the business operator's site (or the information processing server 120), and effectively use the time up to the designated time. be able to.

At this time, the information processing server 120 may send a signal for investigating whether or not the information providing program is installed in the communication terminal 110 to the communication terminal communication terminal 110. When the information providing program is not installed, a display prompting the installation may be displayed on the screen 300.

When the time or time zone designated by the user comes, the information processing server 120 sends a signal to the communication terminal 110 according to the setting in the setting unit 123 to activate the information providing program (step 516). The information providing program is started by transmitting a signal from the information processing server 120 under the control of the operator when the operator in charge of the inquiry of the user can make a call back. Good. After that, the user starts a dialogue in a manner to talk to the virtual operator illustrated in FIG. During the dialogue between the user and the virtual operator, the communication terminal 110 transmits the dialogue contents to the voice recognition server 140 as voice information or text, while the dialogue server 150 and the synthesizing server 160 cause the dialogue server 150 and the synthesis server 160 to reply to a question from the user. Is created, selected, and transmitted to the communication terminal 110 (steps 518 and 520). Depending on the progress of the dialogue, each of these transmission/reception processes may occur multiple times.

In the case assumed here, for example, the user may tell the virtual operator that he/she wants to change the address. The voice recognition server 140 understands the voice information of the user, and the dialogue server 150 selects one or a plurality of answers that match the content, and sends the answers to the communication terminal 110 via the synthesis server 160. An example of the display on the screen 300 at that time is shown in FIG. As illustrated in FIG. 15, based on the voice information of the user, the inquiry content of the user and the reply message to the inquiry content are displayed on the screen 300 as dialogs 390 and 392, respectively. The information providing program may be configured so that the user selects an appropriate one from these to shift to a screen in which more detailed information is described. Alternatively, the user may repeat the voice input to obtain a better answer.

The dialogue at this time is provided to the inquiry destination 170 via the information processing server 120 or the communication server 130 (step 540) and is displayed on the display device 172 of the inquiry destination 170. As a result, the operator in charge can monitor the dialogue at any time, and can grasp the needs of the user more accurately.

If the user determines that the problem cannot be solved by the information providing program, for example, the user may urge a return call (step 542). Alternatively, when the operator in charge recognizes that the inquiry content of the user has been correctly grasped, the call may be returned (step 544). Therefore, the information providing program may be configured such that the icon 396 for requesting a return call from the inquiry destination is displayed on the screen 300 (see FIG. 15). By interacting with the user based on the information obtained through the information providing program, the operator can provide the information that better matches the user's needs and contribute to the improvement of the customer satisfaction of the user.

On the contrary, when the user obtains a satisfactory answer by using the information providing program and determines that the interaction with the operator is unnecessary, the return call reservation may be canceled. Therefore, the information providing program may be configured such that the icon 394 for canceling the reservation is displayed on the screen (see FIG. 15).

As described in this example, by applying the embodiment of the present invention, an information providing program capable of automatically responding to the user can be utilized as an interface for the user. This makes it possible to provide convenience to the user, reduce the business burden on the business operator, improve the business efficiency, and provide the user with a high-quality service.

Those in which those skilled in the art appropriately add, delete, or change the design based on the above-described embodiment are also included in the scope of the present invention as long as they have the gist of the present invention.

Further, even if other action effects different from the action effects brought about by the modes of the respective embodiments described above are clear from the description of the present specification, or those that can be easily predicted by those skilled in the art, Of course, it is understood that this invention brings about.

100: information providing system, 110: communication terminal, 111: CPU, 112: memory, 113: display unit, 114: input unit, 115: voice input unit, 116: voice output unit, 117: communication unit, 118: image capture Embedded device, 120: information processing server, 121: transmission unit, 122: reception unit, 123: setting unit, 124: terminal monitor, 125: database, 126: processing unit, 130: communication server, 132: communication status management unit, 140: voice recognition server, 141: feature amount extraction unit, 142: decoder, 143: text output unit, 144: language model, 145: acoustic model, 146: vocabulary dictionary, 150: dialogue server, 152: controller, 154: response Generation unit, 156: Selector, 158: Information database, 159: Message, 160: Synthesis server, 162: Text input unit, 164: Language analysis unit, 165: Language dictionary, 166: Waveform generation unit, 167: Speech synthesis database, 170: inquiry destination, 172: display device, 300: screen, 302: icon, 304: icon, 320: icon, 330: icon, 340: area, 350: icon, 352: icon, 354: icon, 356: icon, 358: icon, 360: popup window, 362: icon, 370: icon, 372: icon, 374: dialog, 376: dialog, 378: dialog, 380: dialog, 382: icon, 390: dialog, 392: dialog, 394. : Icon, 396: icon

Claims (11)

A receiving unit for receiving a request for a return call transmitted from the first communication terminal,
On the basis of the request, a call signal for causing the first communication terminal or the designated second communication terminal to activate the information providing program accompanied by image display processing for interaction with the user is transmitted. An information providing system including a transmitter. The said information provision program operates the said 1st communication terminal or the said 2nd communication terminal so that the answer with respect to the said user's inquiry may be output through the interaction of the said user and a dialogue server, The 1st communication terminal of Claim 1 Information provision system. The information providing program is configured such that the dialogue with the user is performed through at least one of text information and voice information through the first communication terminal or the second communication terminal, or the first communication terminal or The information providing system according to claim 2, wherein the second communication terminal is operated. The dialogue by the information providing program is performed while displaying an image,
The information providing system according to claim 3, wherein the image is a virtual operator. The information providing system according to claim 1, wherein the transmission unit transmits, to the first communication terminal, the communication status of the inquiry destination specified by the first communication terminal. A voice recognition unit that recognizes voice information of the user,
A dialogue unit for selecting a reply message to the voice information from a plurality of messages,
The method further comprises a synthesizing unit configured to transmit the selected answer message as at least one of voice information and text information to the first communication terminal or the second communication terminal. The information providing system described in 1. Display to accept the call back request,
Send the request,
After transmitting the request, the first communication terminal is executed to receive a call-out signal for activating an information providing program involving image display processing for interaction with a user on the first communication terminal. A program to let you. The information providing program, the user and to run the first communication terminal so as to output an answer to the inquiry of the user through interaction with the interactive server, the program of claim 7. The information providing program, the interaction with the user, via at least one of text information or audio information, to be executed by the first communication terminal, the program of claim 8. 10. The program according to claim 9 , which causes the first communication terminal to execute transmission of a signal for causing the second communication terminal to activate the information providing program. Transmitting voice information of the user of the first communication terminal to a voice recognition unit,
The program according to claim 7 , for causing the first communication terminal to execute reception of a reply message to the voice information as at least one of voice information and character information.