JP7517261B2 - Information processing device, program, and information processing method - Google Patents

Description

This disclosure relates to an information processing device, a program, and an information processing method.

There are known televisions in which the brightness and volume are set in relation to the amount of carbon dioxide emissions (e.g., Patent Document 1). There is also known technology that accepts from an electricity user the specification of multiple power generation methods, such as nuclear power generation, coal-fired power generation, solar power generation, wind power generation, and biomass power generation, and the ratio of each method (e.g., Patent Document 2).

JP 2010-062927 A JP 2009-070083 A

In the above Patent Document 1, only the brightness and volume of the television are set. In the above Patent Document 2, only the specification of multiple power generation methods and their respective ratios is accepted from the electricity user. Therefore, there is room for improvement in the incentives for user behavior toward energy conservation.

In view of the above circumstances, the purpose of this disclosure is to provide an information processing device, a program, and an information processing method that can improve the incentives for users to conserve energy.

An information processing device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes:
An information processing device capable of communicating with a user terminal, the information processing device including a control unit and a communication unit, the control unit being:
Obtaining information regarding energy consumed by a user of the user terminal via the communication unit;
determining an amount of reduced energy consumption by the user;
generating display information that displays an image in which at least one of animals and plants, the number of which corresponds to the reduced energy consumption, is superimposed on a natural scene;
Transmitting the display information to the user terminal via the communication unit;
Execute.

A program according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes:
A computer as an information processing device capable of communicating with a user terminal,
obtaining information regarding energy consumed by a user of said user terminal;
determining an amount of reduced energy consumption by the user;
generating display information that displays an image in which at least one of animals and plants, the number of which corresponds to the reduced energy consumption, is superimposed on a natural scene;
transmitting the display information to the user terminal;
The method executes an operation including:

An information processing method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes:
An information processing method by an information processing device capable of communicating with a user terminal, comprising:
obtaining information regarding energy consumed by a user of said user terminal;
determining an amount of reduced energy consumption by the user;
generating display information that displays an image in which at least one of animals and plants, the number of which corresponds to the reduced energy consumption, is superimposed on a natural scene;
transmitting the display information to the user terminal;
including.

According to an embodiment of the information processing device, program, and information processing method of the present disclosure, it is possible to improve the incentives for users to conserve energy.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an information processing system. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an information processing device. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a user terminal. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a data structure of an energy information DB (database). FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a display screen of a user terminal. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing another example of the display screen of the user terminal. 4 is a flowchart showing an operation of the information processing device.

Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of an information processing system S according to this embodiment. The information processing system S includes an information processing device 1 and a user terminal 2 that can communicate with each other via a network NW. The network NW includes, for example, a mobile communication network and the Internet.

For ease of explanation, FIG. 1 illustrates one information processing device 1 and one user terminal 2. However, the number of information processing devices 1 and user terminals 2 is not limited to this. For example, the processing performed by the information processing device 1 of this embodiment may be executed by multiple information processing devices 1 that are distributed. Multiple user terminals 2 may be operated by users.

An overview of the processing executed by the information processing device 1 of this embodiment will be described. The control unit 11 of the information processing device 1 executes the following: acquiring information on energy consumed by the user of the user terminal 2 via the communication unit; determining the amount of energy consumption reduced by the user; generating display information displaying an image in which at least one of animals and plants, the number of which corresponds to the amount of reduced energy consumption, is superimposed on a natural scene; and transmitting the display information to the user terminal 2. With this configuration, the number of at least one of animals and plants in the image changes according to the amount of reduced energy consumption. Thus, the information processing device 1 can allow the user to visually recognize the amount of energy reduction, thereby improving the incentives for user behavior toward energy conservation.

The information processing device 1 is installed in a facility such as a data center. The information processing device 1 is a computer such as a server that belongs to a cloud computing system or other computing system.

The internal configuration of the information processing device 1 is described in detail with reference to FIG. 2.

The information processing device 1 includes a control unit 11, a communication unit 12, and a storage unit 13. The components of the information processing device 1 are connected to each other so that they can communicate with each other, for example, via a dedicated line.

The control unit 11 includes, for example, one or more general-purpose processors including a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or an MPU (Micro Processing Unit). The control unit 11 may include one or more dedicated processors specialized for specific processing. Instead of including a processor, the control unit 11 may include one or more dedicated circuits. The dedicated circuits may be, for example, an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array) or an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit). The control unit 11 may include an ECU (Electronic Control Unit). The control unit 11 transmits and receives any information via the communication unit 12.

The communication unit 12 includes a communication module compatible with one or more wired or wireless LAN (Local Area Network) standards for connecting to the network NW. The communication unit 12 may include a module compatible with one or more mobile communication standards including LTE (Long Term Evolution), 4G (4th Generation), or 5G (5th Generation). The communication unit 12 may include a communication module compatible with one or more short-range communication standards or specifications including Bluetooth (registered trademark), AirDrop (registered trademark), IrDA, ZigBee (registered trademark), Felica (registered trademark), or RFID. The communication unit 12 transmits and receives any information via the network NW.

The storage unit 13 includes, but is not limited to, for example, a semiconductor memory, a magnetic memory, an optical memory, or a combination of at least two of these. The semiconductor memory is, for example, a RAM or a ROM. The RAM is, for example, an SRAM or a DRAM. The ROM is, for example, an EEPROM. The storage unit 13 may function, for example, as a main storage device, an auxiliary storage device, or a cache memory. The storage unit 13 may store information resulting from analysis or processing by the control unit 11. The storage unit 13 may store various information related to the operation or control of the information processing device 1, etc. The storage unit 13 may store system programs, application programs, embedded software, etc. The storage unit 13 may be provided outside the information processing device 1 and may be accessed from the information processing device 1. The storage unit 13 includes an energy information DB, which will be described later.

The user terminal 2 is a terminal operated by a user. The user terminal 2 is, for example, a mobile device such as a mobile phone, a smartphone, a wearable device, or a tablet. As an alternative, the user terminal 2 may be a general-purpose device such as a PC, or a dedicated device. "PC" is an abbreviation for personal computer.

The internal configuration of the user terminal 2 is explained in detail with reference to Figure 3.

The user terminal 2 includes a control unit 21, a communication unit 22, a memory unit 23, a display unit 24, and an input unit 25. The components of the user terminal 2 are connected to each other so that they can communicate with each other, for example, via a dedicated line.

The hardware configuration of the control unit 21, communication unit 22, and storage unit 23 of the user terminal 2 may be the same as the hardware configuration of the control unit 11, communication unit 12, and storage unit 13 of the information processing device 1. Explanation here is omitted.

The display unit 24 is, for example, a display. The display is, for example, an LCD or an organic EL display. "LCD" is an abbreviation for liquid crystal display. "EL" is an abbreviation for electro luminescence. The display unit 24 may be connected to the user terminal 2 as an external output device instead of being provided in the user terminal 2. Any connection method, such as USB, HDMI (registered trademark), or Bluetooth (registered trademark), may be used.

The input unit 25 is, for example, a physical key, a capacitance key, a pointing device, a touch screen integrated with a display, or a microphone. The input unit 25 accepts an operation to input information used in the operation of the user terminal 2. Instead of being provided in the user terminal 2, the input unit 25 may be connected to the user terminal 2 as an external input device. As a connection method, any method such as USB, HDMI (registered trademark), or Bluetooth (registered trademark) can be used. "USB" is an abbreviation for Universal Serial Bus. "HDMI (registered trademark)" is an abbreviation for High-Definition Multimedia Interface.

The process executed by the information processing system S of this embodiment will be described in detail below. As an example, a scene in which a user U01 lives his/her life by consuming energy will be described. The energy consumed here is at least one of the following elements.
・Electricity, heat, light

As an example, the case where the energy is electricity is explained here.

The control unit 11 of the information processing device 1 acquires information about the energy consumption of the user U01 from an arbitrary server managed by an electric power company or the like via the communication unit 12. The control unit 11 stores the information about the energy consumption in the energy information DB of the storage unit 13.

As shown in FIG. 4, the energy information DB stores, in association with a user ID, a specified period (corresponding to "period"), energy consumption (corresponding to "consumption"), a target value for the amount of energy reduction (corresponding to "target value for reduction"), the reduced amount of energy consumption (corresponding to "reduction"), and the place where the consumed energy was generated (corresponding to "generating place").

The above-mentioned predetermined period is one month here. Alternatively, the predetermined period may be any period such as one day, one week, one year, etc.

The target value of the above energy reduction amount is a value set by the power company, the user, etc. The reduction amount target value may be on an individual basis or on a household basis.

The above-mentioned reduced energy consumption (i.e., reduction amount) may be calculated outside the information processing device 1 or may be calculated by the information processing device 1.

The power generation site may be one or more power generation sites. A power generation site is also called an electricity producing site.

The control unit 11 generates display information on April 1, 2021, which displays a natural scene superimposed with at least one of animals and plants in nature. An example of the generated display information is shown in FIG. 5. The natural scene here is a natural scene at a location corresponding to the power generation site L01. As an alternative example, the natural scene may be a natural scene specified by the user U01.

As shown in FIG. 5, the display information shows coral 51 as underwater plants and fish 52 as underwater animals superimposed on the underwater scene of the power generation site L01. It is possible to arbitrarily set what scenes, animals, and plants the display information shows. As alternative examples, the scene may be a forest, grassland, mountain, river, hill, etc. The display information is transmitted to the user terminal 2 and displayed on the display unit 24.

On May 1, 2021, the control unit 11 updates the display information as of April 1, 2021 to generate display information as of May 1, 2021. Specifically, the control unit 11 determines whether the amount of energy consumption reduced from April 1, 2021 to April 30, 2021 is equal to or greater than the target reduction amount. When the control unit 11 determines that the reduction amount is equal to or greater than the target reduction amount, it generates display information in which the number of animals 62 and plants 63 has increased, as shown in FIG. 6. As an additional example, the control unit 11 may determine the color of at least one of the animals 62 and plants 63 depending on the form of power generation of the consumed energy.

As an alternative example, the control unit 11 may generate display information showing a reduced number of animals and plants when the amount of energy reduction falls below a target reduction amount.

The control unit 11 transmits the generated display information to the user terminal 2. The user terminal 2 displays the display information on the display unit 24.

As described above, the control unit 11 determines the reduced amount of energy consumption. As an additional example, the control unit 11 may determine that the amount of energy consumption has been reduced when it determines that the energy source of the consumed energy has been replaced from non-renewable energy to non-renewable energy.

Non-renewable energy includes fossil energy sources such as oil and coal. Renewable energy includes non-fossil energy sources that are recognized as being able to be used as a permanent energy source. Renewable energy includes, for example, at least one of the following:
・Solar power, wind power, hydroelectric power, geothermal power, solar heat, heat in the atmosphere and other heat that exists in nature, biomass, tidal currents, wave power, and tides

As described above, when the control unit 11 determines that the amount of energy reduction is equal to or greater than the target value, the control unit 11 generates display information in which the number of animals and plants has increased. As an alternative example, when the control unit 11 determines that the amount of non-renewable energy used by user U01 has increased, the control unit 11 may generate display information in which the number of at least one of animals and plants has decreased. As another alternative example, when the control unit 11 determines that the amount of renewable energy used by user U01 has increased, the control unit 11 may generate display information in which the number of at least one of animals and plants has increased.

The information processing method by the control unit 11 of the information processing device 1 will be described with reference to FIG. 7.

In step S1, the control unit 11 periodically or irregularly acquires information regarding the energy consumed by the user U01 via the communication unit 12.

In step S2, the control unit 11 determines the amount of energy consumption reduced by user U01.

In step S3, the control unit 11 generates display information that displays an image in which at least one of animals and plants, the number of which corresponds to the reduced energy consumption, is superimposed on a natural scene.

In step S4, the control unit 11 transmits the display information to the user terminal 2.

As described above, according to this embodiment, the control unit 11 of the information processing device 1 acquires information regarding energy consumed by the user of the user terminal 2 via the communication unit 12, and determines the amount of energy consumption reduced by the user. The control unit 11 generates display information that displays an image in which at least one of animals and plants, the number of which corresponds to the amount of reduced energy consumption, is superimposed on a natural scene, and transmits the display information to the user terminal 2. With this configuration, the number of at least one of animals and plants in the image changes according to the amount of reduced energy consumption. Thus, the information processing device 1 can allow the user to visually recognize the amount of energy reduction, thereby improving the incentives for user behavior toward energy conservation.

Furthermore, according to this embodiment, the control unit 11 determines the amount of energy consumption reduced by the user U01 relative to the set target value. When the control unit 11 determines that the reduced amount of energy consumption is equal to or greater than the target value, it generates display information in which the number of at least one of animals and plants has increased. With this configuration, the information processing device 1 can motivate the user U01 to achieve the target value.

Furthermore, according to this embodiment, when the control unit 11 determines that the energy source of consumed energy has been replaced from non-renewable energy to renewable energy, it determines that the amount of energy consumption has been reduced. With this configuration, the information processing device 1 can motivate the user U01 to replace non-renewable energy with renewable energy, thereby increasing the environmental awareness of the user U01.

Furthermore, according to this embodiment, the natural scene includes a natural scene specified by the user U01, or a natural scene at a location corresponding to the generation site of the energy consumed by the user U01. With this configuration, the information processing device 1 provides the user U01 with a choice of scenes, thereby increasing the user U01's motivation to participate.

Furthermore, according to this embodiment, the control unit 11 determines the color of at least one of the animals and the plants depending on the form of power generation of the energy consumed by the user U01. With this configuration, the information processing device 1 can make the user U01 aware of the form of power generation of energy, thereby further increasing environmental awareness.

Furthermore, according to this embodiment, when the control unit 11 determines that the amount of non-renewable energy used by the user U01 has increased, it executes the following: determining that the amount of energy consumption has increased; and generating display information in which the number of at least one of animals and plants has decreased. With this configuration, the information processing device 1 can visually indicate that the number of at least one of animals and plants has decreased when the amount of non-renewable energy usage has increased, thereby further enhancing the environmental awareness of the user U01.

Although the present disclosure is described based on various drawings and examples, it should be noted that a person skilled in the art may make various modifications and alterations based on the present disclosure. Other modifications are possible without departing from the spirit of the present disclosure. For example, the functions included in each means or step can be rearranged so as not to cause logical inconsistencies, and multiple means or steps can be combined into one or divided.

For example, in the above embodiment, a program that executes all or part of the functions or processes of the information processing device 1 can be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium. The computer-readable recording medium includes a non-transitory computer-readable medium, such as a magnetic recording device, an optical disk, a magneto-optical recording medium, or a semiconductor memory. The program is distributed, for example, by selling, transferring, or lending a portable recording medium such as a DVD (Digital Versatile Disc) or a CD-ROM (Compact Disc Read Only Memory) on which the program is recorded. The program may also be distributed by storing the program in the storage of an arbitrary server and transmitting the program from the arbitrary server to another computer. The program may also be provided as a program product. The present disclosure can also be realized as a program executable by a processor.

The computer temporarily stores in the main storage device, for example, a program recorded on a portable recording medium or a program transferred from a server. The computer then reads the program stored in the main storage device with a processor and executes processing according to the read program with the processor. The computer may read the program directly from the portable recording medium and execute processing according to the program. The computer may execute processing according to the received program each time a program is transferred to the computer from the server. Processing may be executed by a so-called ASP-type service that does not transfer a program from the server to the computer and achieves functions only by issuing execution instructions and obtaining results. "ASP" is an abbreviation for application service provider. Programs include information used for processing by a computer and equivalent to a program. For example, data that is not a direct command to a computer but has properties that define computer processing falls under " equivalent to a program".

S Information processing system NW Network 1 Information processing device 11 Control unit 12 Communication unit 13 Storage unit 2 User terminal 21 Control unit 22 Communication unit 23 Storage unit 24 Display unit 25 Input unit

Claims (20)

An information processing device capable of communicating with a user terminal, the information processing device including a control unit and a communication unit, the control unit being:
Obtaining information regarding energy consumed by a user of the user terminal via the communication unit;
When it is determined from the acquired information on the energy that an energy source of the consumed energy has been replaced from non-renewable energy to renewable energy, it is determined that an amount of consumption of the energy has been reduced;
generating display information that displays an image in which at least one of animals and plants, the number of which corresponds to the reduced energy consumption, is superimposed on a natural scene;
Transmitting the display information to the user terminal via the communication unit;
An information processing device that executes the above. 2. The information processing device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit:
The information processing device determines an amount of energy consumption reduced by the user from the acquired energy-related information. 3. The information processing device according to claim 2 , wherein the control unit:
The information processing device determines an amount of energy consumption reduced by the user relative to a set target value. 4. The information processing device according to claim 3 , wherein the control unit:
When it is determined that the reduced energy consumption is equal to or greater than the target value, the information processing device generates display information in which the number of at least one of the animals and the plants has increased. 5. The information processing device according to claim 1,
An information processing device, wherein the natural scene includes a natural scene specified by the user or a natural scene at a location corresponding to a generation location of the energy consumed by the user. 6. The information processing device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit:
An information processing device that determines a color of at least one of the animals and the plants depending on a power generation form of the energy consumed by the user. 7. The information processing device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit
determining that the energy consumption has increased upon determining that an amount of non-renewable energy used by the user has increased;
generating display information in which the number of at least one of the animals and the plants is reduced;
An information processing device that executes the above. A computer as an information processing device capable of communicating with a user terminal,
obtaining information regarding energy consumed by a user of said user terminal;
When it is determined from the acquired information on the energy that an energy source of the consumed energy has been replaced from non-renewable energy to renewable energy, it is determined that an amount of consumption of the energy has been reduced;
generating display information that displays an image in which at least one of animals and plants, the number of which corresponds to the reduced energy consumption, is superimposed on a natural scene;
transmitting the display information to the user terminal;
A program that causes an operation including 9. The program according to claim 8, wherein the operation is
determining an amount of energy consumption reduced by the user from the acquired energy-related information. 10. The program according to claim 9 , wherein the operation comprises:
determining an amount of energy consumption reduced by the user relative to a set target value. 11. The program according to claim 10 , wherein the operation comprises:
generating display information showing an increased number of at least one of the animals and the plants when it is determined that the reduced energy consumption is equal to or greater than the target value. The program according to any one of claims 8 to 11,
The program, wherein the nature scene includes a nature scene specified by the user or a nature scene at a location corresponding to a source of energy consumed by the user. 13. The program according to claim 8, wherein the operation comprises:
determining a color of at least one of the animals and the plants depending on a form of generation of energy consumed by the user. 14. The program according to claim 8, wherein the operation comprises:
determining that the energy consumption has increased upon determining that an amount of non-renewable energy used by the user has increased;
generating display information in which the number of at least one of the animals and the plants is reduced;
Including, the program. An information processing method by an information processing device capable of communicating with a user terminal, comprising:
obtaining information regarding energy consumed by a user of said user terminal;
When it is determined from the acquired information on the energy that an energy source of the consumed energy has been replaced from non-renewable energy to renewable energy, it is determined that an amount of consumption of the energy has been reduced;
generating display information that displays an image in which at least one of animals and plants, the number of which corresponds to the reduced energy consumption, is superimposed on a natural scene;
transmitting the display information to the user terminal;
An information processing method comprising: 16. The information processing method according to claim 15,
An information processing method comprising: determining an amount of energy consumption reduced by the user from the acquired energy-related information. 17. The information processing method according to claim 16 ,
determining an amount of energy consumption reduced by the user relative to a set target value . 18. The information processing method according to claim 17 ,
An information processing method including generating display information in which a number of at least one of the animals and the plants is increased when it is determined that the reduced energy consumption is equal to or greater than the target value. 19. The information processing method according to claim 15,
An information processing method, wherein the natural scene includes a natural scene specified by the user or a natural scene at a location corresponding to a generation location of the energy consumed by the user. 20. The information processing method according to claim 15,
An information processing method comprising: determining a color of at least one of the animals and the plants depending on a form of generation of energy consumed by the user.

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