JPH10269049A - Representation method in shopping mall, and information processor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To notify users in an easy-to-understand way of sales information, the rough scale and the prosperity state of each store, by changing the representation modes concerning the store displays according to the sales or the access frequency of each store. SOLUTION: An internet browser window 3, a store information display window 4, etc., are shown on a display device 1. At the same time, the sounds are outputted through a speaker 2. The window 3 includes a shopping mall display area 5, and the window 4 includes a store information display area 6. Then the information corresponding to a store 7 shown in the area 5 is displayed in the area 6. In this a system, the representation modes concerning the store displays are changed according to the sale or the access frequency of each store.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an interface technology and an information expression technology for a personal computer, a portable information device and the like, and more particularly, to an application technology for executing application software for shopping via a network. The present invention relates to an interface processing method and an information expression method, and a processing device using them.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional interface processing method and information expression method required to execute application software for shopping via a network are described in, for example, a document "Electronic Commerce PART3 Creating an attractive virtual space." , pp.86-90, No.
213 (January 1, 1996 issue) "introduces operation screens of application software for online shopping using virtual malls and electronic communities.

[0003]

However, the interface processing method and the information expression method described in the above documents have the following problems.

Problem (1): The popularity of the stores displayed in the shopping mall and the actual scale of the stores are unknown.

That is, according to the current display method, information on the number of customers visiting the store (the number of accesses and the frequency of access),
Alternatively, since the display form does not change according to the sales information of the store, it is not possible to determine the trend of other customers, whether or not the store is popular, and the approximate size and success of the store.

Problem (2): There is a shortage of information necessary for selecting a store, searching for a store, and obtaining psychological security.

That is, when a user uses a store in the real world, information that can be intuitively understood from the atmosphere cannot be expressed by a store in a shopping mall using a current network. Therefore, it is difficult for the user to use the shopping mall via the network easily.

An object of the present invention is to express a store (a visual expression or an expression using sound) according to the number and frequency of accesses through the Internet or the like, and the number and amount of actual transactions. ) To provide a method of expressing a shopping mall and an apparatus using the same, which can convey the sales information of the store in the shopping mall, the approximate size of the store, and the success of the store to the user in an easy-to-understand manner. It is in.

Another object of the present invention is to present information about these shops in an easy-to-understand, fun and attractive manner using visual expressions and sounds, so that the user can select or search for shops, An object of the present invention is to provide a method for expressing a shopping mall and an apparatus using the same, which can help remove psychological anxiety and improve an electronic commerce environment.

[0010]

In order to solve the problems (1) and (2), a display device capable of expressing a store, sales of the store, the number of accesses to the store, and access to the store. In a computer system including a storage device that stores an access frequency, an expression mode related to display of a store is changed according to the sales of the store, the number of accesses to the store, or the access frequency to the store. Further, if the computer system is connected to a network, information about the sales of the store is obtained via the network. By such a method of expressing a shopping mall and an apparatus using the same, it is possible to change the display mode according to information on the number of customers visiting the store (the number of times of access and access frequency) or the sales information of the store. It is possible to determine the popularity of the store displayed in the shopping mall (the trend of other customers and whether or not the store is popular) and the approximate size and success of the store.

[0011] Further, information on the sales of these stores, the number of accesses to the stores, or the frequency of access to the stores is expressed in a visual expression (for example, expression area, display position,
Expression color, blink, frame, add icon, present detailed information, graph, delete unnecessary information, convert to photographic image, virtual CG expression, change viewpoint to express, change focus to express, on network Jump to another node), or use sound expression (for example, noise of people, town noise, sound effect, buzzer sound, chime, BGM,
User sales, product description voice, volume, tone, voice quality, sound output position), and present it in an easy-to-understand, fun, and attractive manner, so that the user can select or search for a store. , Helping to eliminate psychological anxiety, improving the electronic commerce environment, and making it easier for users to use shopping malls via networks.

[0012]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of the present invention.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, an Internet browser window 3, a store information display window 4, and the like are displayed on a display device 1. In addition, sound is output from the speaker 2. Internet browser window 3 includes shopping mall display area 5.
The store information display window 4 includes a store information display area 6. In the store information display area 6, information corresponding to the store 7 displayed in the shopping mall display area 5 is displayed.

For the sake of clarity, in the initial state, the store information display window 4 is not displayed, and the store 7 displayed in the shopping mall display area 5 is specified by clicking with a mouse or the like, thereby displaying the store information. Window 4 may be displayed.

FIG. 2 shows a hardware configuration diagram of the present embodiment. The hardware configuration of the present embodiment includes a processor 8, a storage device 10, a display device 1, a speaker 2, an input device 14, and a communication device 9 connected to a network 16 connected thereto. The hardware of the storage device 10 and the processor 8 of the present invention is not limited to a large computer, but may be a workstation, a personal computer, a network computer, a personal computer, as long as the information processing device can execute the instructions held in the storage device 10. It may be what is called a digital assistant (PDA).

The display device 1 according to the present embodiment is a display using a cathode ray tube or liquid crystal. The display device 1
Other display devices such as a projector may be used as long as the result of calculation by the processor 8 can be displayed. The input device 14 in the present embodiment is a keyboard or a mouse. The input device 14 only needs to be able to input data or a command to the processor 8, and another input device such as a voice input device may be used.

The connections among the devices 1, 2, 8, 9, 10, and 14 are realized by signal lines. The signal line may be wired or wireless.

The storage device 10 includes a processing program storage area 12, a work area 13 which is a temporary storage area used when executing the processing program, and a store information storage area 11.

The processor 8 is an arithmetic processing unit that interprets and executes instructions stored in the processing program storage area 12 of the storage device 10.

The communication device 9 is a modem for connecting to the network 16. Modem, communication line, or
Since a well-known technique may be used for a communication protocol (protocol) necessary for using the protocol, a detailed description is omitted in this specification.

The network 16 is a LAN (local area network), a WAN (wide area network), the Internet, or an intranet. In this embodiment, it is desirable that a WWW (World Wide Web) service be enjoyed on the network 16.

The shopping mall providing server 17 provides information on store information via the network 16.

This embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is an operation flow of the entire process.

First, in step 20, the display device 1
The Internet browser window 3 is displayed.

In step 21, a shopping mall is displayed in the shopping mall display area 5 in the Internet browser window 3. The display of the shopping mall is usually performed when the user accesses an appropriate shopping mall providing server on the Internet via the Internet browser window 3 or in a predetermined format (for example, a CD-ROM or a hard disk).
It is automatically activated when an HTML (HyperText Markup Language) format file is accessed. Or,
To explicitly drive the display of the mall,
A dedicated button may be provided in the Internet browser window 3, and by pressing the dedicated button, a predetermined server may be accessed or a file of a predetermined format may be read. The Internet, the Internet browser, the server technology, the HTML format, and the like are well known to those skilled in the art and will not be described here.

In step 22, if the user instructs a command to change the display of the shopping mall displayed in step 21, the procedure branches to step 23; otherwise, the procedure branches to step 24. Usually, a store itself, a street of a shopping street, a department store floor, and the like are displayed in a shopping mall, but not all of them are displayed in the shopping mall display area 5. Therefore, the user uses a command to change the display position of the shopping mall so that a desired store, a desired shopping street, a desired department store floor, or the like is displayed. Although the shopping mall is expressed using virtual reality, a video image, and a map expression for the sake of simplicity for the user, other display formats such as a text list display may be used.

In step 23, the display of the shopping mall is updated according to the display change command instructed in step 22. For example, VRML (Virtual
In the case of expression using Reality Modeling Language), it is easy to move in a virtual three-dimensional world called a shopping mall or to display from a different viewpoint. VRML is an HT that enables three-dimensional display
The extension format of the ML format is also well known to those skilled in the art, and thus the description thereof is omitted here.

In step 24, if the user instructs the store 7 in the shopping mall displayed in step 21 to output the information of the store, the process branches to step 25; Branch to The command to output the information is issued by pointing the displayed store 7 with the input device 14.
For example, this can be achieved by using a mouse to move the mouse cursor over the displayed store 7 or by further clicking on the mouse.

In step 25, store information (for example, store sales information, store access frequency information, store access frequency information, etc.) is acquired for the store 7 specified in step 24. That is, the information is inquired to the shopping mall providing server 17 and stored in the store information storage area 11 in the storage device 10. Store information once accessed may be temporarily stored in the work area 13 and stored again in the store information storage area 11 when instructed again.

In step 26, the store information obtained in step 25 is output using a visual expression or a sound expression. Note that the store information to be output may be a predetermined calculation result or a tally result based on the store information other than the store information directly obtained from the shopping mall providing server 17 in step S25. One of the simple realization examples of the store information is to display a store information display window 4 on the display device 1 and to display the store information display area 6 therein. FIG. 1 is an example of a screen at this point. That is, the store 7 displayed in the shopping mall display area 5 in the Internet browser window 3
Is displayed in the store information display area 6 in the store information display window 4. In our example,
As store information of a store called “Namba Ikebana”, (1) today's access count, (2) today's order count, (3) today's sales, (4) evaluation, use specific values or messages. Is expressed. Other expression methods will be described later using another embodiment.

This embodiment is to provide a method of displaying a shopping mall in which electronic settlement is possible. Therefore, the present embodiment can be implemented even if there is no service provided by the shopping mall providing server, such as a command for outputting details of a sold product or a command for ordering a product. That is, steps 27 to 31 described below need not be performed. However, in order to use the actual shopping mall, it is necessary to be able to specify services such as instructions to output details of the products sold and instructions to order products in cooperation with the display of the shopping mall It is desirable to use. The processing flow for implementing these is steps 27 to 30. That is, when the user instructs the store 7 in the shopping mall displayed in step 21 to output the product information of the store in step 27,
If not, branch to step 29.
The command to output the product information is issued by instructing the displayed store 7 with the input device 14 as in the case of step 24.

In step 28, product information is obtained from the shopping mall providing server 17 and output. Alternatively, another server (for example, a URL (Uniform Reformed) on the Internet in which merchandise information on the store 7 is stored in advance.
source Locator)). The URL is well known to those skilled in the art and will not be described here.

In step 29, if the user instructs the store 7 in the shopping mall displayed in step 21 to order a product from the store, the process branches to step 30; otherwise, the process proceeds to step 31. Branch to The order to be placed is made by giving an instruction with the input device 14.

In step 30, a command for ordering a product is transferred to the shopping mall providing server 17.
Perform predetermined order processing. This process may use a normal electronic payment method, and need not be described in detail herein.

In step 31, it is determined whether or not to end. If it is to be ended, the processing program is ended; otherwise, the process branches to step 21.

As described above, by expressing the number and frequency of accesses through the Internet and the like, and the number and amount of transactions actually performed, sales information of stores in a shopping mall, It is possible to provide a method of expressing a shopping mall and an apparatus using the same, which can inform the user of the approximate size and success of the shopping mall in an easy-to-understand manner.

Another embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. Since the flow of the entire process may be the same as that described above, the description is omitted.

FIG. 4 shows an example of the shopping mall display area 5 in the Internet browser window 3 displayed on the display device 1. One of the features of the present invention is that the store 7 changes its expression mode according to the store information. The expression form can be roughly divided into a visual expression and a sound expression. Visual expressions include, for example, expression area, display position, expression color, blinking, bordering, adding icons, presenting detailed information, graphing, deleting unnecessary information, converting to photographic images, virtual C
Changing the G expression, changing the expressed viewpoint, changing the expressed focus, jumping to another node on the network, and the like. Expressions by sound include, for example, the noise of people, the noise of towns, sound effects, buzzers, chimes,
This is to change the background music, the salesman's call, the product description voice, the volume, the timbre, the voice quality, the sound output position, and the like.
In an actual expression form, these are combined or the degree of the attribute is strengthened according to the store information. For example, in order to express a very profitable store, the area of the store in a shopping mall is expanded to have a larger expression area, and the contrast of the expression colors is increased, and the noise of the people who seem to be busy is output. 5 to 7 show examples of such variations of the expression mode.

FIG. 5 is an example of a case where the background of the store 7 in FIG. 4 is emphasized with the background erased to indicate that the store 7 is currently accessible via the Internet.

FIG. 6 shows an example in which the store 7 is expanded as a metaphor of “rich” in order to indicate that the store 7 is currently making money, in contrast to the expression of the store 7 in FIG. It is. To determine whether you are making money,
For example, the determination is made based on whether or not information on “today's sales” in the store information exceeds a predetermined threshold.

FIG. 7 shows an example of the case of using the "person" icons 40 to 44 to represent the number of customers currently visiting the store 7 with respect to the store 7 shown in FIG. . The number of customers who are currently visiting is determined by a predetermined method on the basis of, for example, information on “the number of accesses made today” in the store information.

In this way, by presenting information about a store in an easy-to-understand, fun, and attractive manner using visual expressions and sounds, the user can select a store, search for a store, and remove psychological anxiety. The present invention can provide a shopping mall expression method and an apparatus using the same, which can help improve the electronic commerce environment.

[0044]

As described above, according to the embodiment of the present invention, the display mode is changed according to the information on the number of customers visiting the store (the number of accesses and the frequency of access) or the sales information of the store. By doing so, you can see the popularity of the stores displayed in the mall and the actual scale of the stores, and determine the trends of other customers, whether the store is popular, the approximate size and success of the store Thus, it is possible to realize a method of expressing a shopping mall and a device using the method, which have a remarkable advantage that the user can intuitively understand the atmosphere of a store in the shopping mall using a network. Such information can help the user to select a store, search for a store, and obtain psychological security, and can easily use the shopping mall via the network, Therefore, it is possible to realize a shopping mall expression method and a device using the same, which have a remarkable advantage of contributing to improving an electronic commerce environment.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a hardware configuration diagram of the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a processing flow.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of an expression mode.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of an expression mode.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of an expression mode.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of an expression mode.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Display device, 2 ... Speaker, 3 ... Internet browser window, 4 ... Store information display window
5: shopping mall display area, 6: store information display area, 7: store, 8: processor, 9: communication device, 10: storage device, 11: store information storage area, 12: processing program storage area, 13 ...
Work area, 14 input device, 16 network
17: Shopping mall providing server, 4
0, 41, 42, 43, 44... Icons representing persons.

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Tamunori Tomita 1099 Ozenji Temple, Aso-ku, Kawasaki City, Kanagawa Prefecture Inside the Hitachi, Ltd.System Development Laboratory (72) Inventor Hirokazu Aoshima 1099 Address Ozenji Temple, Aso-ku, Kawasaki City, Kanagawa Prefecture Hitachi Systems Development Laboratory

Claims (14)

[Claims] 1. A computer system comprising a display device capable of expressing a store, and a storage device for storing the sales of the store, the number of accesses to the store, and the frequency of access to the store. A method for expressing a shopping mall, wherein an expression mode related to display of a store is changed according to the number of accesses or the frequency of access to the store. 2. A method for expressing a shopping mall according to claim 1, wherein in addition to said computer system, said computer system further comprises a communication device connected to a network, wherein information relating to store sales is obtained via said network. A shopping mall expression method characterized by the following. 3. A method for expressing a shopping mall according to claim 1, wherein the computer system further comprises an input device capable of receiving an input from a user in addition to the computer system. A method for expressing a shopping mall, characterized by changing a mode of expression of a store. 4. The method for expressing a shopping mall according to claim 1, further comprising a communication device connected to a network, and an input device capable of receiving an input from a user, in addition to the computer system. 3. A method for expressing a shopping mall, wherein an order is made to a designated store. 5. The method for expressing a shopping mall according to claim 1, wherein the expression mode of the store includes an expression area, a display position, an expression color, blinking, a frame, addition of an icon, and presentation of detailed information on the display device. , Graphing, deletion of unnecessary information, conversion to photographic image, virtual CG expression, change of viewpoint to express, change of focus to express, jump to another node on the network. A method of expressing a shopping mall, characterized by the fact that there is a certain. 6. A method for expressing a shopping mall according to claim 1, wherein in addition to said computer system, said computer system further comprises an output device capable of outputting sound or voice. An expression method for a shopping mall, wherein an expression mode relating to a sound of a shop is changed according to the number of times. 7. A method for expressing a shopping mall according to claim 6, wherein the expression relating to the sound of the shop includes a noise of people, a noise of a town, a sound effect, a buzzer sound, a chime, and BG.
A method for expressing a shopping mall, characterized by being at least one of M, sales call, product description voice, volume, timbre, voice quality, and sound output position. 8. A computer system comprising a display device capable of expressing a store, and a storage device for storing the sales of the store, the number of accesses to the store, and the frequency of access to the store. An information processing apparatus for a shopping mall, wherein an expression mode related to display of a store is changed according to the number of accesses or the frequency of access to the store. 9. The information processing apparatus for a shopping mall according to claim 8, wherein in addition to said computer system, said computer system further comprises a communication device connected to a network, wherein information relating to store sales is obtained via said network. An information processing device for a shopping mall. 10. An information processing apparatus for a shopping mall according to claim 8, further comprising an input device capable of accepting an input from a user in addition to said computer system, wherein said computer system further comprises: An information processing apparatus for a shopping mall, characterized by changing an expression mode of a store. 11. The information processing apparatus for a shopping mall according to claim 8, further comprising a communication device connected to a network, and an input device capable of receiving an input from a user, in addition to said computer system. An information processing device for a shopping mall, wherein the system places an order for a designated store. 12. The information processing apparatus of a shopping mall according to claim 8, wherein the expression mode of the store includes an expression area, a display position, an expression color, a blink, a frame, and the like on the display device.
Adding icons, presenting detailed information, graphing, deleting unnecessary information, converting to photographic images, virtual CG expression, changing the viewpoint to express, changing the focus to express, jumping to another node on the network, An information processing apparatus for a shopping mall, wherein at least one of the information processing apparatuses is provided. 13. An information processing apparatus for a shopping mall according to claim 8, further comprising an output device capable of outputting sound or voice in addition to said computer system. An information processing apparatus for a shopping mall, wherein an expression mode related to a sound of a shop is changed according to the number of accesses. 14. The information processing apparatus for a shopping mall according to claim 13, wherein the expression mode relating to the sound of the shop is:
Noise of people, noise of town, sound effect, buzzer sound, chime, BGM, call of salesman, product description voice, volume,
An information processing apparatus for a shopping mall, wherein the information processing apparatus is at least one of voice, voice quality, and sound output position.