Information distribution apparatus and method

• US 10,136,249 B2
• Filed: 07/24/2015
• Issued: 11/20/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 07/24/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Ikemoto, Yu, Utsumi, Masato, Watanabe, Tohru, Okamoto, Yoshihisa, Ogawa, Kengo
• Primary Examiner(s): Mitchell, Nathan
• Application Number:
  US15/513,054
• Publication Number:
  US 20170303079A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,215 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0251 Targeted advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0261 based on user location
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/06 Selective distribution of broadcast services, e.g. multimedia broadcast multicast service [MBMS]; Services to user groups; One-way selective calling services

Abstract

Proposed are an information distribution apparatus and method capable of efficiently distributing information. Clustering processing of collecting time series position data, which is configured from position information of a plurality of mobile communication objects, and classifying the time series position data into a plurality of clusters based on the collected time series position data of each of the mobile communication objects is executed, profiling processing of determining, for each of the clusters, a dominant attribute of each user in which the time series position data was allocated to the relevant cluster based on pre-registered attribute information of each of the users of each of the mobile communication objects is executed, and, for each of the clusters, information to be distributed to each of the users in which the time series position data was allocated to the relevant cluster is determined based on a processing result of the profiling processing.

Claims

1. An information distribution apparatus which distributes information to a plurality of mobile communication objects, comprising:

an input/output device;

a storage device comprising at least a clustering processing program, a profiling processing program, an information distribution event determination/execution program; and

a central processing unit which executes;

the clustering processing program, stored in a clustering processing unit, by collecting time series position data, which is time series position information of each of the mobile communication objects, transforms the time series position data collected from each of the mobile communication objects into frequency data of a frequency domain, generates a feature value based on the corresponding frequency data for each of the time series position data, and classifies each of the time series position data into a plurality of the clusters based on the generated feature value of each of the time series position data;

the profiling processing program stored in a profiling processing unit, by determining, for each of the clusters, a dominant attribute of each user in which the time series position data was allocated to a relevant cluster based on pre-registered attribute information of each of the users of each of the mobile communication objects;

the information distribution event determination/execution program stored in an information distribution event determination/execution unit, by determining, for each of the clusters, information to be distributed to each of the users in which the time series position data was allocated to the relevant cluster based on a processing result of the profiling processing.

2. The information distribution apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein each of the mobile communication objects comprises:

a positioning device which measures its own position, and

wherein the central processing unit via the clustering processing unit;

collects, from each of the mobile communication objects, the time series position information measured by the positioning device of the mobile communication object as the time series position data.

3. The information distribution apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the central processing unit via the clustering processing unit:

transforms each of the target time series position data into complex number data in which a plurality of data values related to a coordinate system of the relevant time series position data are each allocated to a real part or an imaginary part, and transforms each of the complex number data into the frequency data, and thereby transforms each of the time series position data into the frequency data.

4. The information distribution apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the central processing unit via the clustering processing unit:

transforms each of the target time series position data into complex number data in which a first component of a plurality of data values related to a coordinate system of the relevant time series position data is a real part and a second component of a plurality of data values related to a coordinate system of the relevant time series position data is an imaginary part, and transforms each of the complex number data into the frequency data, and thereby transforms each of the time series position data into the frequency data.

5. The information distribution apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the position data is configured from latitude data representing a latitude and longitude data representing a longitude, and

wherein the central processing unit via the clustering processing unit:

transforms each of the target time series position data into complex number data in which the latitude data is a real part and the longitude data is an imaginary part, or the latitude data is an imaginary part and the longitude data is a real part, and transforms each of the complex number data into the frequency data, and thereby transforms each of the time series position data into the frequency data.

6. The information distribution apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the central processing unit via the clustering processing unit:

transforms frequency data of a centroid of each of the clusters into time series position information of a time domain, and

displays, for each of the clusters, a trajectory of the centroid based on the time series position information obtained from the transformation in a three-dimensional spatial coordinate having axes of latitude, longitude and time.

7. The information distribution apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the central processing unit via the profiling processing unit:

determines the dominant attribute of the user in which the time series position data is allocated to each of the clusters based on decision tree learning.

8. The information distribution apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

the central processing unit further comprised to execute a fourth program, stored in an information distribution event evaluation unit, which evaluates an effect of information distribution by the information distribution event determination/execution unit.

9. The information distribution apparatus according to claim 8,

wherein the central processing unit via the information distribution event evaluation unit:

causes the clustering processing unit to execute the clustering processing and causes the profiling processing unit to execute the profiling processing after the information is distributed, and

evaluates, for each of the clusters before the information is distributed, an effect of the information distribution based on a distance between centroids between the clusters having a same attribute among the clusters after the information is distributed.

10. The information distribution apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

the central processing unit further comprised to execute a fifth program, stored in a human flow control unit which;

estimates a number of visitors to a store or a number of pedestrians on a street on an hourly basis based on a processing result of the clustering processing and a processing result of the profiling processing, and

controls the number of visitors to the store or the number of pedestrians on the street by causing the information distribution event determination/execution unit to distribute the information as needed based on an estimation result.

11. The information distribution apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the central processing unit via the clustering processing unit:

transforms the frequency data upon interpolating a data unavailability period regarding each of the time series position data.

12. The information distribution apparatus according to claim 11,

wherein the central processing unit via the clustering processing unit:

performs linear interpolation to the data unavailability period that is short-term, and interpolates a value of the time series position data immediately after or immediately before the unavailability period regarding the data unavailability period that is long-term.

13. The information distribution apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the central processing unit via the clustering processing unit:

selects, as a coordinate axis of the time series position data, either an absolute coordinate axis in which the position information configuring time series position data is used as is, or a relative coordinate axis which is based on a default value of the position information configuring the time series position data, and when the relative coordinate axis is selected, transforms the coordinate axis into the relative coordinate axis, and then transforms each of the time series position data into the frequency data.

14. The information distribution apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the central processing unit via the clustering processing unit:

determines an optimal number of clusters based on a similarity in the cluster and a separability between the clusters, and classifies the time series position data into the clusters in a quantity of the determined number of clusters.

15. The information distribution apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the central processing unit via the information distribution event determination unit:

determines, for each of the clusters, based on attributes registered in advance, a plurality of pieces of information to be distributed to each of the users in which the time series position data is allocated to the relevant cluster, and distributes the information to each of the users.

16. The information distribution apparatus according to claim 15,

wherein the central processing unit via the information distribution event determination unit:

distributes, to each of the users, for each of the clusters, a representative moving route of each of the users in which the time series position data is allocated to the relevant cluster, and information related to a facility on the moving route.

17. An information distribution method to be executed in an information distribution apparatus which distributes information to a plurality of mobile communication objects, comprising:

executing clustering processing by;

collecting time series position data, which is time series position information measured by positioning devices of each of the mobile communication objects;

transforming the time series position data collected from each of the mobile communication objects into frequency data of a frequency domain, and

generating a feature value based on the corresponding frequency data for each of the time series position data;

classifying each of the time series position data into a plurality of the clusters based on the generated feature value of each of the time series position data;

executing profiling processing of determining, for each of the clusters, a dominant attribute of each user in which the time series position data was allocated to the relevant cluster based on pre-registered attribute information of each of the users of each of the mobile communication objects; and

determining, for each of the clusters, information to be distributed to each of the users in which the time series position data was allocated to the relevant cluster based on a processing result of the profiling processing.