Method and system for supervising and supporting customer services offered to a contracted dwelling house by a service provider using a communication network

• US 20020013723A1
• Filed: 05/23/2001
• Published: 01/31/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 07/25/2000
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Asahi Matsushita Electric Works Ltd. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Asahi Matsushita Electric Works Ltd. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Mise, Toshiro
• Application Number:
  US09/863,023
• Publication Number:
  US 20020013723A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/8
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/016 After-sales
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 99/00 Subject matter not provided for in other groups of this subclass
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2803 Home automation networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2818 from a device located outside both the home and the home network access arrangements H04L12/2856; for remote control or remote monitoring of applications H04L67/025; arrangements for transmitting signals characterised by the use of a wireless eletrical link G08C17/00; telephonic communication systems adapted for combination with remote control systems H04M11/007
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2825 Reporting to a device located outside the home and the home network access arrangements H04L12/2856; for remote control or remote monitoring of applications H04L67/025; telephonic communication systems adapted for combination with telemetering systems H04M11/002
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/18 Delegation of network management function, e.g. customer network management [CNM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/00 Arrangements for monitoring or testing data switching networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32

Abstract

A method and system for supervising and supporting various customer services offered to a contracted dwelling house over a communication network by a service provider, by a supervisory server equipped on the communication network, using a communication network, such as the Internet. According to which, the supervisory server judges access request from the communication server of the service provider to allow the communication server to access to the home information communication terminal unit when identifying its authentication, but to reject access to the home information communication terminal unit when not identifying its authentication, in which the contracted dwelling house receives various desired customer services through the home information communication terminal unit by executing service application program which is provided by the service provider and is installed into the home information communication terminal unit connected to an indoor network laid in the contracted dwelling house, and after allowing for access of the communication server of the service provider to the home information communication terminal unit, watching communication associated with the communication server unit and the home information communication terminal unit, to judge whether or not the customer service is normally offered to the contracted dwelling house.

Claims

1. A method for supervising and supporting customer service offered to a contracted dwelling house over a communication network by a service provider, by a supervisory server equipped on a communication net work, using the communication network,

said method comprising the steps of;

at said supervisory server,

receiving access request from a communication server of said service provider for a home information communication terminal unit equipped in said contracted dwelling house,

judging said access request from said communication server of said service provider to allow said communication server to access to said home information communication terminal unit when identifying its authentication, but to reject access to said home information communication terminal unit when not identifying its authentication, said contracted dwelling house being offered desired customer service through said home information communication terminal unit by executing service application program which is provided in advance by said service provider and is installed into said home information communication terminal unit connected to an indoor network laid in said contracted dwelling house, and

after allowing for access of said communication server of said service provider to said home information communication terminal unit, watching communication associated with said communication server unit and said home information communication terminal unit, to judge whether or not said customer service is normally offered to said contracted dwelling house.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said home information communication terminal unit equipped in said each contracted dwelling house is offered a specific customer service from said service provider, by logging in said communication server of said service provider or a specific communication service server equipped on said communication network to download into said terminal unit and execute an application program stored in either one of said servers.

3. A system for supervising and supporting customer service offered to a contracted dwelling house over a communication network by service provider, by a supervisory server equipped on the communication network, using a communication network, said system comprising;

a home information communication terminal unit connected to an indoor communication network laid in said each contracted dwelling house, for receiving desired service from said service provider by executing a service application program prepared in advance,

a service communication server equipped on said service provider side, for providing various customer services to said contracted dwelling house over said communication network, and

a supervisory server for judging allowance for access of said service communication server to said home information communication terminal unit when receiving access request from said service communication server, to allow said communication server to access to said home information communication terminal unit when identifying its authentication but to reject it when not identifying its authentication, said supervisory server watching communication associated with at least one of said communication server of said service provider and said home information communication terminal unit of said contracted dwelling house, thereby judging whether or not said customer service through said home information communication terminal unit is normally offered to said contracted dwelling house of which home information communication terminal unit is accessed by said communication server of said service provider.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein said home information communication terminal unit periodically monitors the operation and/or the movement of a living facility connected to said indoor network laid in said contracted dwelling house and automatically reports to said supervisory server in case of abnormality.

5. The system of claim 3, wherein said home information communication terminal unit has a temporary memory in which related data on customer service provided by said service provider and information data for setting the environment of said home information communication terminal unit are stored, and wherein said home information communication terminal unit sends out data stored in said temporary memory as backup data to said supervisory server every predetermined period.

6. The system of claim 3, wherein said supervisory server aggregates and records service charges for said each contracted dwelling house, when said contracted dwelling house receives customer service from said service provider through said home information communication terminal unit.

7. The system of claim 3, wherein said home information communication terminal unit executes a normal mode to watch the operation and/or the movement of a living facility connected to said indoor network laid in each contracted dwelling house and interrupts said normal mode to execute an emergency mode for executing necessary emergency operation when receiving an emergency direction from said supervisory server, while said supervisory server sets said home information communication terminal unit equipped in all the dwelling houses in a specific area in said emergency mode to perform necessary remote control.

8. The system of one of claim 3 to 7, wherein said home information communication terminal unit equipped in said each contracted dwelling house is offered a customer service from said service provider, by logging in said communication server of said service provider or a specific communication service server equipped on said communication network to download into said terminal unit and execute an application program stored in either one of said servers.

9. The system of one of claim 3 to 7, wherein said supervisory server allows said home information communication terminal unit to download said service application program on behalf of said service provider in order for contracted dwelling house to receive customer service from said service provider.