Scheme for promoting purchases by reminding purchases through network according to user's location and state

• US 20020065693A1
• Filed: 07/16/2001
• Published: 05/30/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 07/17/2000
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Kase, Naoki, Hattori, Masanori
• Application Number:
  US09/904,497
• Publication Number:
  US 20020065693A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/7
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0269 based on user profile or attribute

Abstract

In a purchase promotion server system, electronic goods/services information indicating goods/services scheduled to be purchased or goods/services desired to be purchased is stored for each user, a user state of a user regarding whether the user is fit to purchasing of goods/services is judged according to state data including a location information of the user, and a message urging/reminding the user to purchase the goods/services scheduled to be purchased or the goods/services desired to be purchased indicated by the electronic goods/services information is sent to the user via a network according to the user state of the user.

Claims

1. A purchase promotion server system, comprising:

a user information database unit configured to store electronic goods/services information indicating goods/services scheduled to be purchased or goods/services desired to be purchased, for each user;

a user state judgement unit configured to judge a user state of a user regarding whether the user is fit to purchasing of goods/services, according to state data including a location information of the user; and

a user notification unit configured to send a message urging/reminding the user to purchase the goods/services scheduled to be purchased or the goods/services desired to be purchased indicated by the electronic goods/services information stored by the user information database unit, to the user via a network according to the user state of the user judged by the user state judgement unit.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the user state judgement unit judges the user state by using a located area information describing an area in which the user is currently located according to a current location of the user indicated by the location information.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the user state judgement unit uses the located area information describes facilities existing in the area in which the user is currently located.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the user state judgement unit judges that the user is fit to purchasing of the goods/services scheduled to be purchased or the goods/services desired to be purchased, when the user is located in an area with a facility at which at least one of the goods/services schedules to be purchased or the goods/services desired to be purchased can be purchased.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the user state judgement unit judges the user state according to the state data that also includes a time information indicating a current time.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the user state judgement unit judges the user state by using a schedule information describing scheduled activities of the user according to the current time indicated by the time information.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the user state judgement unit judges that the user is fit to purchasing of goods/services when the current time is not in a working time zone of the user according to the schedule information.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the user notification unit recognizes an information communication terminal currently used by the user, and sends the message in a format suitable to the information communication terminal.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the user notification unit sends the message in a form of an e-mail destined to a portable information communication terminal carried around by the user.

10. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a user information providing unit configured to provide contents including the electronic goods/services information, in a form accessible by the user via the network.

11. The system of claim 10, further comprising:

a contents production unit configured to produce the contents to be provided by the user information providing unit, according to the user state of the user judged by the user state judgement unit.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the contents production unit produces the contents by collecting related information relevant to a current location of the user indicated by the location information.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the contents production unit produces the contents including the related information which is an advertisement/recommendation of a shop existing in an area in which the user is currently located.

14. The system of claim 10, wherein the user information providing unit provides the contents that also include at least one of:

(1) an out-of-stock goods information based on a stock management of a refrigerator of the user;

(2) an out-of-stock goods information based on a cooking recipe executed by a microwave oven of the user; and

(3) a new product information based on a preference information of the user extracted from a past purchase log.

15. The system of claim 10, wherein the user notification unit sends the message that is linked to the contents provided by the user information providing unit.

16. The system of claim 1, wherein the user notification unit sends the message that also contains the electronic goods/services information.

17. The system of claim 1, wherein operations of the user information database unit, the user state judgement unit, and the user notification unit are provided in a form of an agent service to be provided to each user individually.

18. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a user information management unit configured to manage the electronic goods/services information and a purchase log of the user by obtaining a purchase record information indicating goods/services actually purchased by the user from a POS system of each shop used by the user and updating at least one of the electronic goods/services information and the purchase log of the user.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein the user information management unit manages the electronic goods/services information that is shared by a plurality of users.

20. A purchase promotion method, comprising:

storing electronic goods/services information indicating goods/services scheduled to be purchased or goods/services desired to be purchased, for each user;

judging a user state of a user regarding whether the user is fit to purchasing of goods/services, according to state data including a location information of the user; and

sending a message urging/reminding the user to purchase the goods/services scheduled to be purchased or the goods/services desired to be purchased indicated by the electronic goods/services information stored by the storing step, to the user via a network according to the user state of the user judged by the judging step.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the judging step judges the user state by using a located area information describing an area in which the user is currently located according to a current location of the user indicated by the location information.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the judging step uses the located area information that describes facilities existing in the area in which the user is currently located.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the judging step judges that the user is fit to purchasing of the goods/services scheduled to be purchased or the goods/services desired to be purchased, when the user is located in an area with a facility at which at least one of the goods/services schedules to be purchased or the goods/services desired to be purchased can be purchased.

24. The method of claim 20, wherein the judging step judges the user state according to the state data that also includes a time information indicating a current time.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein the judging step judges the user state by using a schedule information describing scheduled activities of the user according to the current time indicated by the time information.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein the judging step judges that the user is fit to purchasing of goods/services when the current time is not in a working time zone of the user according to the schedule information.

27. The method of claim 20, wherein the sending step recognizes an information communication terminal currently used by the user, and sends the message in a format suitable to the information communication terminal.

28. The method of claim 20, wherein the sending step sends the message in a form of an e-mail destined to a portable information communication terminal carried around by the user.

29. The method of claim 20, further comprising:

providing contents including the electronic goods/services information, in a form accessible by the user via the network.

30. The method of claim 29, further comprising:

producing the contents to be provided by the providing step, according to the user state of the user judged by the judging step.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein the producing step produces the contents by collecting related information relevant to a current location of the user indicated by the location information.

32. The method of claim 31, wherein the producing step produces the contents including the related information which is an advertisement/recommendation of a shop existing in an area in which the user is currently located.

33. The method of claim 29, wherein the providing step provides the contents that also include at least one of:

(1) an out-of-stock goods information based on a stock management of a refrigerator of the user;

(2) an out-of-stock goods information based on a cooking recipe executed by a microwave oven of the user; and

(3) a new product information based on a preference information of the user extracted from a past purchase log.

34. The method of claim 29, wherein the sending step sends the message that is linked to the contents provided by the providing step.

35. The method of claim 20, wherein the sending step sends the message that also contains the electronic goods/services information.

36. The method of claim 20, wherein operations of the storing step, the judging step, and the sending step are provided in a form of an agent service to be provided to each user individually.

37. The method of claim 20, further comprising:

managing the electronic goods/services information and a purchase log of the user by obtaining a purchase record information indicating goods/services actually purchased by the user from a POS system of each shop used by the user and updating at least one of the electronic goods/services information and the purchase log of the user.

38. The method of claim 37, wherein the managing step manages the electronic goods/services information that is shared by a plurality of users.

39. A computer usable medium having computer readable program codes embodied therein for causing a computer to function as a purchase promotion server system, the computer readable program codes include:

a first computer readable program code for causing said computer to store electronic goods/services information indicating goods/services scheduled to be purchased or goods/services desired to be purchased, for each user;

a second computer readable program code for causing said computer to judge a user state of a user regarding whether the user is fit to purchasing of goods/services, according to state data including a location information of the user; and

a third computer readable program code for causing said computer to send a message urging/reminding the user to purchase the goods/services scheduled to be purchased or the goods/services desired to be purchased indicated by the electronic goods/services information stored by the user information database unit, to the user via a network according to the user state of the user judged by the user state judgement unit.

40. A method for providing advertisement service, comprising:

judging a user state of a user regarding whether the user is fit to purchasing of goods/services, according to state data including a location information of the user;

producing contents according to the user state of the user judged by the judging step, by collecting related information relevant to a current location of the user indicated by the location information, the related information being an advertisement/recommendation of a shop existing in an area in which the user is currently located; and

providing the contents produced by the producing step, in a form accessible by the user via the network.