System for assisting consideration of selection

• US 20030070180A1
• Filed: 07/23/2002
• Published: 04/10/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 09/28/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toshio Katayama, Tsukasa Makita
• Original Assignee: Toshio Katayama, Tsukasa Makita
• Inventors: Katayama, Toshio, Makita, Tsukasa
• Granted Patent: US 7,974,872 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/133
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/30 of unstructured textual data document management systems G06F16/93
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0201 Market modelling; Market analysis; Collecting market data
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0631 Item recommendations

Abstract

A system (and method) assists consideration of selection that recommends selection candidates to a considerer who is considering selection in a certain field in order to assist determination of selection of a considerer with which the considerer is satisfied. At least one question concerning a field of consideration is sent to a considerer one after another and answer data is received from the considerer by a question-and-answer transmitting and receiving portion. A degree-of-significance representing how much significance the considerer attaches to each evaluation item in the field of consideration is estimated from the answer data by a degree-of-significance estimating portion. A degree-of-recommendation representing to which degree each selection candidate can be recommended to the considerer is calculated by a degree-of-recommendation calculating portion from evaluation data for each evaluation item with respect to each piece of selection candidate data in the field of consideration and the degree-of-significance of the considerer with respect to each evaluation item estimated by the degree-of-significance estimating unit. Then, degrees of recommendation of all pieces of selection candidate data in the field of consideration are presented to the considerer without change or after processing the data.

Claims

1. A system for assisting consideration of selection that asks a considerer, who is considering at least one selection out of selection candidates in at least one field, questions concerning a field of consideration and assists decision making of the considerer by using answers to questions using a calculating unit having a storage device in which electronic data is storable,

said storage device having stored therein at least one piece of selection candidate data in the field of consideration, at least one evaluation item data, evaluation data for each evaluation item with respect to each piece of said selection candidate data, and at least one question data concerning the field of consideration, said system comprising:

a receiving unit for receiving at least one piece of answer data of the considerer in response to said at least one question concerning the field of consideration;

a degree-of-significance estimating unit for estimating a degree-of-significance that the considerer attaches to each evaluation item in the field of consideration from said answer data; and

a degree-of-recommendation calculating unit for calculating a degree-of-recommendation representing to which degree each selection candidate is recommended to the considerer from evaluation data for each evaluation item with respect to each piece of selection candidate data in the field of consideration stored in said storage device, and a degree-of-significance of the considerer with respect to each evaluation item estimated by said degree-of-significance estimating unit.

2. The system for assisting consideration of selection according to claim 1, further comprising:

a presenting unit for presenting a degree-of-recommendation of all pieces of selection candidate data in said field of consideration and/or a result of comparison of the selection candidate data without change or after processing including one of specifying and ranking thereof according to the degree-of-recommendation.

3. The system for assisting consideration of selection according to claim 1,

wherein a degree-of-significance calculating function for calculating a degree-of-significance for each evaluation item from answer data of a considerer received by said receiving unit is stored in said storage device.

4. The system for assisting consideration of selection according to claim 1,

wherein a degree-of-recommendation calculating function for calculating a degree-of-recommendation of each selection candidate from evaluation data and a degree-of-significance for each evaluation item with respect to each selection candidate data is stored in said storage device.

5. The system for assisting consideration of selection according to claim 1, further comprising:

a retrial processing unit for, if the considerer is dissatisfied with a degree-of-recommendation of selection candidates calculated by said degree-of-recommendation calculating unit and/or a result of a comparison thereof specifying causes of dissatisfaction, extracting questions due to the causes, receiving re-answer data for questions, and recalculating a degree-of-significance and a degree-of-recommendation based on said re-answer data.

6. The system for assisting consideration of selection according to claim 1,

wherein said degree-of-significance estimating unit and said degree-of-recommendation calculating unit, respectively, calculate a degree-of-significance for each evaluation item and a degree-of-recommendation for each selection candidate each time answer data in response to each question is received by said receiving unit, and

wherein degrees of recommendation of all pieces of selection candidate data in a field of consideration are presented without change and/or after processing them each time answer data in response to each question is received by said receiving unit.

7. The system for assisting consideration of selection according to claim 1,

wherein said receiving unit includes a main question determining unit for receiving answer data in response to first at least one question of a considerer, thereby determining whether to select a question suitable to the considerer as a subsequent question out of the at least one question stored in said storage device and to receive answer data of the considerer in response to the question, or not to receive answer data from the considerer without selecting a subsequent question.

8. The system for assisting consideration of selection according to claim 1,

wherein said degree-of-recommendation calculating unit calculates a degree-of-recommendation for each combination of a plurality of pieces of selection candidate data in one of a single field and a plurality of fields.

9. The system for assisting consideration of selection according to claim 1,

wherein, if a plurality of considerers are performing consideration of selection of identical contents in a single or a plurality of fields, said degree-of-recommendation calculating unit calculates a degree-of-recommendation of all selection candidates for all of the considerers based on respective answers of each considerer.

10. The system for assisting consideration of selection according to claim 1,

wherein a server provided with at least one of said storage device, receiving unit, degree-of-significance estimating unit and degree-of-recommendation calculating unit is connected with a terminal of said considerer by a communication line and wherein the considerer accesses the server, whereby a degree-of-recommendation of said all pieces of selection candidate data are presented to the considerer without change and/or alter processing.

11. The system for assisting consideration of selection according to claim 1, further comprising:

a medium for saving or storing answer data of a considerer in a reusable form.

12. A method of assisting consideration of selection that asks a considerer, who is considering at least one selection out of selection candidates in at least one field, questions concerning a field of consideration and assists decision making of the considerer by using answers to questions, comprising:

storing electronic data including at least one piece of selection candidate data in the field of consideration, at least one evaluation item data, evaluation data for each evaluation item with respect to each piece of said selection candidate data, and at least one question data concerning the field of consideration;

receiving at least one piece of answer data of the considerer in response to said at least one question concerning the field of consideration;

estimating a degree-of-significance that the considerer attaches to each evaluation item in the field of consideration from said answer data; and

calculating a degree-of-recommendation representing to which degree each selection candidate is recommended to the considerer from evaluation data for each evaluation item with respect to each piece of selection candidate data in the field of consideration stored, and a degree-of-significance of the considerer with respect to each evaluation item estimated by said degree-of-significance estimating.

13. The method of assisting consideration of selection according to claim 12, further comprising:

if the considerer is dissatisfied with the calculated degree-of-recommendation of selection candidates and/or a result of a comparison thereof, specifying causes of dissatisfaction, extracting questions due to the causes, receiving re-answer data for questions, and recalculating a degree-of-significance and a degree-of-recommendation based on said re-answer data.

14. The method of assisting consideration of selection according to claim 12, wherein said estimating a degree-of-significance for each evaluation item and calculating a degree-of-recommendation for each selection candidate are performed each time answer data in response to each question is received, further comprising:

presenting degrees of recommendation of all pieces of selection candidate data in a field of consideration without change and/or after processing them each time answer data in response to each question is received.

15. The method of assisting consideration of selection according to claim 12, wherein said receiving includes receiving answer data in response to first at least one question of a considerer, further comprising:

determining whether to select a question suitable to the considerer as a subsequent question out of the at least one question stored and to receive answer data of the considerer in response to the question, or not to receive answer data from the considerer without selecting a subsequent question.

16. A program for assisting consideration of selection for causing a calculating unit that, in order to ask a considerer, who is considering at least one selection out of selection candidates in at least one field, questions concerning a field of consideration and assist decision making of the considerer by using answers to the questions, includes a storage device having stored therein at least one piece of selection candidate data in the field of consideration, at least one evaluation item data, evaluation data for each evaluation item with respect to each piece of selection candidate data and at least one question data concerning the field of consideration to function as:

a receiving unit for receiving at least one piece of answer data of the considerer in response to at least one question concerning the field of consideration;

a degree-of-significance estimating unit for estimating how much significance the considerer attaches to each evaluation item in the field of consideration from said answer data; and

a degree-of-recommendation calculating unit for calculating to which degree each selection candidate can be recommended to the considerer from evaluation data for each evaluation item with respect to each piece of selection candidate data in the field of consideration stored in said storage device and a degree-of-significance of the considerer with respect to each evaluation item estimated by said degree-of-significance estimating unit.

17. The program for assisting consideration of selection according to claim 16 for causing a calculating unit to further function as:

a retrial processing unit for, if the considerer is dissatisfied with a degree-of-recommendation of selection candidates calculated by said degree-of-recommendation calculating unit and/or a result of a comparison thereof, specifying causes of dissatisfaction, extracting questions due to the causes, receiving re-answer data for questions, and recalculating a degree-of-significance and a degree-of-recommendation based on said re-answer data.

18. The program for assisting consideration of selection according to claim 16,

wherein said degree-of-significance estimating unit and said degree-of-recommendation calculating unit, respectively, calculate a degree-of-significance for each evaluation item and a degree-of-recommendation for each selection candidate each time answer data in response to each question is received by said receiving unit, and

wherein degrees of recommendation of all pieces of selection candidate data in a field of consideration are presented without change and/or after processing them each time answer data in response to each question is received by said receiving unit.

19. The program for assisting consideration of selection according to claim 16,

wherein said receiving unit includes a main question determining unit for receiving answer data in response to first at least one question of a considerer, thereby determining whether to select a question suitable to the considerer as a subsequent question out of the at least one question stored in said storage device and to receive answer data of the considerer in response to the question, or not to receive answer data from the considerer without selecting a subsequent question.