Information management system using agent

• US 20030115254A1
• Filed: 09/23/2002
• Published: 06/19/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 09/29/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Suzuki, Satoshi
• Granted Patent: US 7,373,375 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/202
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4862 the task being a mobile agent, i.e. specifically designed to migrate
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling

Abstract

An agent employment system comprising at least one data terminal and at least one server computer. The data terminal is connected to a communications network and having a display device. The sever computer is connected to the data terminal by the communications network and having a community (67) for storing an agent (63). The server computer has agent-transmitting means for transmitting the agent (63) to the data terminal at a first timing. The data terminal has agent-receiving means for receiving the agent (63) transmitted from the server computer and second agent-transmitting means for transmitting the agent 63 back to the server computer at a second timing. Thus, the invention can provide a novel information management system, agent employment system, information management method, agent employment method, data-providing apparatus and data-recording medium, in which a user can easily obtain an electronic pet that acts as an agent satisfying desired conditions.

Claims

1. An information management system comprising:

at least one data terminal connected to a communications network and having a display device; and

a server computer connected to the data terminal by the communications network and having a region for storing an agent,

wherein the server computer has transmitting means for transmitting the agent to the data terminal of the user who uses the agent, together with first prescribed information, at a first timing upon receipt of a transmission command for transmitting the agent, and rewriting means for rewriting the first prescribed information to second prescribed information sent from the data terminal, and said data terminal has transmitting means for transmitting the agent to the server computer, together with the second prescribed information, at a second timing, upon receipt of the agent from the server computer.

2. The information management system according to claim 1, wherein the first prescribed information is managed by the user of the agent stored in the region of the server computer, and the second prescribed information is generated when the user of the agent updates the first prescribed information.

3. The information management system according to claim 1, wherein the user of the agent uses only one agent that accords with information to be managed.

4. The information management system according to claim 3, wherein the agent is transmitted to only one of a plurality of data terminals of the user of the agent, not to any other data terminal at the same time.

5. The information management system according to claim 1, wherein the agent has an independent network address.

6. The information management system according to claim 1, wherein the user of the agent updates the first prescribed information to the second prescribed information during a period between the first timing and the second timing.

7. The information management system according to claim 1, wherein the agent has a process program for performing at least one process selected from the group consisting of an image-processing process, translation process, a music-compressing process, a dictionary-retrieving process, a map-retrieving process, a game-processing process, an E-mailing process and a schedule-managing process.

8. The information management system according to claim 1, wherein the agent has an agent displaying program for displaying the agent as an electronic pet.

9. The information management system according to claim 8, wherein the agent displaying program changes image-processing parameters according to types of the data terminal, said data terminal configured to display the agent.

10. An agent employment system comprising:

a data terminal connected to a communications network; and

a server computer connected to the data terminal by the communications network and having a region for storing an agent,

wherein the server computer has first agent-transmitting means for transmitting the agent to the data terminal at a first timing, and said data terminal has agent-receiving means for receiving the agent transmitted from the server computer and second agent-transmitting means for transmitting the agent to the server computer at a second timing.

11. The agent employment system according to claim 10, wherein the agent is configured to execute a program for autonomously performing processes during a period between the first timing and the second timing, in accordance with information representing the taste of a user who uses the agent.

12. The agent employment system according to claim 10, wherein the server computer has measuring means for measuring time during a period between the first timing and the second timing, and charging means for charging a fee in accordance with the time measured by the measuring means.

13. The agent employment system according to claim 10, wherein the agent has a process program for performing at least one process selected from the group consisting of an image-processing process, translation process, a music-compressing process, a dictionary-retrieving process, a map-retrieving process, a game-processing process, an E-mailing process and a schedule-managing process.

14. The agent employment system according to claim 10, wherein the agent has an independent network address.

15. The agent employment system according to claim 10, wherein the agent has an agent displaying program for displaying the agent as an electronic pet.

16. The agent employment system according to claim 10, wherein the agent displaying program changes image-processing parameters according to types of the data terminal, said data terminal configured to display the agent.

17. An information management method comprising:

transmitting an agent to a data terminal, together with first prescribed information, upon receipt of a transmission command for transmitting the agent;

transmitting the agent from the data terminal to a server computer, together with second prescribed information, upon lapse of a prescribed time after the data terminal has received the agent; and

rewiring the first prescribed information to the second prescribed information in the server computer.

18. The information management method according to claim 17, wherein the agent has a process program for performing at least one process selected from the group consisting of an image-processing process, translation process, a music-compressing process, a dictionary-retrieving process, a map-retrieving process, a game-processing process, an E-mailing process and a schedule-managing process.

19. The information management method according to claim 17, wherein the agent has an agent displaying program for displaying the agent as an electronic pet.

20. The information management method according to claim 17, wherein the server computer measures time during a period between the first timing and the second timing, and charges a fee in accordance with the time measured by the measuring means.

21. An agent employment method comprising:

selecting an agent stored in a specific region of a computer;

transmitting the agent selected, to a data terminal at a first timing, together with first prescribed information; and

receiving the agent at second timing, together with second prescribed information.

22. The agent employment method according to claim 21, wherein the agent has a process program for performing at least one process selected from the group consisting of an image-processing process, translation process, a music-compressing process, a dictionary-retrieving process, a map-retrieving process, a game-processing process, an E-mailing process and a schedule-managing process.

23. The agent employment method according to claim 21, wherein the agent has an agent displaying program for displaying the agent as an electronic pet.

24. The agent employment method according to claim 21, wherein the server computer measures time during a period between the first timing and the second timing, and charges a fee in accordance with the time measured by the measuring means.

25. A server computer connected to a data terminal through a communications network and having a region for storing an agent, said sever computer comprising:

transmitting means for transmitting the agent to the data terminal, together with first prescribed information, at a first timing upon receipt of a transmission command for transmitting the agent;

receiving means for receiving the agent at a second timing, together with second prescribed information; and

rewriting means for rewriting the first prescribed information to second prescribed information.

26. The server computer according to claim 25, wherein the agent has an agent displaying program for displaying the agent as an electronic pet.

27. The server computer according to claim 25, wherein the agent displaying program causes changes image-processing parameters according to types of the data terminal, said data terminal configured to display the agent.

28. The server computer according to claim 25, wherein the agent is configured to execute a program for autonomously performing processes during a period between the first timing and the second timing, in accordance with information representing the taste of a user who uses the agent.

29. The server computer according to claim 25, wherein the agent has a process program for performing at least one process selected from the group consisting of an image-processing process, translation process, a music-compressing process, a dictionary-retrieving process, a map-retrieving process, a game-processing process, an E-mailing process and a schedule-managing process.

30. A data terminal connected to a communications network and having a display device, said data terminal comprising:

receiving means for receiving an agent from a server computer at a first timing, together with first prescribed information; and

transmitting means for transmitting the agent to the server computer at a second timing, together with second prescribed information.

31. The data terminal according to claim 30, wherein the agent has an agent displaying program for displaying the agent as an electronic pet.

32. The data terminal according to claim 30, wherein the displaying program changes image-processing parameters according to types of the data terminal, said data terminal configured to display the agent.

33. The data terminal according to claim 30, wherein the agent is configured to execute a program for autonomously performing processes during a period between the first timing and the second timing, in accordance with information representing the taste of a user who uses the agent.

34. The data terminal according to claim 30, wherein the agent has a process program for performing at least one process selected from the group consisting of an image-processing process, translation process, a music-compressing process, a dictionary-retrieving process, a map-retrieving process, a game-processing process, an E-mailing process and a schedule-managing process.

35. A data-recording medium storing a program comprising the steps of:

selecting an agent stored in a specific region of a computer;

transmitting the agent selected, to a data terminal at a first timing, together with first prescribed information;

receiving the agent at a second timing, together with second prescribed information; and

rewriting the first prescribed information to the second prescribed information.

38. The data-recording medium according to any one of claims 35 to 37, wherein the agent has a process program for performing at least one process selected from the group consisting of an image-processing process, translation process, a music-compressing process, a dictionary-retrieving process, a map-retrieving process, a game-processing process, an E-mailing process and a schedule-managing process.

39. The data-recording medium according to any one of claims 35 to 37, wherein the agent has an agent displaying program for displaying the agent as an electronic pet.

36. A data-recording medium storing a program comprising the steps of:

receiving an agent from a server computer at a first timing, together with first prescribed information; and

transmitting the agent to the server computer at a second timing, together with second prescribed information.

37. A data-storing medium storing a program comprising the steps of:

connecting a specific data terminal to a server computer; and

demanding that the server computer should transmit an agent having a network address, to the specific data terminal.