INFORMATION PROVISION SYSTEM, INFORMATION PROVISION METHOD, AND INFORMATION PROVISION PROGRAM

• US 20140351701A1
• Filed: 12/21/2012
• Published: 11/27/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 05/30/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rakuten Group, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Rakuten, Inc. (Rakuten Group, Inc.)
• Inventors: Tanimoto, Hisako, Tanjo, Hiroyuki, Mitsui, Eiko, Shibata, Mitsuru
• Granted Patent: US 9,396,003 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/708
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04895 Guidance during keyboard input operation, e.g. prompting
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/453 Help systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management

Abstract

An information providing system according to an embodiment includes an acquisition unit and a display control unit. The acquisition unit acquires a plurality of help topics corresponding to a plurality of entry fields to be displayed on a screen from a field/topic storage unit that stores help topics corresponding to entry fields. The display control unit displays the plurality of entry fields in an entry area in the screen displayed on a user terminal and displays the plurality of help topics acquired by the acquisition unit in a help area in the screen. When a field/topic displayed in one of the entry area and the help area is specified, the display control unit makes a display mode of a field/topic in the other area corresponding to the specified field/topic different from a display mode of the other fields/topics in the other area.

Claims

1. (canceled)

2. An information providing system comprising:

an acquisition unit configured to acquire a plurality of help topics corresponding to a plurality of entry fields to be displayed on a screen from a field/topic storage unit that stores help topics corresponding to entry fields; and

a display control unit configured to display the plurality of entry fields in an entry area in the screen displayed on a user terminal and display the plurality of help topics acquired by the acquisition unit in a help area in the screen, wherein

when a help topic in the help area is specified, the display control unit makes a display mode of an entry field in the entry area corresponding to the help topic different from a display mode of other entry fields.

3. An information providing system comprising:

an acquisition unit configured to acquire a plurality of help topics corresponding to a plurality of entry fields to be displayed on a screen from a field/topic storage unit that stores help topics corresponding to entry fields; and

a display control unit configured to display the plurality of entry fields in an entry area in the screen displayed on a user terminal and display the plurality of help topics acquired by the acquisition unit in a help area in the screen, wherein

when an entry field in the entry area is specified, the display control unit makes a display mode of a help topic in the help area corresponding to the entry field different from a display mode of other help topics, with the plurality of help topics remaining displayed to be able to be specified.

4. The information providing system according to claim 3, wherein

in response to completion of entry in one entry field, the display control unit further displays the next entry field in the entry area and specifies the next entry field, and makes a display mode of a help topic in the help area corresponding to the next entry field different from a display mode of other help topics.

5. The information providing system according to claim 3, wherein

when there is a field not entered among the plurality of entry fields, the display control unit specifies the field not entered and makes a display mode of a help topic in the help area corresponding to the field not entered different from a display mode of other help topics.

6. The information providing system according to claim 3, wherein

the display control unit displays detailed information for the help topic in the help area corresponding to the specified entry field and displays topic identification information without displaying detailed information for the other help topics.

7. The information providing system according to claim 3, wherein

when the specified entry field is not entered and detailed information of a help topic in the help area corresponding to the entry field is hidden by user operation, the display control unit specifies a first field not entered among fields not entered that come before the entry field and displays detailed information of a help topic in the help area corresponding to the first field not entered.

8. The information providing system according to claim 6, wherein

the help topics stored in the field/topic storage unit include a plurality of help information in accordance with an entered value in a previous entry field, and

the display control unit displays help information corresponding to an entered value in a previous entry field of the specified entry field.

9. The information providing system according to claim 6, wherein

the acquisition unit refers to an answer storage unit that stores entered values by a plurality of users in the plurality of entry fields and counts the entered values by the plurality of users for each of the entry fields, and sets a counting result as at least part of the help topics, and

the display control unit displays the counting result corresponding to the specified entry field as the detailed information.

10. The information providing system according to claim 3, wherein

when a help topic in the help area is specified, the display control unit makes a display mode of an entry field in the entry area corresponding to the help topic different from a display mode of other entry fields.

11. (canceled)

12. An information providing method executed by an information providing system, comprising:

an acquisition step of acquiring a plurality of help topics corresponding to a plurality of entry fields to be displayed on a screen from a field/topic storage unit that stores help topics corresponding to entry fields; and

a display control step of displaying the plurality of entry fields in an entry area in the screen displayed on a user terminal and displaying the plurality of help topics acquired in the acquisition step in a help area in the screen, wherein

when a help topic in the help area is specified, the display control step makes a display mode of an entry field in the entry area corresponding to the help topic different from a display mode of other entry fields.

13. (canceled)

14. (canceled)

15. An information providing method executed by an information providing system, comprising:

an acquisition step of acquiring a plurality of help topics corresponding to a plurality of entry fields to be displayed on a screen from a field/topic storage unit that stores help topics corresponding to entry fields; and

a display control step of displaying the plurality of entry fields in an entry area in the screen displayed on a user terminal and displaying the plurality of help topics acquired in the acquisition step in a help area in the screen, wherein

when an entry field in the entry area is specified, the display control step makes a display mode of a help topic in the help area corresponding to the entry field different from a display mode of other help topics, with the plurality of help topics remaining displayed to be able to be specified.

16. (canceled)