Service supporting system, service supporting server and service supporting method

• US 8,249,914 B2
• Filed: 12/24/2003
• Issued: 08/21/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/27/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Umeda, Toshihiko
• Original Assignee: Umeda, Toshihiko
• Inventors: Umeda, Toshihiko
• Primary Examiner(s): KARDOS, NEIL R
• Application Number:
  US10/746,890
• Publication Number:
  US 20040143498A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,163 Days
• Field of Search: 705/10, 705/7.12, 705/7.32
• US Class Current: 705/7.32
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0207 Discounts or incentives, e.g. coupons or rebates
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0217 involving input on products or services in exchange for incentives or rewards

Abstract

A service supporting server that supports a service operation for a customer, and a terminal which can communicate with the service supporting server comprising a display part displaying a questionnaire; an inputting part for causing a customer to input for filling in the questionnaire; and a questionnaire transmission part transmitting the thus filled-in questionnaire to the service supporting server. The service supporting server comprises a filled-in questionnaire analysis part analyzing the received filled-in questionnaire.

Claims

1. A service supporting system comprising a service supporting server supporting a service operation for a customer, a reception terminal communicatable with said service supporting server and receiving terminals for receiving emergency responses, wherein said reception terminal comprises:

a part extracting biometric characteristics of the customer;

a display part displaying a questionnaire concerning the service operation with the questionnaire containing questions relative to basic items in connection with the service operation and items selected from a list of items comprising;

“

room clean”

;

“

bathroom clean”

;

“

lavatory clean”

;

“

lightings blown”

;

“

bed clean”

;

“

corridor clean” and

emergency response items having numbers associated therewith for contacting the proper receiving terminal associated with each of the listed items;

an inputting part causing the customer to input for the questionnaire;

a questionnaire transmission part transmitting the biometric characteristics and the input questionnaire result to said service supporting server with said service supporting server comprising a part searching a customer database for the received customer'"'"'s biometric characteristics;

a questionnaire analysis part analyzing the questionnaire result to determine if an equipment failure exists in one or more of the emergency response items in the questionnaire,

a determining part for further determining, without human interaction or participation, if the equipment failure requires an emergency response,

an emergency response processing part,

and a transmitting part for automatically transmitting a message from the determining part to the emergency response processing part when an equipment failure requiring an emergency response has been identified including contents of the failure

wherein the emergency response processing part has a selecting part for automatically selecting a number from the emergency response items for contacting the proper receiving terminal associated with the selected number in response to the identification of an emergency and a reading part for reading registered information to the proper receiving terminal associated with the failed equipment, such that;

when a failure in the bath occurs according to the questionnaire result, the emergency response processing part reads registered information related to the receiving terminal associated with the bath;

when a failure in the lavatory occurs according to the questionnaire result the emergency response part reads registered information related to the receiving terminal associated with the lavatory;

when a TV has a failure according to the questionnaire result, the emergency response processing part reads registered information related to the receiving terminal associated with electric appliances; and

when a bed has a failure according to the questionnaire result, the emergency response processing part reads registered information related to the receiving terminal associated with a bed and includes a reporting part for reporting to the receiving terminal associated with the equipment using the registered information read by the reading part, and for transmitting information of a failure in equipment to the proper terminal associated with the equipment experiencing the failure.

2. The service supporting system as claimed in claim 1, wherein said reception terminal further comprises:

a part detecting a medium being used by or on behalf of the customer in a hotel for detecting stored usage authentication electronic data of the customer;

a part detecting an intention of the customer to finish usage of the hotel; and

a usage account statement printed out for the customer.

3. A service supporting system comprising a service supporting server supporting a service operation for a customer, a reception terminal communicatable with said service supporting server and receiving terminals for receiving emergency responses, wherein said reception terminal comprises:

a part extracting biometric characteristics of the customer;

a part for inputting a biography which is information concerning the customer and declared by the customer; and

a part transmitting the biometric characteristics and the input biography to said service supporting server; and

a questionnaire to be filled in by the customer, containing questions relative to basic items in connection with the service operation and items selected from a list of items comprising;

“

room clean”

;

“

bathroom clean”

;

“

lavatory clean”

;

“

lightings blown”

;

“

bed clean”

;

“

corridor clean” and

emergency response items having numbers associated therewith for contacting the proper receiving terminal associated with each of the listed items;

a part searching a customer database for the received customer'"'"'s biometric characteristics;

a questionnaire analysis part analyzing the questionnaire result to determine if an equipment failure exists in one or more of the emergency response items in the questionnaire,

a determining part for further determining, without human interaction or participation, if the equipment failure requires an emergency response,

an emergency response processing part, and

a transmitting part for automatically transmitting a message from the determining part to the emergency response processing part when an equipment failure requiring an emergency response has been identified including contents of the failure and

wherein the emergency response processing part has a selecting part for automatically selecting a number from the emergency response items for contacting the proper receiving terminal associated with the selected number in response to the identification of an emergency and a reading part for reading registered information to the proper receiving terminal associated with the failed equipment, such that;

when a failure in the bath occurs according to the questionnaire result, the emergency response processing part reads registered information related to the receiving terminal associated with the bath;

when a failure in the lavatory occurs according to the questionnaire result the emergency response part reads registered information related to the receiving terminal associated with the lavatory;

when a TV has a failure according to the questionnaire result, the emergency response processing part reads registered information related to the receiving terminal associated with; and

when a bed has a failure according to the questionnaire result, the emergency response processing part reads registered information related to the receiving terminal associated with a bed and includes a reporting part for reporting to the receiving terminal associated with the equipment using the registered information read by the reading part, and for transmitting information of a failure in equipment to the proper terminal associated with the equipment experiencing the failure.

4. The service supporting system as claimed in claim 3, comprising a part displaying or printing the customer'"'"'s biography.

5. The service supporting system as claimed in claim 4, comprising a part displaying or printing a service usage history of the customer.

6. The service supporting system as claimed in claim 4, wherein the customer'"'"'s biometric characteristics comprise at least one of a facial features, a fingerprint, an iris code, a voiceprint, a body height, a gait and a DNA code.

7. The service supporting system as claimed in claim 3, wherein said reception terminal further comprises:

a part detecting a medium being used by or on behalf of the customer in a hotel for detecting stored usage authentication electronic data of the customer;

a part detecting an intention of the customer to finish usage of the hotel; and

a usage account statement printed out for the customer.

8. A service supporting system comprising:

a reception terminal that communicates with a service supporting server that supports a service operation for a hotel customer, said reception terminal comprising;

a biometric extraction part that extracts at least one biometric characteristic of the hotel customer, wherein the at least one extracted biometric characteristic comprises at least one of a facial feature, a fingerprint, an iris code, a voiceprint, a body height, a gait, and a DNA code;

a customer identification recording part that records customer identification information on a medium lent to the hotel customer based on the at least one extracted biometric characteristic, wherein said medium comprises an RF-ID chip;

a hotel room recording part that records a hotel room number associated with the hotel customer on the medium lent to the hotel customer;

a medium detection part that detects the medium lent to the hotel customer and extracts the recorded customer identification information and the recorded hotel room number from the medium;

a questionnaire displaying part that displays a questionnaire to the hotel customer upon detection of the medium lent to the customer, wherein the questionnaire contains at least one question related to the following services and equipment;

bedroom cleanliness, bathroom cleanliness, lighting, television, and bed;

an inputting part that allows the customer to respond to the questionnaire; and

a questionnaire transmission part that transmits the customer responses, the extracted customer identification information, and the extracted hotel room number to said service supporting server;

a discount ticket printing part that prints a discount ticket for the hotel customer using the extracted customer identification information;

wherein said service supporting server comprises;

a customer response analysis part that analyzes the received customer responses to determine that a service or equipment failure exists, wherein the service or equipment failure comprises one of;

a bedroom cleanliness failure, a bathroom cleanliness failure, a lighting failure, a television failure, and a bed failure;

a message transmitting part that automatically transmits a message from the customer response analysis part to an operator terminal selection part when a service or equipment failure requiring an emergency response has been identified, wherein the message includes contents of the failure and the extracted hotel room number associated with the failure;

an operator terminal selection part that automatically selects an operator terminal from a plurality of operator terminals configured to receive emergency responses from the service supporting system, wherein the selected operator terminal is associated with the determined service or equipment failure based on whether the failure is a bedroom cleanliness failure, a bathroom cleanliness failure, a lighting failure, a television failure, or a bed failure; and

a failure transmission part that transmits failure information and the room number associated with the failure to the selected operator terminal associated with the failed service or equipment.