FORM 2
THE PATENTS ACT, 1970
(39 of 1970)
&
THE PATENTS RULES, 2003
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION
[See section 10, Rule 13]
MAINTENANCE RESERVATION SYSTEM, MAINTENANCE RESERVATION
SERVER, MAINTENANCE RESERVATION METHOD, AND PROGRAM
MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC CORPORATION A CORPORATION ORGANISED AND
EXISTING UNDER THE LAWS OF JAPAN, WHOSE ADDRESS IS 7-3,
MARUNOUCHI 2-CHOME, CHIYODA-KU, TOKYO 1008310, JAPAN
THE FOLLOWING SPECIFICATION PARTICULARLY DESCRIBES THE
INVENTION AND THE MANNER IN WHICH IT IS TO BE PERFORMED.
2
[DESCRIPTION]
[Technical Field]
[0001]
The present disclosure relates to a maintenance reservation system, a maintenance
5 reservation server, a maintenance reservation method, and a program.
[Background Art]
[0002]
Conventionally, for example, various types of services are provided for the
maintenance of air conditioners. For example, when an air conditioner used by a user has
10 failed, the user requests a manufacturer to perform maintenance, and the manufacturer or
a maintenance contractor other than the manufacturer provides a maintenance service such
as repairing the air conditioner. Examples of contractors that provide maintenance
services include authorized shops of manufacturers and contractors other than the
manufacturers, and the number of contractors is increasing. Therefore, technology for
15 enabling a user to send a maintenance service request to a maintenance contractor has been
proposed.
[0003]
For example, in a maintenance service system described in Patent Document 1,
when a user terminal accesses a maintenance reception center, a maintenance reception
20 center terminal transmits a failure information table and a maintenance worker
management table to the user terminal. The user terminal decides on failure information
and a name of a maintenance worker and transmits the failure information and the name
of the maintenance worker to the maintenance reception center terminal. Thereby, the
maintenance worker can cope with a failure.
25
3
[0004]
For example, in a facility maintenance work support method described in Patent
Document 2, a customer transmits to a server, content of a maintenance service for a
facility desired by the customer and facility information. The server analyzes the content
5 of the maintenance service and the facility information to determine whether a condition
for performing maintenance is satisfied, and performs the selection of a maintenance
worker and the like.
[Prior Art Documents]
[Patent Document]
10 [0005]
[Patent Document 1] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application, First Publication
No. 2002-149863
[Patent Document 2] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application, First Publication
No. 2003-150732
15 [Summary of the Invention]
[Problems to be Solved by the Invention]
[0006]
In the technologies described in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2
described above, information such as failure information, a name of a maintenance worker,
20 content of a maintenance service, and facility information is transmitted from a user
terminal. However, a process of designating user-desired content in detail and selecting
a maintenance contractor according to a designated desire is not performed. Moreover,
it is desirable that the maintenance contractor has a mechanism for acquiring repeat
customers by providing a service that is a specialty of the maintenance contractor.
25 [0007]
4
The present disclosure has been made to solve the above-described problems and
an objective of the present disclosure is to provide a maintenance reservation system, a
maintenance reservation server, and a maintenance reservation method for enabling a
maintenance contractor to be selected according to a user’s desire. Moreover, an
5 objective of the present disclosure is to provide a maintenance reservation system, a
maintenance reservation server, a maintenance reservation method, and a program for
enabling repeat customers to be acquired by providing a service that is a specialty of a
maintenance contractor.
[Means for Solving the Problems]
10 [0008]
A maintenance reservation system according to a first aspect includes: an
equipment information acquisition unit configured to acquire equipment information
including information about equipment; a maintenance contractor information acquisition
unit configured to acquire maintenance contractor information including information about
15 maintenance contractors who provide maintenance services on the basis of information
transmitted from maintenance contractor terminals; a reservation information acquisition
unit configured to acquire reservation information including desired conditions for the
maintenance services on the basis of information transmitted from a user terminal; a
processing unit configured to select maintenance contractor candidates on the basis of the
20 equipment information and the maintenance contractor information, and narrow down the
candidates on the basis of the desired conditions and the maintenance contractor
information corresponding to the maintenance contractors included in the candidates; and
a notification unit configured to notify the user terminal of the candidates narrowed down
by the processing unit.
25 [0009]
5
A maintenance reservation method according to a second aspect includes steps of:
acquiring equipment information including information about equipment; acquiring
maintenance contractor information including information about maintenance contractors
who provide maintenance services on the basis of information transmitted from
5 maintenance contractor terminals; acquiring reservation information including desired
conditions for the maintenance services on the basis of information transmitted from a user
terminal; selecting maintenance contractor candidates on the basis of the equipment
information and the maintenance contractor information; narrowing down the candidates
on the basis of the desired conditions and the maintenance contractor information
10 corresponding to the maintenance contractors included in the candidates; and notifying the
user terminal of the candidates.
[0010]
A maintenance reservation server according to a third aspect includes: an
acquisition unit configured to acquire information about maintenance contractors who
15 provide maintenance services on the basis of information transmitted from maintenance
contractor terminals and reservation information including desired conditions related to
work other than maintenance of equipment on the basis of information transmitted from a
user terminal; a processing unit configured to narrow down maintenance contractor
candidates selected on the basis of equipment information including information about the
20 equipment and first available work of the maintenance contractor related to maintenance
work for the equipment, on the basis of the desired conditions and second available work
of the maintenance contractor related to work other than the maintenance of the equipment;
and a notification unit configured to notify the user terminal of the candidates narrowed
down by the processing unit.
25
6
[0011]
A maintenance reservation method according to a fourth aspect includes steps of:
acquiring information about maintenance contractors who provide maintenance services
on the basis of information transmitted from maintenance contractor terminals and
5 reservation information including desired conditions related to work other than
maintenance of equipment on the basis of information transmitted from a user terminal;
narrowing down maintenance contractor candidates selected on the basis of equipment
information including information about the equipment and first available work of the
maintenance contractor related to maintenance work for the equipment, on the basis of the
10 desired conditions and second available work of the maintenance contractor related to work
other than the maintenance of the equipment; and notifying the user terminal of the
candidates.
[0012]
A program according to a fifth aspect causes a computer to execute steps of:
15 acquiring information about maintenance contractors who provide maintenance services
on the basis of information transmitted from maintenance contractor terminals and
reservation information including desired conditions related to work other than
maintenance of equipment on the basis of information transmitted from a user terminal;
narrowing down maintenance contractor candidates selected on the basis of equipment
20 information including information about the equipment and first available work of the
maintenance contractor related to maintenance work for the equipment, on the basis of the
desired conditions and second available work of the maintenance contractor related to work
other than the maintenance of the equipment; and notifying the user terminal of the
candidates.
25
7
[Effects of the Invention]
[0013]
According to the present disclosure, a maintenance contractor can be selected
according to a user’s desire. Moreover, according to the present disclosure, it is possible
5 to acquire repeat customers by providing a service that is a specialty of a maintenance
contractor.
[Brief Description of the Drawings]
[0014]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of a maintenance reservation
10 system according to a first embodiment.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the maintenance reservation
system in the first embodiment.
FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a screen to which maintenance
contractor information is input by a maintenance contractor.
15 FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a screen for inputting maintenance
worker information.
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of error information.
FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of sensor data.
FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of a screen for inputting reservation
20 information.
FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of an operation procedure according to
the first embodiment.
FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing an example of a maintenance reservation
system according to a second embodiment.
25 FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a screen for inputting reservation
8
information in a third embodiment.
[Mode for Carrying Out the Invention]
[0015]
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with
5 reference to the drawings. In addition, the scope of the present disclosure is not limited
to the following embodiments, and any modification is possible within the scope of the
technical idea of the present disclosure. Moreover, in the following drawings, in order to
make each configuration easier to understand, the scale and number and the like in each
structure may be different from the scale and number and the like in the actual structure.
10 [0016]
(Configuration of Maintenance Reservation System)
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of a maintenance reservation
system according to a first embodiment. The maintenance reservation system includes,
for example, one or more air conditioners 100, an equipment management server 200, one
15 or more user terminals 300, a plurality of maintenance contractor terminals 400, a
maintenance contractor server 500, and a maintenance reservation server 600. The air
conditioner 100 is connected to a network NW such as the Internet via communication
equipment such as a router. The communication equipment may be, for example,
communication equipment retrofitted to the air conditioner 100 such as an access point
20 installed in a house. The equipment management server 200, the user terminal 300, the
maintenance contractor terminal 400, the maintenance contractor server 500, and the
maintenance reservation server 600 have a communication interface (not shown) such as a
network interface card (NIC) and a wireless communication module for connecting to the
network NW. In addition, in the following description, a user of the air conditioner 100
25 is referred to as a “user,” a company who provides a service such as maintenance of the air
9
conditioner 100 as a business is referred to as a “maintenance contractor,” and a person
who actually performs maintenance work is also referred to as a “maintenance worker.”
[0017]
In addition, although the equipment management server 200, the maintenance
5 contractor server 500, and the maintenance reservation server 600 are provided as servers
in the embodiment, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. Functions of the
equipment management server 200, the maintenance contractor server 500, and the
maintenance reservation server 600 may be integrated into one server. Functions of the
equipment management server 200, the maintenance contractor server 500, and the
10 maintenance reservation server 600 may be distributed in a form different from the
embodiment. Some functions of the equipment management server 200, the maintenance
contractor server 500, and the maintenance reservation server 600 may be provided in the
user terminal 300 or the maintenance contractor terminal 400.
[0018]
15 The air conditioner 100 is an example of equipment serving as a maintenance
target. The air conditioner 100 includes, for example, an outdoor unit and an indoor unit
connected to each other by a circulation path portion through which a refrigerant circulates.
The air conditioner 100 adjusts a temperature of indoor air by exchanging heat between
the refrigerant flowing through the circulation path portion and the air in a room where the
20 indoor unit is installed.
[0019]
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the maintenance reservation
system in the first embodiment. The air conditioner 100 includes, for example, a sensor
110, a drive unit 120, and a control unit 130. The sensor 110 includes a sensor for
25 detecting an ambient temperature, a room temperature, a refrigerant temperature, and the
10
like of the air conditioner 100, and a sensor for detecting a drive state and the like of the
air conditioner 100. The drive unit 120 includes drive parts such as a fan, a compressor,
and a valve in outdoor and indoor units. The control unit 130 controls the drive unit 120
on the basis of a command value received from a remote control and sensor data detected
5 by the sensor 110. Moreover, the control unit 130 transmits to the equipment
management server 200, equipment information indicating a type of the air conditioner
100 and the like, sensor data, operation data of the air conditioner 100, error information
based on the sensor data, and the like. The operation data of the air conditioner 100 is
information including, for example, an operation mode such as heating, cooling, or
10 dehumidification, an operation time, and the like.
[0020]
The equipment management server 200 is an information processing device such
as a server device that performs a process of managing the air conditioner 100. The
equipment management server 200 includes, for example, an equipment information
15 storage unit 210 and an operation data storage unit 220. The equipment information
storage unit 210 stores equipment information of the air conditioner 100 that is a
management target in the maintenance reservation system. The operation data storage
unit 220 stores operation data, sensor data, and error information of the air conditioner 100
that is the management target in the maintenance reservation system. The equipment
20 management server 200 transmits to the maintenance contractor server 500, the stored
equipment information, operation data, sensor data, and error information as necessary.
[0021]
The user terminal 300 is a smartphone, a personal computer, or the like operated
by a user who uses the air conditioner 100. The user terminal 300 includes, for example,
25 a user interface unit (UI unit) 310 and a processing unit 320. The user interface unit 310
11
includes, for example, a display unit, an operation unit, and the like. The processing unit
320 is implemented by, for example, a processor such as a central processing unit (CPU)
executing a program stored in a program memory. Software, firmware, or a combination
of software and firmware is described as a program, and the program is stored in the
5 program memory. The processing unit 320 performs various types of processes in
accordance with a reservation application for performing a process of reserving a
maintenance service. The processing unit 320 generates reservation information
including a user’s request and transmits the generated reservation information to the
maintenance reservation server 600.
10 [0022]
The maintenance contractor terminal 400 is a smartphone, a personal computer,
or the like operated by the maintenance contractor. The maintenance contractor terminal
400 includes, for example, a user interface unit (UI unit) 410 and a processing unit 420.
The user interface unit 410 includes, for example, a display unit, an operation unit, and the
15 like. The processing unit 420 is implemented by, for example, a processor such as a CPU
executing a program stored in a program memory. Software, firmware, or a combination
of software and firmware is described as a program, and the program is stored in the
program memory. The processing unit 420 performs various types of processes in
accordance with a contractor registration application for performing a process of
20 registering the maintenance contractor in the maintenance contractor server 500.
[0023]
The maintenance contractor server 500 is an information processing device such
as a server device that performs a process of managing a maintenance contractor. The
maintenance contractor server 500 includes, for example, a maintenance contractor
25 information storage unit 510 and an equipment information storage unit 520. The
12
maintenance contractor information storage unit 510 stores maintenance contractor
information on the basis of information transmitted from the maintenance contractor
terminal 400. The maintenance contractor information includes information about the
maintenance contractor based on the information transmitted from the maintenance
5 contractor terminal 400. The equipment information storage unit 520 stores equipment
information, operation data, sensor data, error information, and the like of the air
conditioner 100 serving as a maintenance service target. The maintenance contractor
server 500 transmits the stored maintenance contractor information, equipment
information, operation data, sensor data, and error information to the maintenance
10 reservation server 600 as necessary.
[0024]
The maintenance reservation server 600 is an information processing device such
as a server device that performs a management process of a maintenance contractor on the
basis of a user’s request. The maintenance reservation server 600 includes, for example,
15 an acquisition unit 610, a reservation processing unit 620, a reservation information storage
unit 630, a notification unit 640, and a reservation information acquisition unit 650. The
acquisition unit 610, the reservation processing unit 620, the notification unit 640, and the
reservation information acquisition unit 650 are implemented by, for example, a processor
such as a CPU executing a program stored in a program memory. The acquisition unit
20 610 acquires equipment information, operation data, sensor data, error information, and
maintenance contractor information. The reservation processing unit 620 performs a
process of selecting candidates for the maintenance contractor on the basis of the
equipment information and the maintenance contractor information and narrowing down
the candidates on the basis of the maintenance contractor information corresponding to the
25 maintenance contractor included in the candidates and the reservation information. The
13
notification unit 640 notifies the user terminal 300 of the candidates narrowed down by the
reservation processing unit 620. The reservation information acquisition unit 650
acquires reservation information from the user and transmits the acquired reservation
information to the reservation information storage unit 630. The reservation information
5 storage unit 630 stores the reservation information transmitted by the reservation
information acquisition unit 650.
[0025]
FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a screen to which maintenance
contractor information is input by the maintenance contractor. FIG. 4 is a diagram
10 showing an example of a screen for inputting maintenance worker information. The
maintenance worker information is unfixed information such as available maintenance
schedule information of a maintenance worker. On a screen for inputting the
maintenance contractor information, a field for inputting fixed information about the
maintenance contractor is provided. The screen for inputting the maintenance contractor
15 information includes, for example, a company name input field, a base address input field,
a phone number input field, a maintenance-related available work input field, a field for
inputting available work other than maintenance, a priority replacement part input field, an
accessible object input field, and an object information input field. The maintenance
contractor terminal 400 generates first work information about maintenance work for the
20 air conditioner 100 on the basis of an input operation for the maintenance-related available
work input field. The maintenance-related available work is, for example, first available
work such as installation, inspection, measurement, repair, part replacement, and removal
of the air conditioner 100. The maintenance contractor terminal 400 generates second
work information about work other than the maintenance for the air conditioner 100 on the
25 basis of an input operation for the field for inputting available work other than the
14
maintenance. The available work other than the maintenance is information indicating
second available work other than the maintenance based on a user’s request. The
available work other than the maintenance includes, for example, other optional services
such as cleaning of the air conditioner 100, housekeeping services, advice on various types
5 of usage methods, a network setting agency, and waste collection. The optional services
may include conditions such as a gender of the worker, whether or not the maintenance
contractor can access a women’s dormitory, whether or not a level of skill is sufficient,
whether or not the maintenance contractor can access high places, whether or not the
maintenance contractor can access equipment installed on a roof, and whether or not the
10 maintenance contractor has a sufficient track record. The priority replacement part is, for
example, a name or the like of a part that is a specialty of the maintenance contractor. In
addition, the maintenance contractor terminal 400 is not limited to the priority replacement
part and it is only necessary to receive an input of priority information indicating the work
to be performed by the maintenance contractor in priority. The accessible object
15 indicates, for example, a type of object capable of being accessed by the maintenance
contractor. The object information is, for example, information about objects with which
the maintenance contractor is experienced. The maintenance contractor terminal 400
generates the maintenance contractor information on the basis of information input to the
input fields shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 and transmits the generated maintenance contractor
20 information to the maintenance contractor server 500. The maintenance contractor server
500 registers the maintenance contractor by storing the received maintenance contractor
information in the maintenance contractor information storage unit 510.
[0026]
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of error information. FIG. 6 is a
25 diagram showing an example of sensor data. The error information is, for example,
15
information in which an error code is associated with occurrence time information
indicating the time at which an error occurred. An error code is, for example, information
corresponding to a symptom detected in the air conditioner 100. The air conditioner 100
determines whether or not conditions for generating error information have been satisfied.
5 The conditions for generating error information are, for example, a condition that the
sensor data detected by the sensor 110 exceeds a threshold value and a condition that the
drive state of the drive unit 120 satisfies a setting condition. The error information is
transmitted from the air conditioner 100 to the equipment management server 200 together
with the sensor data corresponding to the error code. For example, as shown in FIG. 6,
10 the air conditioner 100 acquires sensor data sampled every minute during 10 minutes after
the occurrence of the error assensor data corresponding to the error code “15” that occurred
at 13:45 on 2022/1/19 shown in FIG. 5 and transmits the acquired sensor data to the
equipment management server 200 as the sensor data.
[0027]
15 Thereby, the air conditioner 100 can transmit equipment information, error
information, sensor data, and the like to the equipment management server 200. The
equipment management server 200 may select information necessary for maintenance
from the information received from the air conditioner 100. For example, the equipment
management server 200 selects equipment information such as sensor data, operation data,
20 and model information of the air conditioner 100 linked to an error code and transmits the
selected information to the maintenance contractor server 500.
[0028]
FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of a screen for inputting reservation
information. The screen for inputting reservation information includes, for example, a
25 name input field, an address input field, a phone number input field, an e-mail address
16
input field, a purchased equipment input field, a purchase date input field, a failure content
input field, a field for inputting desired work other than maintenance, an object information
input field, and a desired date and time input field. In the purchased equipment input
field, for example, information such as a model or serial number of the air conditioner 100
5 is input. For example, information indicating a first desired condition related to the
maintenance work for the air conditioner 100 such as a symptom recognized by the user
or an error code displayed on the remote control or the like is input to the failure content
input field. Information corresponding to the available work other than the maintenance
input by the maintenance contractor is input to the field for inputting desired work other
10 than the maintenance. For example, information indicating a second desired condition
for the user to limit the maintenance contractor with respect to other optional services such
as cleaning of the air conditioner 100, housekeeping service, advice on various types of
usage methods, network setting agency, and waste collection is input to the field for
inputting desired work other than the maintenance. Information that does not correspond
15 to the available work other than the maintenance input by the maintenance contractor may
be input to the field for inputting desired work other than the maintenance. For example,
information indicating a second desired condition of a building such as a women’s
dormitory in which entering and leaving are restricted, a skill level of the maintenance
worker desired by the user, work content, special environment objects such as outdoor wall
20 hangings or high places, or the like may be input to the field for inputting desired work
other than the maintenance. For example, information of a type of building such as a
detached house or a condominium, the number of floors on which the air conditioner 100
is installed, and the like is input to the object information input field. The user terminal
300 generates reservation information including a first request for requesting maintenance
25 of the air conditioner 100 and a second request for requesting work other than the
17
maintenance of the air conditioner 100 on the basis of the information input to the input
field and transmits the generated reservation information to the maintenance reservation
server 600.
[0029]
5 FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of an operation procedure according to
the above-described first embodiment. The maintenance contractor terminal 400
transmits maintenance contractor information to the maintenance contractor server 500 on
the basis of an input of the maintenance contractor (step ST10). The maintenance
contractor server 500 registers the maintenance contractor by receiving the maintenance
10 contractor information and storing the received maintenance contractor information in the
maintenance contractor information storage unit 510 (step ST12). The air conditioner
100 transmits equipment information, operation data, and sensor data to the equipment
management server 200, and the equipment management server 200 stores the equipment
information, the operation data, and the sensor data.
15 [0030]
When the air conditioner 100 has detected an error, the air conditioner 100
transmits the error information to the equipment management server 200. In response to
the reception of the error information from the air conditioner 100, the equipment
management server 200 extracts the equipment information and the sensor data associated
20 with the error information from the equipment information storage unit 210 and the
operation data storage unit 220, and transmits the equipment information and the sensor
data to the maintenance contractor server 500 (step ST14).
[0031]
The maintenance contractor server 500 selects candidates for the maintenance
25 contractor by comparing the equipment information and error information received from
18
the equipment management server 200 with the maintenance contractor information stored
in the maintenance contractor information storage unit 510 (step ST18). For example,
the maintenance contractor server 500 may create a candidate list of maintenance
contractors that can handle an installation area of the air conditioner 100 and narrow down
5 maintenance contractors by excluding a maintenance contractor from the candidate list
when a model identified with the equipment information received from the equipment
management server 200 is a model outside of an available range of the maintenance
contractor. The maintenance contractor server 500 may exclude a maintenance
contractor from the candidate list, for example, when work for coping with the error
10 identified with the error code is work outside of the available range of the maintenance
contractor. The maintenance contractor server 500 transmits to the maintenance
reservation server 600, the maintenance contractor information for the maintenance
contractor selected as a candidate. On the other hand, the user terminal 300 transmits
reservation information including the user’s request to the maintenance reservation server
15 600 by receiving an input of the user (step ST16). Thereby, the maintenance reservation
system can prevent the trouble of having to make a reservation again when it is found that
the maintenance contractor cannot satisfy the user’s desire after the user reserves the
maintenance.
[0032]
20 The maintenance reservation server 600 narrows down the candidates for the
maintenance contractor by comparing the maintenance contractor information
corresponding to the maintenance contractor included in the candidates with the
reservation information (step ST20). The maintenance reservation server 600 narrows
down the maintenance contractors capable of providing maintenance at a desired date and
25 time by comparing the desired date and time included in the reservation information with
19
the available maintenance schedule included in the maintenance contractor information.
Furthermore, the maintenance reservation server 600 compares desired work other than the
maintenance included in the reservation information with available work other than the
maintenance included in the maintenance contractor information and narrows down the
5 maintenance contractors that can handle the desired work other than the maintenance.
[0033]
The maintenance reservation server 600 notifies the user of the candidates by
transmitting to the user terminal 300, information for displaying a list of maintenance
contractors included in the narrowed-down candidates. The user terminal 300 can allow
10 the user to select a desired maintenance contractor by displaying a list of candidates.
When the user terminal 300 has received an operation for selecting a maintenance
contractor, the user terminal 300 transmits information based on the selected operation to
the maintenance reservation server 600. The maintenance reservation server 600 notifies
the maintenance contractor terminal 400 corresponding to the maintenance contractor
15 selected by the user that the maintenance contractor has been selected.
[0034]
In addition, the maintenance reservation server 600 may compare a maintenance
request included in the reservation information with priority information indicating priority
work to be performed by the maintenance contractor, and preferentially select the
20 maintenance contractor corresponding to the maintenance contractor information
including the priority information when the maintenance request matches the priority
information. For example, when a compressor of the air conditioner 100 has failed, the
maintenance reservation server 600 can preferentially assign a maintenance contractor that
focuses on the compressor of the air conditioner 100.
25
20
[0035]
For example, the maintenance reservation server 600 may determine that the
maintenance contractor is close to the desire of the user as the number of available works
other than the maintenance included in the maintenance contractor information matching
5 the desire other than the maintenance included in the reservation information increases.
The maintenance reservation server 600 sorts the maintenance contractors according to the
number of matches between the desire other than the maintenance included in the
reservation information and the available work other than the maintenance included in the
maintenance contractor information. The maintenance reservation server 600 transmits
10 to the user terminal 300, information for displaying a list of maintenance contractors
reflecting the sorting result. Thereby, for example, the user terminal 300 can
preferentially display a maintenance contractor close to the desire of the user. For
example, the user terminal 300 can display the maintenance contractor close to the desire
of the user at the top of the maintenance contractor list.
15 [0036]
The user terminal 300 may create reservation information in which priority is set
to available work other than the maintenance of the air conditioner 100. The maintenance
reservation server 600 preferentially selects a maintenance contractor corresponding to the
maintenance contractor information including available work other than the maintenance
20 with high priority, thereby preferentially displaying the selected maintenance contractor on
the user terminal 300. The maintenance reservation server 600 assigns a higher weight
to available work other than the maintenance with higher priority and calculates a score
based on the weight and the number of matches between desired work other than the
maintenance included in the reservation information and available work other than the
25 maintenance included in the maintenance contractor information. Thereby, the
21
maintenance reservation server 600 can sort the maintenance contractors according to the
score.
[0037]
As described above, according to the maintenance reservation system in the first
5 embodiment, candidates for the maintenance contractor are selected on the basis of the
equipment information and the maintenance contractor information, and the candidates can
be narrowed down on the basis of the maintenance contractor information corresponding
to the maintenance contractor included in the candidates and the reservation information.
Moreover, according to the maintenance reservation system in the first embodiment, it is
10 possible to select candidates on the basis of the equipment information and the
maintenance work for the air conditioner 100 included in the maintenance contractor
information and narrow down the candidates on the basis of work other than the
maintenance corresponding to the maintenance contractor included in the candidates and
a request for the work other than the maintenance included in the reservation information.
15 Thereby, according to the maintenance reservation system, a maintenance contractor can
be selected according to the user’s desire, so that the user’s satisfaction with the
maintenance can be improved. Moreover, according to the maintenance reservation
system, it is possible to support the acquisition of repeat customers by providing work that
is a specialty of the maintenance contractor.
20 [0038]
Next, a second embodiment will be described.
FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing an example of a maintenance reservation
system in the second embodiment. The maintenance reservation system in the second
embodiment is different from the maintenance reservation system in the first embodiment
25 in that an equipment management server 200 includes an estimation unit 230.
22
Hereinafter, differences will be mainly described.
[0039]
The estimation unit 230 estimates a failed part of the air conditioner 100 on the
basis of information acquired by the air conditioner 100. The estimation unit 230 can
5 estimate a failed part of the air conditioner 100 on the basis of, for example, a model and
an error code of the air conditioner 100. In addition to the model and the error code of
the air conditioner 100, the estimation unit 230 may estimate the failed part on the basis of
operation data, sensor data, or the like. The estimation unit 230 may estimate the failed
part on the basis of corresponding relationships among: a past failure or maintenance
10 history stored in the equipment information storage unit 210 and the operation data storage
unit 220; equipment information, an error code, and sensor data in the history; and a
replacement part in the failure or maintenance history. For example, the estimation unit
230 may train a machine learning model using the failed part as learning data on the basis
of corresponding relationships among: the past failure or maintenance history; the
15 equipment information, error code, and sensor data in the history; and the replacement part
in the failure or maintenance history. Thereby, when the equipment information, the error
code, and the like are acquired from the air conditioner 100, the estimation unit 230 may
input the acquired equipment information, error code, and the like to the machine learning
model and estimate a failed part on the basis of an output of the machine learning model.
20 The machine learning model may be, for example, a model using a classification method
such as a decision tree, a random forest, or LightGBM. The estimation unit 230 transmits
to a maintenance contractor server 500, a result of estimating the failed part together with
the equipment information.
[0040]
25 The maintenance contractor server 500 selects a maintenance contractor on the
23
basis of the failed part estimation result acquired from the equipment management server
200, the equipment information, and the maintenance contractor information. For
example, the maintenance contractor server 500 can select a maintenance contractor who
has designated the estimated failed part as a priority replacement part or a maintenance
5 contractor who has experience in maintaining the estimated failed part. Thereby, the
maintenance contractor server 500 can select a maintenance contractor having strength in
repairing or replacing a failed part, so that the user’s satisfaction with maintenance can be
further improved.
[0041]
10 Next, a third embodiment will be described.
FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a screen for inputting reservation
information in the third embodiment. In addition to the screen for inputting the
reservation information described in the first embodiment, a field for inputting a
maintenance contractor and a maintenance worker designated by the user is provided in
15 the screen for inputting the reservation information. The user terminal 300 receives an
operation for inputting a maintenance contractor and a maintenance worker, generates
reservation information including designation information of the maintenance contractor
and the maintenance worker on the basis of the received operation, and transmits the
generated reservation information to the maintenance reservation server 600.
20 [0042]
The maintenance reservation server 600 compares the designation information
included in the reservation information with candidates for the maintenance contractor
selected by the maintenance contractor server 500. When the designated maintenance
contractor and maintenance worker are included in the candidates for the maintenance
25 contractor selected by the maintenance contractor server 500, the maintenance reservation
24
server 600 transmits to the user terminal 300, information for notifying that maintenance
by the designated maintenance contractor and maintenance worker is available. When
the designated maintenance contractor and maintenance worker are not included in the
candidates for the maintenance contractor selected by the maintenance contractor server
5 500, the maintenance reservation server 600 may transmit to the user terminal 300,
information for notifying that maintenance by the designated maintenance contractor and
maintenance worker is not available.
[0043]
As described above, according to the maintenance reservation system of the third
10 embodiment, it is possible to receive an operation for designating a maintenance contractor
or a maintenance worker from the user, determine whether or not the designated
maintenance contractor or maintenance worker is included, and notify the user of a
determination result. Thereby, according to the maintenance reservation system, for
example, when a maintenance contractor that has been used once wants to be used
15 repeatedly, the maintenance contractor can be designated according to the user’s desire,
and the user’s satisfaction can be further improved. Moreover, the maintenance
reservation system can support the acquisition of repeat customers and improve the
maintenance contractor’s satisfaction.
[0044]
20 While the embodiments of the present disclosure have been described above in
detail with reference to the drawings, specific configurations are not limited to the abovedescribed embodiments, and other designs and the like may also be made without departing
from the scope of the present disclosure. Each configuration described in the abovedescribed embodiments can be arbitrarily combined. For example, the embodiment in
25 which the maintenance service target is the air conditioner 100 has been described, but the
25
present disclosure is not limited thereto. The above-described embodiment may be
applied to any other equipment for which a maintenance service is necessary.
[Description of Reference Signs]
[0045]
5 100: Air conditioner
110: Sensor
120: Drive unit
130: Control unit
200: Equipment management server
10 210: Equipment information storage unit
220: Operation data storage unit
230: Estimation unit
300: User terminal
310: User interface unit
15 320: Processing unit
400: Maintenance contractor terminal
410: User interface unit
420: Processing unit
500: Maintenance contractor server
20 510: Maintenance contractor information storage unit
520: Equipment information storage unit
600: Maintenance reservation server
610: Acquisition unit
620: Reservation processing unit
25 630: Reservation information storage unit
26
640: Notification unit
650: Reservation information acquisition uni

WE CLAIM:
[Claim 1]
A maintenance reservation system comprising:
an equipment information acquisition unit configured to acquire equipment
5 information including information about equipment;
a maintenance contractor information acquisition unit configured to acquire
maintenance contractor information including information about maintenance contractors
who provide maintenance services on the basis of information transmitted from
maintenance contractor terminals;
10 a reservation information acquisition unit configured to acquire reservation
information including desired conditions for the maintenance services on the basis of
information transmitted from a user terminal;
a processing unit configured to select maintenance contractor candidates on the
basis of the equipment information and the maintenance contractor information, and
15 narrow down the candidates on the basis of the desired conditions and the maintenance
contractor information corresponding to the maintenance contractors included in the
candidates; and
a notification unit configured to notify the user terminal of the candidates
narrowed down by the processing unit.
20 [Claim 2]
The maintenance reservation system according to claim 1,
wherein the maintenance contractor information includes information indicating
first available work related to maintenance work for the equipment and second available
work related to work other than the maintenance of the equipment,
25 wherein the reservation information includes information indicating a first desired
28
condition related to the maintenance work for the equipment and a second desired
condition related to the work other than the maintenance of the equipment, and
wherein the processing unit selects the candidates on the basis of the equipment
information, the first available work, and the first desired condition, and narrows down the
5 candidates on the basis of the second desired condition and the second available work
corresponding to the maintenance contractors included in the candidates.
[Claim 3]
The maintenance reservation system according to claim 2,
wherein the second desired condition includes priority for the work other than the
10 maintenance of the equipment, and
wherein the processing unit preferentially selects a maintenance contractor
corresponding to maintenance contractor information including the second available work
matching the work other than the maintenance whose priority is high.
[Claim 4]
15 The maintenance reservation system according to claim 2,
wherein the first available work includes priority information indicating a part of
maintenance or work to be performed by the maintenance contractor in priority, and
wherein the processing unit preferentially selects the maintenance contractor
corresponding to the priority information when the first desired condition matches the part
20 of maintenance to be performed by the maintenance contractor in priority.
[Claim 5]
The maintenance reservation system according to claim 2, comprising:
an estimation unit configured to estimate a failed part of the equipment on the
basis of the information about the equipment,
25 wherein the processing unit selects the candidates on the basis of the failed part
29
estimated by the estimation unit and the first available work.
[Claim 6]
The maintenance reservation system according to claim 1 or 2,
wherein the reservation information includes designation information for
5 designating the maintenance contractor or a maintenance worker, and
wherein the processing unit determines whether or not the designated
maintenance contractor or maintenance worker is included in the candidates when the
designation information is included in the reservation information and notifies a user of a
determination result.
10 [Claim 7]
A maintenance reservation method comprising steps of:
acquiring equipment information including information about equipment;
acquiring maintenance contractor information including information about
maintenance contractors who provide maintenance services on the basis of information
15 transmitted from maintenance contractor terminals;
acquiring reservation information including desired conditions for the
maintenance services on the basis of information transmitted from a user terminal;
selecting maintenance contractor candidates on the basis of the equipment
information and the maintenance contractor information;
20 narrowing down the candidates on the basis of the desired conditions and the
maintenance contractor information corresponding to the maintenance contractors
included in the candidates; and
notifying the user terminal of the candidates.
[Claim 8]
25 A reservation server comprising:
30
an acquisition unit configured to acquire information about maintenance
contractors who provide maintenance services on the basis of information transmitted from
maintenance contractor terminals and reservation information including desired conditions
related to work other than maintenance of equipment on the basis of information
5 transmitted from a user terminal;
a processing unit configured to narrow down maintenance contractor candidates
selected on the basis of equipment information including information about the equipment
and first available work of the maintenance contractor related to maintenance work for the
equipment, on the basis of the desired conditions and second available work of the
10 maintenance contractor related to work other than the maintenance of the equipment; and
a notification unit configured to notify the user terminal of the candidates
narrowed down by the processing unit.
[Claim 9]
A maintenance reservation method comprising steps of:
15 acquiring information about maintenance contractors who provide maintenance
services on the basis of information transmitted from maintenance contractor terminals and
reservation information including desired conditions related to work other than
maintenance of equipment on the basis of information transmitted from a user terminal;
narrowing down maintenance contractor candidates selected on the basis of
20 equipment information including information about the equipment and first available work
of the maintenance contractor related to maintenance work for the equipment, on the basis
of the desired conditions and second available work of the maintenance contractor related
to work other than the maintenance of the equipment; and
notifying the user terminal of the candidates.
25
31
[Claim 10]
A program causing a computer to execute steps of:
acquiring information about maintenance contractors who provide maintenance
services on the basis of information transmitted from maintenance contractor terminals and
5 reservation information including desired conditions related to work other than
maintenance of equipment on the basis of information transmitted from a user terminal;
narrowing down maintenance contractor candidates selected on the basis of
equipment information including information about the equipment and first available work
of the maintenance contractor related to maintenance work for the equipment, on the basis
10 of the desired conditions and second available work of the maintenance contractor related
to work other than the maintenance of the equipment; and
notifying the user terminal of the candidates