JP2002366853A - Method and system for providing voice information through communication network and method for voice operation at site virtually built through communication network - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To greatly improve service and convenience by combining and using pieces of voice information and greatly alleviating restrictions of expressing power. SOLUTION: A voice mark standing for voice generation is defined and pasted in an object area on a display screen. A user clicks on the voice mark with a mouse, etc., to generate voice information in real time.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method and system for providing voice information via a communication network, and a voice operation method for a site virtually constructed via a communication network, for example, various Internet sites or Internet shopping sites. The present invention relates to a technology for providing and operating audio information on a site that is virtually constructed via a communication network.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Online shopping (Internet shopping) in which a computer of a user (client) is connected to a communication network such as the Internet and trades products online at a shopping site provided by a server on a communication network such as the Internet. ) Is conventionally known. Conventionally, all procedures and services in online shopping on the Internet have been performed only by visual information such as characters and images. In recent years, convenience has been improved to some extent by adding image information as compared with information including only characters. But that alone had its limits. Internet shopping sites (such as shopping malls)
Is operated using HTML, CGI, etc.
The product images and character information are disclosed, and the user can browse such information from an information terminal such as a personal computer using a WWW browser using a communication line such as a telephone via the Internet. The information provided from the server to the client is various in addition to product information, such as site guidance (guidance), membership registration, shopping cart, payment method, gifts and sweepstakes, campaigns, operation error notification, etc. The information of
It is provided as visual information such as an image and is displayed on the terminal screen of the client.

However, displaying information on a home page using only characters and images involves a problem of the display area. Naturally, there is a limit to the amount of information that can be included in one page. The conventional symptomatic treatment for it is as follows. Increase the length of one page. In other words, it compensates for this drawback in the form of "extend down like a wrapper". However, in this case, there is no guarantee that the user can see the lower part off the screen. Click on the appropriate location to link to another page
To supplement the information. However, in this case, there is no guarantee that the user will click to link to a page with more information. Also, if the user clicks and jumps to another page, there is no guarantee that the user will return to the original page. This leaves other publishers of the original page with "worries about seeing themselves." The more prominent it is, the more likely it is to use “hazy colors” and “unusual composition”. Then, other parts of the page are also "prominently", and as a result, the effect is not so high. In order to incorporate as much information as possible on the same page, there is a tendency to gradually reduce the size of icons such as characters and images.
However, this naturally has its limitations.

As described above, the conventional Internet shopping system has many problems as follows. It does not have the impression of face-to-face sales like a real store and has a difficult point in sales promotion because of its tasteless and dry image. When switching between procedures and screens, if the screen is not carefully watched, there is a risk of oversight. Even if you make a mistake in a procedure or operation, you need to be very careful to notice it. In particular, since more and more information (characters and images) are described on the screen, such cases are expected to occur frequently in the future. For example, when registering as a member, there are detailed restrictions such as the required characters and numbers to be entered in one place being "half-width" and another in "half-width", so if you do not read carefully, It is difficult to quickly notice their own procedure errors. There is a concern that consumers may lose their motivation to purchase too much of them. In addition, from the perspective of a company that builds and operates an Internet shopping site, a great deal of effort and effort is needed in content production and composition in order to keep users' attention and interest only with text and images. is there. Many problems arise when attempting to display a large amount of information on a screen only by visual information such as characters and images.

[0005]

As described above, in Internet shopping, there is a great limitation in the method based on visual information such as characters and images. Besides sight,
The challenge is to establish a means and method for providing audio information so that the human hearing function inherent to humans can be fully utilized. That is, in the information provision using only visual information such as characters and images, the expressive power is limited. In addition, the amount of information that the user can view at a time on the terminal screen for certain information is small, so that it is difficult to understand the displayed contents. Furthermore,
Displaying as much information as possible in a limited space using only characters and images has a disadvantage that the display screen is complicated and it is difficult to browse.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and aims to provide a site use method or system through an easy-to-use communication network by providing intelligible information by voice information. It is an object of the present invention to provide a method and a system for providing voice information via a communication network which can realize the above.
Further, another object of the present invention is to provide a voice operation method in a site virtually constructed via a communication network.

[0007]

According to the present invention, information is supplied from a server to a client via a communication network.
A sound information providing method for displaying supplied information on a screen of a client terminal device and generating a sound corresponding to the display on the client terminal device, the method corresponding to information displayed on the screen of the client terminal device. When audio information is attached, a step of additionally displaying a predetermined mark indicating that the audio information is attached on the screen, and an operation of selecting and instructing the mark by the user at the client terminal device is performed. Making the voice sound based on the voice information attached to the mark designated by the selection. For example, in the displaying step, the predetermined mark is additionally displayed at a position corresponding to a specific display object to which audio information is attached among various display objects displayed on the screen of the client terminal device. In the sounding step, a sound is sounded based on specific sound information attached to a specific display object corresponding to the mark designated and selected.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, a predetermined mark indicating that sound is generated is provided at an arbitrary position of information supplied from the server to the client and displayed on the terminal screen of the client. Is additionally displayed,
When the user performs an operation of instructing the predetermined mark displayed on the terminal screen, audio information related to the information in which the mark is additionally displayed is quickly sounded. The audio information is supplied from the server to the client along with the information to which the predetermined mark is added, or is supplied from the server to the client when an operation of designating the predetermined mark is performed by the user. As described above, the information can be provided to the user by the audio information only by displaying the audio mark having a relatively small display area on the display screen, so that the user can easily understand and abundant information even on the Web page where the text / image information tends to be excessive. Can be provided, and user convenience can be improved.

For example, the server supplies information for providing a shopping site (for example, a shopping site on the Internet) that is virtually constructed to a client via a communication network, and is displayed on a screen of a client terminal device. Various audio information is attached to the various display information of the shopping site, and the predetermined mark is displayed on the screen of the client terminal device in correspondence with the display information to which each audio information is attached. .

[0010] A voice information providing system according to the present invention comprises:
Display information supply means for supplying, to a client, information for displaying a screen of a predetermined site virtually constructed via a communication network to a server, and storage for storing a plurality of pieces of audio information to be supplied to the client; Means for reading audio information from the storage means in association with display information of a screen supplied to the client and transmitting the audio information to the client, wherein the client transmits the display information from the server via a communication network. And means for displaying a screen of the predetermined site, and means for receiving voice information corresponding to the screen being displayed from the server via a communication network and generating a voice based on the received voice information. It is characterized by doing.

[0011] As an example, the server supplies the client with information for providing a predetermined shopping site (for example, a shopping site on the Internet) virtually constructed via a communication network. The voice information transmitted from the server to the client in accordance with the screen of the site includes a message (for example, "entering a store such as" welcome "or" welcome ") issued when the top page of the shopping site is opened. ), Voice information consisting of messages issued in one or more stages to support or promote a series of purchasing activities by the user, and the user exiting the shopping site. Messages that are issued in stages (for example, " Gozaimashita Rigatou "" The message to solicit the again of the visit, such as come please ")
And at least voice information composed of messages corresponding to each stage of the browsing is pronounced in accordance with the progress of browsing the shopping site in the client.

Further, according to the present invention, there is provided a voice operation method for a site virtually constructed via a communication network, wherein a method of listening to speech corresponding to display information on a browsing screen of the site virtually constructed via the communication network. Displaying a predetermined voice mark indicating that the voice can be heard, corresponding to the location where the voice mark is possible; and a predetermined voice mark corresponding to each display information corresponding to the location where the voice mark is displayed. Preparing the voice information of, and according to the input operation of pointing to the desired voice mark location by the user browsing the site,
Producing the predetermined voice information corresponding to the display information corresponding to the location of the voice mark input by the instruction, wherein the predetermined voice mark has a common design at a plurality of different sites. It is characterized by being performed. Of course, the present invention is not limited to Internet shopping sites or systems, but is generally applied as a method or system for providing audio information in various sites provided on the display of the client via the Internet or other communication networks. It is possible. For example, Internet site guidance (guidance), member registration, payment methods, gifts and sweepstakes,
Various applications such as campaigns and operation error notification are possible.

[0013]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. The embodiments described below apply the present invention to an Internet shopping system. In this embodiment, a mark or symbol indicating that a sound is played is provided at an appropriate position on various icons (characters and graphics) supplied from the server of the Internet shopping system and displayed on the terminal screen of the client. With the addition, when the user clicks or mouses over the mark or symbol, information related to the icon is promptly output as audio. Such a method or system according to an embodiment of the present invention requires only a visual information such as a character or an image. Are linked to audio information. Linking audio information in this manner has the following advantages. First, it will be possible to express things that cannot be expressed with visual information alone, and the advantages of audio. That is, the user can obtain information from the ear by the auditory information such as the tone color and the sound quality. In this way, the "viewer" who only sees the sight of characters and images becomes the "viewer" who also hears the hearing. Thus,
The visual burden is reduced, the hearing is more balanced, and the user's understanding is faster and deeper. That is,
You will be able to "see with your eyes and hear with your ears".

Specifically, for example, a sound or a sound is output by attaching a "sign or mark" at an appropriate place in the "banner-like" image information or character information and clicking the mark or mark with a mouse. To do it. Alternatively, the mouse can be positioned (mouse over) at any position on the icon including the symbol or mark, so that sound can be output without clicking. Note that the images and characters targeted in the present embodiment are not limited to those having a banner shape, but are applied to any image on an Internet shopping page. Sound is output based on these arbitrary images.

Alternatively, the above symbol or marker is
When clicked (or mouse-over), a "small window" or "speech balloon" may appear at the same time as the voice, so that the same sentence is displayed only while the voice is flowing. The advantage of this method is that it is like putting a “mezzanine” on it, so that the original page area is not used extra, and it is displayed by small windows and does not jump to another page. "Isn't it coming back?"
The window is displayed only while the audio is being played, so there is no need to worry about disturbing others, to be free from excessive "conspicuous competition" to appeal to the visuals, and to make the characters unnecessarily small. There are many things you don't have to do.

Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be further described with reference to the drawings. An Internet shopping mall will be described as an example. In actual Internet shopping malls, many new stores are open continuously, and there are hundreds of stores per month. At the newly opened store corner, several lines of store guidance / advertisement are usually described under the name of each store on the display screen. For this reason, stores that do not fit in the first screen are disadvantageous, so conventionally, mall managers provide store guidance other than the store name so that as many stores as possible can be included in the first screen. Was required to minimize or delete the sentence. According to one embodiment of the present invention, a "symbol or mark indicating that there is an explanation by voice" is displayed on the screen, and the "symbol or mark" is designated by the user with a predetermined operation (click or mouse). When "over" is performed, a predetermined sound is made to flow. As the predetermined voice, for example, a voice read out from a sentence that was conventionally displayed or intended to be displayed as a sentence image is used. At this time, a sentence having the same content may be selectively displayed in a small window or in a balloon format. In this way, the area of the display screen is effectively used, and new information can be appealed by voice.

FIG. 1 is a communication network configuration diagram showing the concept of the overall configuration of an Internet shopping system according to one embodiment of the present invention. As an example, one Internet shopping site has a large number of individual stores. 1 shows a multi-store type (shopping mall) Internet shopping system having a corner.
A server (mall server) 10 that operates a multi-store type shopping mall site includes a route control device such as a router,
It is connected to the Internet X via a communication line such as an SDN or a dedicated line. Each user terminal (client) 1
01, 102, and 103 can access the server 10 via the Internet X by connecting to the Internet X via a telephone line, ISDN, or the like. Server 1
No. 0 provides various information on product sales in the same manner as a conventional server that operates a shopping mall site, and a user accesses the server 10 via the Internet X, and the server 10 provides the information. The obtained information such as characters and images is displayed on a display screen (user terminal screen) of the user terminal. As will be described in detail later, according to the present invention, a predetermined mark indicating that a sound is generated is additionally displayed at an arbitrary position of the information displayed on the user terminal screen. Is performed, a sound is requested to be sounded, and a sound related to any information in which the mark is additionally displayed is promptly generated at the user terminal.

The server 10 includes a general-purpose computer, a UNIX (registered trademark) type computer,
An INUX (OS name) type computer, workstation, personal computer, or the like can be used, and specific processing capacity and scale are appropriately selected depending on the number of clients, the scale of a communication network, and the like. User terminal 101
Reference numerals 103 to 103 denote wired personal computers and various wireless portable terminal devices, each having a computer or a processor, and a display device (terminal screen) including a CRT, an LCD (liquid crystal), and an input operation of a keyboard, a mouse, and the like. It has a device, and further, has an appropriate device necessary for sound pronunciation.
The format of the Internet shopping system according to the present invention is a multi-store type (shopping mall site).
The present invention is not limited to this, and may be a single store type (shopping site). FIG. 2 shows an example of the entire configuration of an example of a single-store type Internet shopping system.

The detailed configuration of the server 10 as shown in FIG. 1 will be described with reference to FIG. The control means 11 including a CPU and the like performs control of each unit, data transfer, various calculations, data storage, and the like. The input control means 12
It controls various kinds of request data input from a user terminal or the like connected via the Internet. The output control means 13 appropriately controls data output to a user terminal or the like. The storage means 14 to 18 are composed of an appropriate storage device such as a hard disk or a RAM, and store various programs and files such as data. Storage means 1
4 stores various processing programs including a main program. These programs are used in the control unit 11, and include, for example, a program for displaying various screens on a user terminal device (client terminal device), a program for selecting and outputting various audio data, and a program for member registration management. Programs and the like are included. The program to select and output voice data includes programs to select and output voice data for introducing new store corners, and programs that prompt voice notification of errors and corrections in response to user operation errors. There are various things.

The storage means 15 stores a plurality of audio data files. The file group of the audio data is obtained by classifying the audio data according to a predetermined classification criterion such as, for example, support audio information for purchasing activities, guidance audio information for introducing a new store, erroneous input notification audio information, and the like. , MP3, ASF, etc., are appropriately used according to the environment of the user. The storage means 16 stores various image information, the storage means 17 stores information on stores and products, and the storage means 1
Reference numeral 8 stores information such as customer registration and management. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing an example of typical functions actually found in an Internet shopping site provided by the server 10. In the server 10, related audio information can be added to various functions as shown in FIG.

Next, main operations in the shopping mall site and provision of audio information will be described. Hereinafter, it is assumed that a user terminal 101 is connected to the server 10 for convenience of description. When the user terminal 101 is connected to the server 10, the control unit 1
1 detects this connection, communicates with the user terminal 101 according to a processing program such as a main program, and controls the user terminal 101 appropriately. FIG. 6 shows an overall flow of a shopping mall process including the voice pronunciation process according to the present invention. FIG. 5 shows an overall view of a processing flow of a conventional shopping mall. Processing required to display various information provided by the shopping mall site on the terminal screen of the user terminal 101 is as follows:
It is mainly performed in the server 10, and in the terminal screen, the server 1
Various information supplied from 0 is displayed.

First, the operation of the present embodiment will be roughly described. Here, each terminal (client) 10
Each of the terminals 1, 102,... Communicates by being connected to the server 10. For convenience of explanation, the server 10 is described as being connected to one terminal (client) 101. When the terminal (client) 101 is connected to the server 10, the connection is detected by the control means 11 via the input control means 12 in the server 10, and the terminal (client) 101 is detected in accordance with a processing program such as a main program. It communicates with and controls this. The processing required to display the site information of the Internet shopping mall on the display device of the terminal (client) 101 is mainly performed in the server 10, and the terminal (client) 101 processes the information transmitted from the server 10. indicate.

From the server 10, not only display information such as characters and images, but also audio information related to specific display information is transmitted to the client by being attached to the display information or on demand. That is, information hidden behind specific display information can be provided from the server 10 to the terminal (client) 101 in the form of audio information. Therefore, even if the specific display information displayed on the display device occupies relatively little space on the screen, more information can be provided to the client by the audio information hidden behind the specific display information. Can be. In this embodiment, in order to inform the user which audio information is hidden behind which display information, a predetermined symbol or mark is added to the specific display information where the audio information is hidden. indicate. Of course, information for displaying the predetermined symbol or mark is also sent from the server 10 to the terminal (client) 101.
When the terminal (client) 101 displays the screen of the Internet site, the predetermined symbol or mark (that is, the “voice location mark”) is also displayed. As an additional display method of the predetermined symbol or mark (“sound location mark”), the predetermined symbol or mark is displayed near a display object of the specific display information.
Alternatively, an appropriate technique may be used, such as displaying the specific display information overlapping with the display object of the specific display information (for example, displaying the predetermined symbol or mark like a watermark pattern). The design of the predetermined symbol or mark indicating the location of the audio information may be determined as appropriate. Of course, the design of the predetermined symbol or mark is standardized to a predetermined common design so as to be commonly used at a plurality of different sites.
If it is found that the mark of the predetermined common design indicates the location of the audio information, the usability of the user is improved.

The details will be described below. First, when the user accesses the server 10, the top page of the site is displayed on the user's terminal screen. An example of the selection of various functions (corners) and the process of voice pronunciation performed on the top page will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.
The top page is displayed on the terminal screen 01 (client), and the user is prompted to select a desired function from a menu of various functions displayed on the top page (step Sa1). One display example on the user terminal screen of the top page "Iroha Shopping
The "mall" is shown in FIG. On the top page, menus of various functions that can be provided on the site as illustrated in FIG. 4 (“newly opened store”, “general information bulletin board”, etc.) are displayed.

According to the present invention, the server 10 supplies audio information related to arbitrary information, and the arbitrary information on the user's terminal screen is displayed in order to inform the user that the audio is to be pronounced. A predetermined mark (“voice mark”) is additionally displayed at the displayed position. By performing the operation of instructing the “voice mark” displayed on the terminal screen, the user can make the voice information related to the information additionally displayed with the “voice mark” sound. As described above, by providing information using display information and audio information in arbitrary information, at least a display space can provide more information to audio information.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 7, a predetermined "voice mark"(<S> in the figure) is attached and displayed in the display area of "newly opened store" in order to notify the location of the voice. Have been. Information for displaying the “voice mark” <S> is also transmitted from the server 10 to the user terminal 101.
Sent to. The user can instruct the pronunciation of the audio information by clicking the “audio mark” using an instruction means such as a mouse or by moving the cursor (mouse over) near the “audio mark”. As the sound content to be pronounced, for example, an announcement reading a sentence that has been conventionally displayed as a sentence image is used. As a method of displaying the “voice mark”, a predetermined mark (<S> in this embodiment) is displayed at or near the location where the relevant information is displayed, or the display symbol of the relevant information is overlaid. An appropriate method such as wrapping (for example, a watermark pattern) display may be used.

In step Sa2, the control means 11 determines whether the "voice mark"<S> has been instructed. In the present embodiment, for the sake of convenience, in the case of “No” in step Sa2, processing is performed so as to wait in step Sa2 until the “voice mark” <S> is clicked.
When an operation of selecting and instructing another display area or the like is performed, the routine is switched to a routine corresponding to the selected function. After the user positions the mouse cursor in the display area of the “newly opened store” corner as shown in FIG. 8, the user performs a click operation on the “voice mark” <S> to select the processing of the “newly opened store” corner. Then (“Yes” in step Sa2), the control unit 11 specifies the function (in this example, the “newly opened store” corner) displayed in the indicated “voice mark” <S> display area (step S2).
a3) It is determined whether the audio information corresponding to the instructed "audio mark"<S> is transmitted by the "paste method" or "on-demand method" (step Sa4). The "pasting method" is a method in which audio information is transmitted from a server to a client along with display information on a screen, and the audio information is buffered in a memory on the client side. This is a data amount of the audio information. Suitable when there are few. The “on-demand method” is a method in which voice information is transmitted from a server to a client when an operation of instructing a “voice mark” is performed by a user. This does not impose a burden on the information transmission process when displaying the Web page screen, and is particularly suitable when the data amount of the audio information is relatively large.

When the voice information is transmitted by the “on-demand method” (the on-demand method of step Sa 4), when the user performs an operation of instructing the “voice mark”, the control means 11 stores the information in the server 10. From the audio file stored in the means 15, control is performed so as to transmit the corresponding file to the user terminal 101, and the corresponding audio information is transmitted to the user terminal 101 (step Sa).
5). Here, the server 10 transmits the voice information to the server 10.
Then, a synchronization process is performed to determine whether or not the user terminal 101 has arrived (step Sa6). As a result, control is performed so that the process proceeds to the next process after the voice information arrives at the user terminal 101. By performing such a synchronization process, it is possible to avoid such an inconvenience that, for example, the screen is switched to another screen before the audio information arrives.
Upon confirming that the voice information has arrived at the user terminal 101 (“Yes” in step Sa6), the user terminal 101 generates a voice corresponding to the voice information (step S6).
a7). The voice pronounced by the user terminal 101 is
It is related to the display information with "voice mark" added. In this example, the voice related to the "newly opened store" corner (for example, "This is the corner of the new shop opened this month. Please drop in. Is announced. On the other hand, when the voice information is transmitted by the “paste method” (the paste method of step Sa4), the voice information is transmitted along with the display information on the screen, and the voice information is stored in the memory on the client side. Is buffered, the corresponding processing program in the user terminal 101 is notified to that effect, and the audio information buffered in the memory of the user terminal 101 is read. At this time, as the processing program on the user terminal side, appropriate processing software such as JavaScript (trademark) or Java (trademark) applet is applied. Thus, a sound corresponding to the sound information is generated (step Sa7). As described above, according to the present invention, audio information can be provided in real time in response to a request from a user. Such rapid provision of audio information enables abundant information to be provided by audio information even if the specific gravity of text / image information is reduced. It can be carried out.

According to the present invention, in addition to the above-mentioned sound pronunciation, when the user performs an operation of instructing a "voice mark", the character string information is "small window" or "speech balloon" and the user terminal screen is displayed. It can be displayed at any place above. In the processing shown in the flowchart of FIG.
FIG. 11 is a flowchart to which the display processing of the character string information is added. If the character string information is provided by the “on-demand method”, the voice information and the character string information corresponding to the voice information are sent from the server to the client in step Sa5 (step Sa8 in FIG. 11). And step Sa9), at the time of voice pronunciation (step Sa1).
0), the character string information is also displayed (step Sa1).
1). On the other hand, in the case of the “pasting method”, predetermined audio information and character string information corresponding to the music information are transmitted from the server to the client along with arbitrary information, and are buffered in the memory on the client side. At the time of voice pronunciation (step Sa7), the character string information is also displayed. FIG.
FIG. 9 shows an example in which predetermined character string information is displayed in the “speech balloon” method in the display example indicated by.

The processing in the server 10 is switched to a routine corresponding to the “newly opened store” corner selected and instructed by the user. This “newly opened store”
A processing procedure for selecting various corners and generating sound information in a corner will be briefly described with reference to FIG. Server 1
The control unit 11 of 0 displays the Web page of the “newly opened store” corner on the terminal screen of the user terminal 101 and selects a desired process from the function menu displayed on the Web page for the user. (Step Sb1). FIG. 13 shows “newly opened store”
This is an example of a corner screen display, in which a plurality of character strings indicating the names of stores newly joined to the shopping mall site are displayed as the function menu, and any information (in this example, a certain store name “ABC store”) is displayed. "Voice mark"<S>
Is additionally displayed. The user requests the pronunciation of audio information by designating the “audio mark”. FIG. 12 shows an example of a conventional terminal screen display of a “newly opened store” corner using only characters and images.

The control means 11 determines whether the "voice mark"<S> has been clicked (step Sb2),
When "voice mark"<S> is clicked (step S
a2), information ("ABC store" in this example) additionally displayed with the "voice mark"<S> is specified (step Sb3), and specified by the "voice mark"<S>. It is determined whether the audio information is transmitted by the "paste method" or "on-demand method" (step Sb4). In the case of the "on-demand method", the corresponding file stored in the storage means 15 is controlled to be transmitted to the user terminal 101 (step Sb5), a synchronization process is performed, and the audio information arrives at the user terminal 101. It is confirmed that the user has performed the operation (“Yes” in step Sb6), and the user terminal 101 is controlled to generate a sound corresponding to the sound information (step Sb7). In this example, the sound to be pronounced has a content related to a certain store "ABC store". For example, an announcement of a store introduction is sounded as shown in FIG. In the case of the “pasting method” in step Sb4, control is performed to read out audio information buffered in the memory of the user terminal, and the audio information is generated (step Sb7). As described above, in addition to the sound pronunciation, character string information can be displayed at an arbitrary position as shown in FIG. FIG. 17 is a flowchart of a processing example in which character string information display is added to the voice pronunciation processing of FIG.

After the above processing is performed, the server 10
On the terminal screen of the user terminal 101, a Web page of certain information (in this example, a certain store “ABC store”) specified in step Sb3 is displayed. FIG. 18 shows a screen display example of the “ABC store”. In this process as well, by instructing the "voice mark"<S> as shown in FIG. 19, the pronunciation of the voice and the character string display can be performed as shown in FIG. Although not shown in the figure showing the screen display example, a predetermined mark for instructing the stop of the sound generation (cancellation of the sound generation) is provided so that the sound generation of the sound can be stopped and muted (cancellation of the sound generation). It may be displayed at any place on the terminal screen.

The present invention can be applied to almost all scenes of the Internet shopping mall shown in FIG. 4 in addition to the above-described embodiment of the new store opening guidance corner.
Key points can be commonly used in cases where there are sentences such as explanatory texts and PR, and the page is congested, so that more items cannot be posted, and the convenience is improved by audio information. For example, top page guidance, help on each page, general information on the site, a complete list of products, a list by product category, gift centers, card stores, latest products, purchasing guidelines, shopping methods, auctions, store openings, personal information registration , Membership registration, Latest information, Sweepstakes / Present corner, Free sample / Monitor information, Bargain information, New arrival information, Market news, FAQ
(Frequently asked questions), shop owner list, exhibition guide, staff recruitment, etc. can be used for all kinds of cases.

For example, according to another aspect of the present invention, control may be performed so that sound information is automatically generated according to a preset sequence. For example, when disclosing the top page of a shopping mall site, when a user purchases a product, or when a user exits the site, a sound corresponding to each of the above situations is automatically generated in accordance with a predetermined sequence. Can be generated. FIG. 27 shows the flow of an example of such sound information pronunciation processing. At the start of use of this site, the server 10 transmits predetermined audio information to the user terminal 101 along with the information of the top page display, controls the user terminal 101 to display the top page, and As described above, a voice based on the voice information (for example, a message announcement expressing appreciation for entering the store, such as "Welcome to Iroha Shopping Mall. Please enjoy shopping slowly.") At 101, control is performed so that sound is generated automatically. When the user performs a product purchase operation, as shown in FIG. 25, a voice based on predetermined voice information (for example, "Thank you for purchasing the digital camera XYZ100. Continue shopping at our shop. Please enjoy. "Or" Thank you for purchasing each time. "
Announcement) is automatically generated at the user terminal 101. This voice information is used for an operation to instruct product purchase (FIG. 25).
May be transmitted from the server to the client (“on-demand method”), or may be sent to any information (for example, the display information of the “shopping basket”). It may be transmitted (“pasting method”) in association with it. When the user performs an operation to leave the site, as shown in FIG. 26, a voice based on predetermined voice information (for example, “Thank you for shopping today. A message announcement such as "I'm looking forward to coming." Or "Thank you. I'm looking forward to coming again." Also in this case, the transmission of the audio information may be any of the “on-demand method” and the “paste method”.

In the above-described embodiment, as an example of processing when audio information is transmitted by the "on-demand method", audio information generated when a user leaves the site is transmitted by the "on-demand method". An example of the processing in the case where the processing is performed will be briefly described with reference to the flowchart in FIG. When an instruction to purchase a product desired by the user and an instruction for a payment method are issued at the user terminal 101 (step Sc1), and an operation to instruct a site exit from the user terminal 101 (click on “Exit” in FIG. 26), The server 10 transmits predetermined voice information “leaving message” to the user terminal 101 (step Sc2). Server 1
0 performs a synchronization process to determine whether or not the audio information has been transmitted to the user terminal 101 (step Sc3), and when it is confirmed that the music information has arrived at the user terminal 101 (“Yes” in step Sc3). ), A voice based on the voice information is generated in the user terminal 101 (step Sc)
4).

As another embodiment for automatically generating a sound according to a predetermined sequence, a server-side process for notifying an error in an information input operation at the time of member registration by voice is provided. An example will be briefly described with reference to the flowchart in FIG. FIG. 21 shows a flowchart of a conventional input error notification character display process at the time of member registration. In the information input at the time of member registration, there are many detailed restrictions such as entering characters and numbers in one place in half-width and another in full-width in another place, so it is difficult to notice input errors It is very effective to perform error notification by voice according to the present invention. Server 10
Starts a predetermined member registration processing program (step Sd1), and starts a voice processing program corresponding to the program (step Sd2). Each time a user inputs information, the server 10 determines whether there is an error in the input of the information. For example, in step Sd3, it is determined whether or not the input of the name is correctly performed. If there is an error in the input of the name (“No” in step Sd3), the corresponding audio information is transmitted to the user terminal 101. The user terminal 101 controls
Confirms that the voice information has arrived (step Sd
4) A predetermined sound (for example, "Name is incorrect. Please check.") Is generated (step Sd).
5) A name input error message is displayed on the screen (step Sd4), and the user is prompted to correct the input error. After confirming that the user has corrected the input error (step Sd3)
"Yes"), the server 10 performs the voice pronunciation processing of the input error notification for other input items (for example, contact information, date of birth, etc.) in the same processing procedure. As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to assist and promote a user's understanding of information and an understanding of an operation procedure by using voice information in Internet shopping, so that user's convenience is dramatically improved. It can increase purchases and facilitate purchase activities.

Further, according to the present invention, the design of the "voice mark" is standardized to a predetermined common design so as to be commonly used at a plurality of different sites. If the user knows the location of the voice information, the usability of the user becomes very good. In this case, as a modification example, specific display information to which the “voice mark” should be additionally displayed may not be displayed on the screen, and only the “voice mark” may be displayed alone. In this case, the user can click on the "voice mark" displayed on the screen or perform a mouse-over operation to listen to the voice information hidden there and enjoy what kind of voice is output.

According to the above embodiment, the following advantages and effects can be expected. The use of voice information in Internet shopping promotes user understanding and enables effective use of display screen space, dramatically increasing user convenience and facilitating purchase behavior. Is done. Freed from excessive "conspicuous competition" to appeal to the sight, and needlessly reduce the size of characters. It will be possible to express what can not be expressed only with visual information, the advantages of audio. That is, the viewer can obtain information from the ears based on auditory information such as timbre and sound quality. Thus, the "viewer" who only sees the sight of characters and images becomes the "viewer" who also hears the hearing. In this way, the visual burden is reduced, the hearing is more balanced, and the user's understanding is faster and deeper. In other words, it is possible to "view with eyes and listen with ears".

[0039]

As described above, according to the present invention, voice information can be utilized very effectively and easily at a virtual site provided via a communication network. As a result, the user's understanding of the various information provided by the site is promoted and quick. In addition, since voice can be used instead of text, etc., the space on the display screen can be effectively used, the convenience of the user is dramatically improved, and the purchase behavior is smoothly performed. It has excellent effects.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram schematically showing the overall configuration of a multi-store Internet shopping system according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram schematically showing the overall configuration of a single-store Internet shopping system according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of the shopping mall server shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing an example of a function group in a shopping mall site according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example of the entire processing in a conventional shopping mall site.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example of the entire processing at the shopping mall site according to the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a conceptual diagram showing one embodiment of a terminal screen display of a top page in a shopping mall site according to the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a conceptual diagram showing an example in which a “newly opened store” corner is selected on the top page of FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a conceptual diagram showing a pronunciation example of voice information and a display example of character string information related to the “newly opened store” corner on the top page of FIG. 7;

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing an example of a voice pronunciation process on a top page of a shopping mall site according to the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing an example of a speech pronunciation process and a display process of character string information on a top page of a shopping mall site according to the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a conceptual diagram showing an example of a conventional terminal screen display of a “newly opened store” corner using characters and images.

FIG. 13 is a conceptual diagram showing an example in which “ABC store” is selected in the terminal screen display of the “newly opened store” corner of the shopping mall site according to the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a conceptual diagram showing an example of pronunciation of audio information related to “ABC store” in a “newly opened store” corner in FIG. 13;

FIG. 15 is a conceptual diagram showing a pronunciation example of voice information related to “ABC store” and a display example of character string information in a “newly opened store” corner in FIG. 13;

FIG. 16 is a flowchart showing an example of voice pronunciation processing in the “newly opened store” corner of the shopping mall site according to the present invention.

FIG. 17 is a flowchart showing an example of a voice pronunciation process and a character string information display process in a “newly opened store” corner of a shopping mall site according to the present invention.

FIG. 18: We of “ABC store” selected in FIG.
The conceptual diagram which shows one Example of the terminal screen display of page b.

FIG. 19 is a conceptual diagram showing an example of selecting and instructing a certain function “greeting of store manager” to which “voice mark” <S> is added in “ABC store” of FIG. 18;

FIG. 20 is a conceptual diagram showing an example of pronunciation of voice information of “greetings of store manager” in “ABC store” in FIG. 18;

FIG. 21 is a flowchart showing a conventional input error notification process at the time of member registration.

FIG. 22 is a flowchart showing an input error notification process at the time of membership registration of a shopping mall site according to the present invention.

FIG. 23 is a flowchart showing an example of on-demand audio information pronunciation processing when a user leaves a shopping mall site according to the present invention.

FIG. 24 is a conceptual diagram of a screen display showing an example in which voice information is automatically pronounced when a top page of a shopping mall site according to the present invention is disclosed.

FIG. 25 is a conceptual diagram of a screen display showing an example in which voice information is automatically pronounced when a product is purchased at a shopping mall site according to the present invention.

FIG. 26 is a conceptual screen display showing an example in which voice information is automatically pronounced when a user leaves the shopping mall site according to the present invention.

FIG. 27 is a flowchart showing an example of audio information pronunciation processing when a top page of a shopping mall site according to the present invention is disclosed, when a product is purchased, and when a user leaves the site.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Server 11 Control means 12 Input means 13 Output means 14-17 Storage means 101, 102, 103 User terminal (client terminal)

Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI Theme coat II (reference) G06F 3/16 330 G06F 3/16 330C G10L 13/00 G10L 3/00 Q

Claims (17)

[Claims] 1. A voice information providing method for supplying information from a server to a client via a communication network, displaying the supplied information on a screen of the client terminal device, and causing the client terminal device to generate a sound corresponding to the display. When audio information is attached to the information displayed on the screen of the client terminal device, a predetermined mark indicating that the audio information is attached is additionally displayed on the screen. And when the user performs an operation of selecting and instructing the mark in the client terminal device, generating a sound based on sound information attached to the mark instructed by the user. How to provide audio information. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein, in the displaying step, the predetermined mark is added at a position corresponding to a specific display object to which audio information is attached among various display objects displayed on the screen of the client terminal device. 2. The audio information providing device according to claim 1, wherein the sound is generated based on specific audio information attached to a specific display object corresponding to the mark designated and selected in the step of causing the sound to be generated. 3. Method. 3. The server according to claim 1, wherein the audio information is supplied from a server to a client via a network when an operation of selecting and instructing the predetermined mark is performed by a user. How to provide audio information. 4. The audio information is supplied along with the display information when display information for displaying a predetermined display screen is supplied from a server to a client via a network. The audio information providing method according to claim 1. 5. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of confirming that the audio information supplied from the server to the client has arrived at the client, and causing the audio information to sound after the arrival of the audio information. Item 3. The audio information providing method according to Item 3. 6. A step of displaying character string information related to the information to which the predetermined mark is added at an arbitrary position on the terminal screen when an operation of selecting and instructing the predetermined mark is performed on the client. 6. The method according to claim 1, further comprising providing the character string information together with sound information to be pronounced. 7. The audio information providing method according to claim 1, wherein the operation of selecting and instructing the predetermined mark includes a cursor moving operation and / or a clicking operation using an operation device such as a mouse. 8. A method according to claim 1, further comprising displaying a mark for selectively instructing cancellation of pronunciation based on voice information at an arbitrary position on a screen displayed on the client terminal device. The audio information providing method described in Crab. 9. The server supplies information to provide a client with a shopping site virtually constructed via a communication network to a client, and various displays of the shopping site are displayed on a screen of the client terminal device. 9. A method according to claim 1, wherein various kinds of audio information are attached to the information, and the predetermined mark is displayed on the screen of the client terminal device corresponding to the display information to which each audio information is attached. A method for providing audio information described in. 10. A program for causing a computer to execute the voice information providing method according to claim 1. 11. A storage medium storing the program according to claim 10. 12. A display information supply means for supplying, to a client, information for displaying a screen of a predetermined site virtually constructed via a communication network, and a plurality of voices to be supplied to the client. Storage means for storing information, and control means for reading audio information from the storage means in association with display information of the screen supplied to the client and transmitting the audio information to the client, wherein the client is connected to the client via a communication network. Means for receiving the display information from the server and displaying the screen of the predetermined site, and receiving voice information corresponding to the displayed screen from the server via a communication network, and generating a voice based on the received voice information And a means for causing the voice information to be provided. 13. The server supplies information to a client to provide a predetermined shopping site virtually constructed via a communication network to the client. The server corresponds to a screen of the predetermined shopping site. The voice information transmitted to the client includes a voice information consisting of a message issued when the top page of the shopping site is opened, and a voice information for supporting or promoting a series of purchasing activities by the user. Or at least voice information consisting of a message issued in a plurality of stages, and voice information consisting of a message issued in a stage in which a user leaves the shopping site, according to the progress of browsing the shopping site in the client , A message according to each stage of the browsing Claim 1 comprising audio information, characterized in that it is sound
3. The audio information providing system according to 2. 14. The voice information is transmitted from the server to the client via a communication network in accordance with display content on the browsing screen when a user makes a voice pronunciation request on a specific browsing screen of the site. 14. The audio information providing system according to claim 12, wherein the audio information is supplied. 15. The audio information is supplied from a server to a client by being pasted on display information for displaying a specific screen of the site, stored in a memory of the client, and stored in the memory of the client. 14. The audio information providing system according to claim 12, wherein, when a user makes a sound pronunciation request while browsing a specific screen, the audio information is generated by reading the audio information stored in the memory. 16. The shopping site according to claim 9, wherein the shopping site is one of a single-store type shopping site and a multi-store type shopping site.
3. The method or system for providing audio information according to claim 1. 17. A predetermined screen indicating that sound can be heard in a browsing screen of a site virtually constructed via a communication network, corresponding to a place where the sound corresponding to the display information can be heard. A step of displaying a voice mark; a step of preparing predetermined voice information corresponding to each display information corresponding to a position where the voice mark is displayed; and a request by a user who is browsing the site. Sounding the predetermined voice information corresponding to the display information corresponding to the location of the voice mark that has been instructed and input, in response to an input operation for specifying the location of the voice mark of the predetermined voice mark. Is built virtually through a communication network, characterized by the use of a common design at multiple different sites Voice operation method in the yarn.