Data processing: database and file management or data structures – Database design – Data structure types
Reexamination Certificate
2000-03-10
2003-07-29
Metjahic, Safet (Department: 2171)
Data processing: database and file management or data structures
Database design
Data structure types
C707S793000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06601060
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to information service systems, and portable devices and information service devices used in such information service systems. The present invention relates particularly to information service systems capable of providing a user with desired information when the user simply inputs thereto a logical concept memorable for the user, and portable devices and information service devices used in such information service systems.
2. Description of the Background Art
Lodgers in a hotel or the like require positional information on their lodgings, dining hall for breakfast and the like. If a lodger is a tourist belonging to a tour group the lodger can obtain such information from a tour guide. If a lodger is an individual tourist, the lodger can obtain such information from the reception of the hotel. At any rate, it is necessary for a lodger to associate his or her lodging, dining hall for breakfast and the like with his or her room number, the name of the dining hall for breakfast and the like, respectively.
Conventionally, in moving to a lodging, a dining hall for breakfast and the like, a lodger refers to his or her own memory and a guide map of the hotel where the lodger stays, to determine a route to his or her destination in the hotel for himself or herself and go to the destination. However, a room number, the name of a hall and the like are in effect a simple number, a name such as a proper noun, and the like, respectively, and are in general forgettable. As such, the lodger can often forget a room number or the name of a hall and in that case must obtain the information on the room number and the like again from the reception or the like of the hotel. Such information changes whenever a lodger changes his or her accommodation, and the lodger must memorize different such information for each accommodation.
Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 5-189690 discloses a guide system assisting a user in moving to a destination. Referring to
FIG. 68
, the conventional guide system includes more than one transmitter
10
used in a building, an exhibition hall and the like and each installed on a passageway at a predetermined position to transmit positional information indicating its installed position, and a user-portable, direction guide device
20
. The positional information is used in direction guide device
20
to determine the current position.
Direction guide device
20
includes a start-point memory
21
storing a start point input by a user, a destination memory
22
storing a destination input by the user, a receive block
23
receiving positional information transmitted from transmitter
10
, and a map memory
24
previously storing a route (i.e., a direction to the destination and the location at which transmitter
10
is installed) in a form of on-map information.
Direction guide device
20
also includes an on-map information search block
25
connected to start-point memory
21
, destination memory
22
and map memory
24
to refer to a start point stored in start-point memory
21
and a destination stored in destination memory
22
to search map memory
24
for on-map information on a route and direction to the destination, and a route memory
26
connected to on-map information search block
25
to store on-map information (a route) retrieved by on-map information search block
25
.
Direction guide device
20
also includes a direction guide block
27
connected to route memory
26
and receive block
23
to refer to positional information received by receive block
23
and on-map information stored in route memory
26
to indicate a direction to be taken by the user.
A user receives direction guide device
20
at a reception or the like and inputs thereinto a start point and a destination. Based on the start point and the destination, on-map information search block
25
calculates a route to the destination which is in turn stored in route memory
26
. When the user approaches a transmitter installed for example at an intersection of passageways, receive block
23
receives positional information. Direction guide block
27
refers to the route to the destination stored in route memory
26
and the positional information received by receive block
23
to determine and indicate to the user a direction to be taken by the user. Thus the user can efficiently reach the destination.
If such guide system is used in an accommodation facility such as a hotel, however, the user must associate his or her necessary logical concepts, such as a lodging, a dining hall for breakfast, with physical concepts, such as a room number, the name of the dining hall for breakfast, and thus memorize them. As such, if the user uses more accommodations in the hotel, it is difficult for the user to memorize such correspondence. Furthermore, this guide system cannot display information in a manner switched depending on the user, such as in languages switched depending on the user. Furthermore, this guide system having an internal map memory for storing data large in scale corresponding to a map, would disadvantageously increase the size of the device itself and render the device inconvenient to hold.
Furthermore, the user is required to input to the guide system both a start point and a destination, which is also required to be input in the form of a physical concept described above. As such, the system is inconvenient for the user to use.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention has been made to overcome the disadvantages described above and contemplates an information service system using user-memorable information to provide desired information, and a portable device and an information service device used in such information service system.
The present invention also contemplates an information service system providing information allowing a user to efficiently reach a destination if the user does not know the name of the destination, and a portable device and an information service device used in such information service system.
The present invention also contemplates an information service system capable of providing information allowing a user to reach a destination without inputting the user's start point, and a portable device and an information service device used in such information service system.
The present invention also contemplates a portable device convenient to hold.
In accordance with the present invention in one aspect an information service system includes a portable device receiving information contained in a first group and converting the information contained in the first group into information contained in a second group for output, and an information service device receiving the information contained in the second group and converting the information contained in the second group into information contained in a third group. The portable device includes an input block inputting the information contained in the first group, a first memory storing an association between the information contained in the first group and the information contained in the second group, a first conversion block connected to the input block and the first memory to receive the information contained in the first group and refer to the association stored in the first memory to convert the information contained in the first group into the information contained in the second group, and a first transmit block connected to the first conversion block to receive an output of the first conversion block and transmit the output of the first conversion block to the information service device. The information service device includes a second memory storing an association between the information contained in the second group and the information contained in the third group, a first receive block receiving information from the first transmit block, and a second conversion block connected to the first receive block and the second memory to receive an output of the first receive block and refer to the association stored in the
Birch & Stewart Kolasch & Birch, LLP
Metjahic Safet
Nguyen Cam Linh
Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
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