JP7683442B2 - Rental Support System - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a rental support system that supports the lending and borrowing of products between customers.

For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a rental system that rents out photographic equipment such as interchangeable lenses that can be used with a user's camera according to the user's needs. According to this document, the rental company's server registers owner information and camera identification information in association with each other, manages reservations for the rental of photographic equipment based on the registered owner information and identification information, and rents and returns the equipment at the rental company's store based on the reservations.

Conventional rental services, such as the rental system in Patent Document 1, involve a renter renting an item stored by a rental company and returning it to the rental company after use.

JP 2013-250741 A

However, conventional rental services are based on a system where the rental company acts as a hub for renting and returning products, which requires storage warehouses according to the size of the products, resulting in issues such as a heavy management burden and poor rental efficiency.

A rental support system according to one aspect of the present application is a rental support system in which a first terminal device used by a first user, a second terminal device used by a second user, and a server are connected via a network, and the rental support system supports the sharing rental of a first product between the first user who is renting the first product and the second user, in which the first terminal device has a first communication unit, the second terminal device has a display unit that displays a list of product information published by the server, an input unit that selects a product to be rented from the list of product information and inputs the rental period and location information of the place where the product will be used, and a second communication unit that transmits order information including the rental period and the location information, and the server has a third communication unit. and a product information database including a list of the product information, a rental information database including rental period information of the rental products and the location information of the rental products, and a user information database including registration information of users including the first user and the second user. When the server receives the order information from the second terminal device, it transmits a request to the first terminal device to ship the first product to the address in the location information of the order information based on the order information, and when it receives a notification from the first terminal device indicating that the product has been shipped, it refers to the rental information database to calculate the expected product arrival date of the first product and transmits the calculated expected product arrival date to the second terminal device.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a rental assistance system according to a first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of each device in the rental assistance system. FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing the flow of a shared rental process. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a product information list screen. FIG. 11 is a flowchart of a process for determining a next user according to the second embodiment. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a list of lender evaluations in the third embodiment. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a chat screen between a lender and a person who wishes to use the service.

EMBODIMENT 1
*** Overview of the Rental Assistance System ***
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a rental assistance system according to the present embodiment.
The rental assistance system 100 of the present embodiment is composed of, for example, a server 40 connected via a network NW, which is an Internet environment, and a plurality of terminal devices used by users of the system. The terminal devices are, for example, smartphones, and are equipped with a rental program, which is an application for using the rental assistance system 100. In FIG. 1, of the plurality of terminal devices, a first terminal device 50a used by a first user and a second terminal device 50b used by a second user are illustrated.

The server 40 stores a product information database 45 that includes a list of product information. For example, the second user selects and orders a product that he or she wishes to rent from the product information list displayed on the second terminal device 50b. The product information list is information based on the product information database 45. The ordered product is then shipped to the second user by the user who had previously used the product. In this way, the rental assistance system 100 is a system that embodies a rental assistance service that supports so-called shared rental, in which the product is shipped from the user who had previously used the product to the next user. Shared rental is also called sub-lending.

The rental assistance system 100 may further include a corporate computer 60. The corporate computer 60 is a computer of a company that provides the products used in the rental assistance service, and updates the product information list on the server 40 to the latest information. The corporate computer 60 is also used to manage sales, such as rental fees, from the rental assistance service.

＊＊＊Block configuration of each device＊＊＊
FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of each device in the rental assistance system.
First, the configuration of the server 40 will be described.

The server 40 is a host server for the rental assistance system 100, and is composed of a control unit 41, a calculation unit 42, a communication unit 43, a storage unit 44, and the like.
The control unit 41 includes one or more processors. The control unit 41 operates in accordance with an operating system (OS) and application programs stored in the storage unit 44, thereby controlling the operation of the server 40.
The calculation unit 42 is a part that performs calculations to determine the next user when there are multiple users wishing to use one product, and when performing this calculation, a part of the control unit 41 functions as the calculation unit 42.

The communication unit 43 is a third communication unit, and is, for example, a communication module including a wired LAN port, and is connected to the network NW via a LAN cable. Note that the communication unit 43 is not limited to wired communication, and may be configured to be connectable to the network NW, and may be, for example, a wireless communication module conforming to the wireless LAN (Local Area Network) standard.
The storage unit 44 is composed of memories such as a RAM (Random Access Memory) and a ROM (Read Only Memory). The storage unit 44 stores an OS, application programs, various data, and the like. The application programs include a rental core program 48 that defines the flow of rental support service processing. The storage unit 44 may also include a storage device such as a hard disk.

The first terminal device 50a is, for example, a smartphone, and is composed of a control unit 51a, a display unit 52a, a communication unit 53a, a storage unit 54a, and the like.
The control unit 51a includes one or more processors. The control unit 51a operates according to an OS and application programs stored in the storage unit 54a, thereby controlling the operation of the first terminal device 50a.
The display unit 52a is configured to include a display device such as a liquid crystal display or an organic EL (Electro Luminescence) display, and displays an image based on image data. The display unit 52a is equipped with a touch panel and also functions as an input unit.

The communication unit 53a uses a wireless communication module conforming to the wireless LAN standard as a preferred example. Note that the communication unit 53a is not limited to a wireless LAN, and may be configured to be connectable to the network NW, for example, via a telephone line such as a mobile communication system.
The storage unit 54a is composed of memories such as RAM and ROM. The storage unit 54a stores an OS, application programs, various data, etc. The application programs include a rental terminal program 57.
Although the first terminal device 50a has been described as a representative here, the second terminal device 50b has the same configuration. In addition, the terminal device is not limited to a smartphone, and may be any terminal device having similar functions, such as a tablet terminal device or a personal computer such as a notebook PC.

The company computer 60 is, for example, a notebook PC, and is composed of a control unit 61, a communication unit 62, a storage unit 63, and the like.
The control unit 61 includes one or more processors. The control unit 61 operates in accordance with the OS and application programs stored in the storage unit 63, thereby controlling the overall operation of the company computer 60.
As a preferred example, the communication unit 62 uses a wireless communication module conforming to the wireless LAN standard. Note that the communication unit 62 is not limited to wireless communication, and may have any configuration that can be connected to the network NW, for example, it may have a wired LAN port, or may be connected to the network NW by a LAN cable.
The storage unit 63 is composed of memories such as RAM and ROM. The storage unit 63 stores an OS, application programs, various data, etc. The various data includes a product information database 65 and a sales management database 66.

＊＊＊Share rental processing flow＊＊＊
Fig. 3 is a flow chart showing the flow of the share rental process Fig. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a product information list screen.
Here, the flow of the shared rental process by the rental assistance system 100 will be described mainly with reference to FIG. 3, and with reference to FIG. 4 as appropriate.

In step S10, the server 40 publishes the list of product information in the product information database 45 in the memory unit 44 via the network NW. The rental core program 48 is running on the server 40, and the contents of the product information database 45 are updated by the company computer 60.

Next, the operation of the second terminal device 50b will be described.
In step S30, the list of product information made public by the server 40 is displayed on the display unit 52b of the second terminal device 50b. This is because the second user who owns the second terminal device 50b has started up the rental terminal program 57 and selected the product he or she wishes to rent.

4 shows a screen 70 displayed on the display unit 52b of the second terminal device 50b. The screen 70 includes a product information list 71, a product image 72, a product description 73, and the like.
In the screen 70, a screen name "Rental Product List" is displayed in the upper left, and a product image 72, which is a photo of a product selected by the second user, is displayed below the screen name. The product model number "PG8X2" is displayed in the upper right of the product image 72. In addition, a product image 75 of a similar product is displayed below the product image 72. The product image 75 is a photo smaller in size than the product image 72, and the product model number "PG8X1" is displayed in the upper right of the image. The product images 72 and 75 are digital cameras as an example. The difference between the product image 72 and the product image 75 is that the color tone of the body is different. Note that the product is not limited to a camera, and may be any product that can be delivered between users, such as electronic devices such as printers and projectors, household electrical appliances such as televisions, refrigerators, and washing machines, musical instruments, and hobby products such as leisure goods.

The product information list 71 includes columns for product number, manufacturer name, model number, user name, rental availability, and rental order.
The product number is a serial number of the product. The manufacturer name is the name of the manufacturer of the product. The model number is the manufacturer's model number of the product. The user name is a symbolized name of the user who currently owns the product. Lending availability is an identification field for whether the product is available for share rental or not, with "o" indicating that it can be sub-rented and "x" indicating that it cannot be sub-rented. For products that are "o" indicating that they can be sub-rented, an "order button" is displayed in the rental order field. The product information list 71 is also displayed in a list of products with the same model number. For example, when a user clicks on product images 75 with different color tones, the product information list is displayed in a list of product information arranged by the model number of the product image 75.

Return to Figure 3.
In step S31, it is determined whether or not an order for a product has been placed in the product information list 71 of the second terminal device 50b. If an order for a product has been placed, the process proceeds to step S32. If no order for a product has been placed, the process returns to step S30. Here, it is assumed that the second user who owns the second terminal device 50b presses the "order button" in the rental order column for product number "0001" in the product information list 71. When the "order button" on the display unit 52b, which functions as an input unit, is pressed, the screen switches to an input screen for order information, and the second user inputs order information including the rental period and the location information of the place of use.
In step S32, the second terminal device 50b transmits the order information for the product number "0001" from the communication unit 53b serving as the second communication unit.

Returning to the operation of the server 40 .
Next, in step S11, the server 40 determines whether or not there is order information from the terminal device. If the order information is received, the process proceeds to step S12. If the order information is not received, the process continues to wait for order information in step S11.
In step S12, the server 40 reads the received order information.
In step S13, the server 40 compares the contents of the read order information with the rental information database 46 and the user information database 47 in the storage unit 44. The rental information database 46 stores the current location information of the product number "0001". The user information database 47 stores the contact information of the first user who is the current owner of the product number "0001".

In step S14, the server 40 transmits a shipping request notification to the first terminal device 50a of the first user matched based on the order information, requesting that the first product be shipped to the address in the location information on the order form. More specifically, a shipping request notification is transmitted to the first terminal device 50a to ship product number "0001" as the first product. In other words, upon receiving the order information from the second terminal device 50b, the server 40 transmits a request notification to the first terminal device 50a to ship the first product to the address in the location information in the order information based on the order information. The shipping request notification also includes an invoice requesting that the first user be charged for the rental fee of the first product. The invoice contains information such as the rental fee and a transfer account. The rental fee is the rental fee until the shipping date of the first product.

Next, the operation of the first terminal device 50a will be described.
In step S20, the first terminal device 50a determines whether or not a shipping request notification has been received from the server 40. If a shipping request notification has been received, the process proceeds to step S21. If a shipping request notification has not been received, the process continues to wait for the shipping request notification in step S20.
When receiving the shipping request notice, the first user ships product number "0001" to the address specified in the shipping request notice and specified in the address information on the order form.
Then, in step S21, the first terminal device 50a transmits a product shipment report notification indicating that the product has been shipped.

Returning to the operation of the server 40 .
In step S15, the server 40 determines whether or not a product shipping report has been received from the terminal device. If a product shipping report has been received, the process proceeds to step S16. If a product shipping report has not been received, the process continues to wait for the product shipping report in step S15.
In step S16, upon receiving the product shipping report notice, the server 40 refers to the rental information database 46 to calculate the expected arrival date of the first product. In detail, the expected arrival date of the product is calculated from the address of the sender of product number "0001" and the address information of the destination. The product shipping report notice includes payment information proving that the first user has paid the rental fee for the first product. The server 40 transmits the payment information to the company computer 60.
In step S17, the server 40 transmits an expected arrival notice including the calculated expected arrival date of the product to the second terminal device 50b. In other words, when the server 40 receives a notice indicating that the product has been shipped from the first terminal device 50a, the server 40 refers to the rental information database 46 to calculate the expected arrival date of the first product, and transmits the calculated expected arrival date of the product to the second terminal device 50b.

Returning to the operation of the second terminal device 50b.
In step S33, the second terminal device 50b receives the expected arrival notification.
In step S34, the second terminal device 50b displays the received arrival schedule notification on the display unit 52b.

As described above, according to the rental assistance system 100 of this embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
The rental assistance system 100 is a system in which a first terminal device 50a used by a first user, a second terminal device 50b used by a second user, and a server 40 are connected via a network to assist in the sharing rental of a first product between the first user who is renting the first product and the second user. In more detail, the first terminal device 50a has a communication unit 53a as a first communication unit, and the second terminal device 50b has a display unit 52b that displays a list of product information published by the server 40, a display unit 52b as an input unit for selecting a product to be rented from the product information list and inputting the rental period and location information of the place where the product will be used, and a communication unit 53b as a second communication unit for transmitting order information including the rental period and location information, and the server 40 has a communication unit 43 as a third communication unit, a product information database 45 including the product information list, and a product information database 46 including information on the rental period of the product being rented and the location information of the product being rented. The server 40 has a rental information database 46 including a rental address, and a user information database 47 including registration information of users including a first user and a second user. When the server 40 receives order information from the second terminal device 50b, it sends a request notification to the first terminal device 50a to ship the first product to the address in the location information on the order form based on the order information, and when it receives a product shipping report notification indicating that the product has been shipped from the first terminal device 50a, it refers to the rental information database 46 to calculate the expected product arrival date of the first product and sends an expected arrival notification including the calculated expected product arrival date to the second terminal device 50b.

According to this system, a first product owned by a first user can be directly shipped from the first user to a second user and lent to the second user.
Therefore, unlike conventional rental services in which products are rented and returned through a rental company as a hub, the rental assistance system 100 can simplify the storage warehouse.
Therefore, it is possible to provide a rental assistance system 100 that allows sub-lending between users and improves rental efficiency.

In addition, in conventional rental services, even if the next renter has been decided, the previous renter must return the item to the rental company, and the next renter cannot rent the item until the previous renter has returned it and the product has been inspected and undergone a maintenance period, resulting in poor rental efficiency. In detail, it was necessary to secure a storage warehouse and management man-hours of a scale according to the size of the product to be rented. In addition, when transporting the product, it is necessary to return it to the rental company that serves as a hub, and then deliver it from the rental company to the next renter, which incurs round-trip transportation costs. In addition, since several days are required for management after the product is returned before it can be rented out again, rental efficiency per unit time is limited.
In contrast, the rental assistance system 100 of this embodiment allows users to sub-rent items among themselves, thus resolving the above-mentioned problems with conventional rental services and dramatically improving rental efficiency. In particular, it is possible to simplify the storage warehouse and reduce management labor. Furthermore, since the product is directly shipped between the lender and the borrower, it is possible to rent the product in a timely manner, shorten the number of days for transportation, and reduce transportation costs. In other words, it is possible to dramatically improve rental efficiency compared to conventional rental services.

Moreover, the product information list 71 is displayed in a manner that arranges products of the same model number.
This allows products to be displayed in order by model number, making it easy for users to select the product they want.

EMBODIMENT 2
***How to select a user from multiple applicants***
FIG. 5 is a flow chart showing the process flow of the method for determining a user from among a plurality of applicants according to this embodiment, and corresponds to FIG.
In the first embodiment, the flow of the method for sublending a product to one user has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, if there are multiple users who have ordered the first product, the next user may be determined based on the order of receipt of the order information and on criteria including the distance between the current location of the first product and the location of the user. Hereinafter, the same components as those in the first embodiment are given the same numbers, and duplicated descriptions will be omitted.

In Fig. 3, if there are a plurality of users who wish to use the first product, the users are determined by carrying out the following process in step S16. The following description will be given mainly with reference to Fig. 5 and with reference to Fig. 3.
In step S60, the server 40 determines whether or not there is a plurality of pieces of order information. If there is a plurality of pieces of order information, the process proceeds to step S61. If there is not a plurality of pieces of order information, the process proceeds to step S65. In step S65, the process returns to the flowchart of FIG. 3 and executes the process of step S16.

In step S61, the server 40 reads a plurality of pieces of order information. In detail, while reading the plurality of pieces of order information, the server 40 checks the order of receipt of the order information and the judgment items to be used in the next calculation, including the distance between the current location of the first product and the location of the user, against each database and creates a data table in the storage unit 44.
In step S62, the server 40 determines the next user of the first product based on the calculation of the following formula (1): Then, it calculates the expected date of arrival of the product to the next user.

Next user = max{(Kr/Ri+Kd/Di) x (Lj-Pi)} ... formula (1)

In formula (1), Kr is a weighting coefficient for the reservation order based on the order of receipt of the order information.
Ri is the reservation order of user i.
Kd is a distance weighting factor.
Di is the number of days it takes to transport the product depending on the distance between user i and the current user.
Lj is the number of days until the loan deadline set by the current user j.
Pi is the number of rental days desired by user i.

In step S63, formula (1) is calculated for each of the multiple users, and the user with the largest result is determined to be the next user. The expected arrival date of the product for the next user is then calculated from the number of transport days Di. In other words, the server 40 determines the user of the first product by calculation based on criteria including the order of receipt of order information from the multiple users and the distance between the current location of the first product and the location of the user, and then calculates the expected arrival date of the product. Note that the method is not limited to determining the next user using formula (1), and the next user may be determined based on criteria including the order of receipt of order information and the distance between the current location of the first product and the location of the user.

In step S64, the server 40 returns to the process of step S17 in FIG. 3. In more detail, the server 40 transmits an expected arrival notification including the expected arrival date of the product to the second terminal device 50b of the determined next user.

As described above, according to the rental assistance system 100 of this embodiment, in addition to the effects of the first embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
When there are multiple users who have ordered the first product, the server 40 receives a notification from the first terminal device 50a indicating that the product has been shipped, and when calculating the expected arrival date of the first product by referring to the rental information database 46, it determines the user of the first product based on calculations including the order in which the order information was received from the multiple users and the distance between the current location of the first product and the location of the users, and then calculates the expected arrival date of the product.

By doing this, users are determined based on calculations based on criteria including the order acceptance order and the distance the product will be transported, which shortens the number of days it takes to transport the product and reduces transportation costs, making for an efficient shared rental system.

EMBODIMENT 3
***Evaluation of lenders, information exchange with lenders***
Fig. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a lender evaluation list screen according to this embodiment, and corresponds to Fig. 4. Fig. 7 is a diagram showing an example of a chat screen between a lender and a user who wishes to use the service, and corresponds to Fig. 6.

In the first embodiment, the first item in the list of items available for loan in the product information list is ordered, but the product may be selected with reference to other users' ratings of the loaner. Also, information about products of interest may be exchanged with the loaner via chat to help with product selection. Below, components that are the same as those in the first embodiment are given the same numbers, and duplicate explanations will be omitted.

For example, when the user name "111u" of the product No. "0001" is clicked in the product information list 71 in Fig. 4, the screen transitions to the screen 80 in Fig. 6. In other words, when a specific user is selected from the list display of the product information list 71, the screen switches to the screen 80 in which the evaluation results for the specific user are displayed.
6 is a screen showing a list of evaluations that user "111u" received as a lender from other users in past transactions, and the top left corner of the screen shows the contents of the screen as "List of evaluations by 111u." Below the screen contents, a list of evaluations 81 is displayed.
The evaluation list 81 has three evaluation categories: good "◎", average "〇", and poor "△", and for each category, the number of people and the percentage (%) are displayed. It can be seen that 78% of users have rated the lender "111u" as good "◎", and if average "〇" is included, 94% of users rate him as an average or above lender. In addition, individual evaluation comments from users who rated him as good "◎" are displayed below the evaluation list 81.

An operation button 82 displaying "Chat with 111u" is provided to the right of the evaluation list 81. Clicking the operation button 82 transitions to screen 90 in Fig. 7. In other words, the screen 80 displaying the evaluation results for a specific user has an operation button 82 for chatting with the specific user.
7 is a chat screen for exchanging information between the asker who operated the operation button 82 and the lender "111u." The left side of the screen 90 displays comments from the lender "111u," and the right side displays comments from the asker "827a."
Screen 90 shows an example of an information exchange taking place, with the questioner "827a" saying "Hello, can you tell me about PG8X2?" and the lender "111u" responding with "Yes, what is it about?"

As described above, according to the rental assistance system 100 of this embodiment, in addition to the effects of the above embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
The product information list 71 displays a product number indicating the first product and a list of users including the first user, and when a specific user is selected from the list display, the screen switches to one that displays the evaluation results for the specific user.

This allows prospective users to refer to the lender's past evaluation results when renting an item.

In addition, the screen 80 on which the evaluation results for a specific user are displayed has an operation button 82 for chatting with the specific user.

This allows prospective users to use chat to exchange information with the owner of the item they wish to rent about any concerns they may have about that item.

40...server, 41...control unit, 42...calculation unit, 43...communication unit, 44...storage unit, 45...product information database, 46...rental information database, 47...user information database, 48...rental core program, 50a...first terminal device, 50b...second terminal device, 51a...control unit, 52a...display unit, 52b...display unit, 53a...communication unit, 53b...communication unit, 54a...storage unit, 57...rental terminal program, 60...corporate computer, 61...control unit, 62...communication unit, 63...storage unit, 65...product information database, 66...sales management database, 70...screen, 71...product information list, 72...product image, 73...product description, 75...product image, 80...screen, 81...rating list, 82...operation button, 90...screen, 100...rental support system.

Claims (4)

A rental support system in which a first terminal device used by a first user, a second terminal device used by a second user, and a server are connected via a network, and which supports a sharing rental of a first product between the first user who is currently renting the first product and the second user,
the first terminal device has a first communication unit,
The second terminal device is
a display unit that displays a list of product information published by the server;
an input section for selecting a product to be rented from the product information list and inputting the rental period and the location information of the place where the product will be used;
a second communication unit that transmits order information including the rental period and the location information;
The server,
A third communication unit;
a product information database including the product information list;
A rental information database including rental period information of the rented product and location information of the rented product;
A user information database including registration information of users including the first user and the second user,
When the server receives the order information from the second terminal device, the server transmits a request to the first terminal device to ship the first product to the address of the location information in the order information based on the order information;
Upon receiving a notification from the first terminal device indicating that the product has been shipped, refer to the rental information database to calculate an expected product arrival date of the first product, and transmit the calculated expected product arrival date to the second terminal device.
A rental assistance system ,
When there are a plurality of users who have ordered the first product,
The server,
A notification indicating that the product has been shipped is received from the first terminal device, and the rental information data
When calculating the expected arrival date of the first product by referring to the base,
The order of receipt of the order information from the plurality of users and the current order number of the first product
The distance between the location of the user and the location of the applicant is calculated based on the determination item.
After determining the user of the product, calculate the expected arrival date of the product.
Rental assistance system. The product information list is displayed in a sorted order for products of the same model number.
The rental assistance system according to claim 1 . The product information list displays a product number indicating the first product and a list of users including the first user,
When a specific user is selected from the list display, the screen is switched to one in which the evaluation result for the specific user is displayed.
3. The rental assistance system according to claim 1 or 2 . The screen on which the evaluation result for the specified user is displayed includes:
An operation button for chatting with the predetermined user is provided.
The rental assistance system according to claim 3 .

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