Abstract:
It is necessary to effectively encourage the user to take an action without making the user feel inconvenience, regardless of the charge state of the device held by the user. A way of improved the inducement of user&#39;s conduct can be to retrieve information indicating a schedule or task of the user, to retrieve charge state information indicating a device held by the user, to determine a facility to which the user is to be guided, on the basis of the information indicating the schedule or task of the user and the charge state information, and to output information indicating the determined facility.

Description:
BACKGROUND 
       [0001]    1. Technical Field 
         [0002]    The present disclosure relates to an action encouragement method, apparatus, and program for encouraging the user to move to a facility suitable for a schedule or task. 
         [0003]    2. Description of the Related Art 
         [0004]    There have been proposed systems that encourage the user to take a predetermined action. Examples of the predetermined action include an action conducive to energy saving and an action encouraging a reduction in garbage. 
         [0005]    For example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2013-20587 discloses a user action encouragement method which involves detecting an action of a user and encouraging the user to take an action according to user characteristics. Specifically, this user action encouragement method involves analyzing user characteristics from the detection result of a user action and encouraging the user to take an action according to the user characteristics. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0006]    However, the technology of Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2013-20587 only encourages the user to take an action such as energy saving, and such encouragement is not made considering the state of the device held by the user, such as a smartphone. 
         [0007]    While these systems have drastically improved in performance in recent years, the power consumption thereof has increased accordingly. For this reason, if such a system only encourages the user to take an action without considering the charge state of the device, the battery of the device may be exhausted, thereby making the user feel inconvenience. 
         [0008]    One non-limiting and exemplary embodiment provides an action encouragement method, apparatus, and program which can effectively encourage the user to take an action without making the user feel inconvenience, regardless of the charge state of the device held by the user. 
         [0009]    In one general aspect, the techniques disclosed here feature a computer-implemented method. The computer-implemented method includes retrieving, by a computer, information indicating a schedule or task of a user, the schedule being a plan whose execution time is determined, the task being a plan whose execution time is not determined; retrieving, by the computer, charge state information indicating the amount of charge of a device held by the user; determining, by the computer, a facility to which the user is to be guided, on the basis of the information indicating the schedule or task of the user and the charge state information; and outputting information indicating the determined facility to the device held by the user. 
         [0010]    According to the present disclosure, it is possible to effectively encourage the user to take an action without making the user feel inconvenience, regardless of the charge state of the device held by the user. 
         [0011]    It should be noted that general or specific embodiments may be implemented as a system, a method, an integrated circuit, a computer program, a storage medium, or any selective combination thereof. 
         [0012]    Additional benefits and advantages of the disclosed embodiments will become apparent from the specification and drawings. The benefits and/or advantages may be individually obtained by the various embodiments and features of the specification and drawings, which need not all be provided in order to obtain one or more of such benefits and/or advantages. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0013]      FIG. 1A  is a diagram showing an overview of an action encouragement system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; 
           [0014]      FIG. 1B  is a diagram showing a data center operating company according to the present embodiment; 
           [0015]      FIG. 1C  is a diagram showing a jointly operated data center operating company according to the present embodiment; 
           [0016]      FIG. 2  is a block diagram showing an example configuration of an action encouragement system according to the present embodiment; 
           [0017]      FIG. 3  is a diagram showing an example of facility information according to the present embodiment; 
           [0018]      FIG. 4A  is a diagram showing examples of a schedule according to the present embodiment; 
           [0019]      FIG. 4B  is a diagram showing examples of a task according to the present embodiment; 
           [0020]      FIG. 5  is a flowchart showing an example of the steps of an action encouragement process according to the present embodiment; 
           [0021]      FIG. 6A  is a diagram showing a display example of a user guide message according to the present embodiment; 
           [0022]      FIG. 6B  is a diagram showing a display example of a user guide message according to the present embodiment; 
           [0023]      FIG. 7  is a diagram showing the hardware configuration of a computer that implements the functions of devices on the basis of a program; 
           [0024]      FIG. 8  is a diagram showing service type 1 (company&#39;s own data center type); 
           [0025]      FIG. 9  is a diagram showing service type 2 (IaaS type); 
           [0026]      FIG. 10  is a diagram showing service type 3 (PaaS type); and 
           [0027]      FIG. 11  is a diagram showing service type 4 (SaaS type); 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0028]    Now, an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. 
       Overview of Services Provided 
       [0029]      FIGS. 1A to 1C  are diagrams showing overviews of action encouragement systems according to the present embodiment.  FIG. 1A  shows an overview of an action encouragement system according to the present embodiment. A group  10  is, for example, a facility and may have any size. The group  10  includes multiple devices  10   a  consisting of devices A and B and a gateway  10   b.    
         [0030]    The devices  10   a  include devices which can be connected to the Internet (e.g., smartphone, PC) and devices which cannot be connected to the Internet by themselves. The devices  10  may include devices which cannot be connected to the Internet by themselves but can be connected thereto through the gateway  10   b . The group  10  also includes users  1  who use the devices  10   a.    
         [0031]    A data center operating company  11  includes a cloud server  11   a . The cloud server  11   a  is a virtual server that cooperates with various devices through the Internet. The cloud server  11   a  mostly manages big data or the like, which is difficult to handle using a typical database management tool or the like. The data center operating company  11  performs the management of data, the management of the cloud server  11   a , the operation of a data center which performs those, and the like. Details of the operation performed by the data center operating company  11  will be described later. 
         [0032]    The data center operating company  11  is not limited to a company which only performs the management of data, the operation of the cloud server  11   a , and the like. For example, if a device manufacturer which develops and manufactures one of the devices  10   a  also performs the management of data, the management of the cloud server  11   a , and the like, the device manufacturer serves as the data center operating company  11  ( FIG. 1B ). 
         [0033]    Further, the data center operating company  11  may not consist of a single company. For example, if a device manufacturer and a different management company manage data or operate the cloud server  11   a  in a joint or shared manner, both or either thereof serve as the data center operating company  11  ( FIG. 1C ). 
         [0034]    A service provider  12  holds a server  12   a . The server  12   a  may have any size and may be, for example, a memory in a personal computer (PC). The service provider  120  may not hold the server  12   a.    
         [0035]    In the above service, the gateway  10   b  is not essential. For example, if the cloud server  11   a  manages all the data, this system does not have to include the gateway  10   b . There are also cases in which there are no devices which cannot be connected to the Internet by themselves, like a case in which all devices in a store are connected to the Internet. 
         [0036]    Next, the flow of information in the above service will be described. First, the devices A and B in the group  10  transmit log information thereof to the cloud server  11   a  in the data center operating company  11 . The cloud server  11   a  accumulates the log information from the devices A and B ( FIG. 1A ). 
         [0037]    The log information is, for example, information indicating the status, date/time, or the like of the operation of each device  10   a , such as a smartphone or PC. However, the log information is not limited to such information but rather is all information which can be retrieved from all the devices. 
         [0038]    Log information may be provided from the devices  10   a  directly to the cloud server  11   a  through the Internet. Further, log information from the devices  10   a  may be temporarily accumulated in the gateway  10   b  and then provided from the gateway  10   b  to the cloud server  11   a.    
         [0039]    The cloud server  11   a  of the data center operating company  11  provides a predetermined amount of the accumulated log information to the service provider  12 . The predetermined amount may be an amount obtained by organizing the information accumulated in the data center operating company so that the information can be provided to the service provider  12 , or may be an amount requested by the service provider  12 . Further, the amount of log information to be provided need not necessarily be predetermined and may be changed according to the situation. 
         [0040]    The log information is stored in the server  12   a  held by the service provider  12  as necessary ( FIG. 1A ). The service provider  12  organizes the log information into information suitable for services to be provided to users and then provides the resulting information to the users. Users to which the above information is provided may be the users  1 , who use the devices  10   a , or may be external users  2 . 
         [0041]    For example, the above information may be provided from the service provider  12  directly to the users [(e) of  FIG. 1A ]. Or, the information may be provided to the user again through the cloud server  11   a  of the data center operating company  11  [(c) and (d) of  FIG. 1A ]. Further, the cloud server  11   a  of the data center operating company  11  may organize the log information into information suitable for services to be provided to the users and then provide the resulting information to the service provider  12 . 
         [0042]    The users  1  and users  2  may be the same or different. 
       EMBODIMENT 
       [0043]      FIG. 2  is a block diagram showing an example configuration of the action encouragement system according to the present embodiment. As shown in  FIG. 2 , the action encouragement system includes terminal devices  20   a  to  20   c , a facility information management device  30 , and an action encouragement device  40  which are connected through a network  50 . 
         [0044]    For example, the terminal devices  20   a  to  20   c  correspond to the devices  10   a ; the facility information management device  30  corresponds to the cloud server  11   a ; and the action encouragement device  40  corresponds to the server  12   a.    
         [0045]    The terminal devices  20   a  to  20   c  are user terminal devices such as smartphones or PCs. The terminal devices  20   a  to  20   c  are connected to the network  50  wirelessly, but may be connected thereto by wire. 
         [0046]    The facility information management device  30  is a server which manages facility information, for example, compiles or updates it. The facility information management device  30  is connected to the network  50  by wire or wirelessly. 
         [0047]    Referring now to  FIG. 3 , the facility information held by the facility information management device  30  will be described.  FIG. 3  is a diagram showing an example of the facility information according to the present embodiment. 
         [0048]    The facility information shown in  FIG. 3  includes facility names, types, addresses, with or without charging services, and the degrees of congestion. Note that the facility information shown in  FIG. 3  is illustrative only and any other types of information about facilities may be included. The facility information may also include information about the facility in which the user is currently staying. 
         [0049]    A facility name refers to the name of a facility. A type refers to the type of a facility. An address refers to the address of the location of a facility. “With or without charging service” refers to information indicating whether the user of a facility can receive charging services. 
         [0050]    The degree of congestion refers to the ratio of the number of the current users of a facility to the maximum number of users who can use the facility. Each facility always transmits information indicating the degree of congestion from a server or the like held by the facility to the facility information management device  30 . The facility information management device  30  always receives the congestion degree information from the server or the like held by the facility and updates the corresponding degree of congestion in the facility information. 
         [0051]    Alternatively, the facility information management device  30  may receive, from a server or the like held by each facility, information indicating the maximum number of users who can use the facility and information indicating the number of the current users of the facility and then calculate the degree of congestion. 
         [0052]    The degree of congestion may be calculated by another criterion. For example, if a facility is providing charging services for terminal devices, the degree of congestion of the facility may be calculated from the ratio of the number of outlets in use to the number of outlets installed for charging services in the facility. 
         [0053]    Referring back to  FIG. 2 , the action encouragement device  40  is a server which includes an input unit  41 , a display unit  42 , a communication unit  43 , a storage unit  44 , and a control unit  45 . 
         [0054]    The input unit  41  is an input device such as a keyboard or mouse. The display unit  42  is a display device such as a display. The communication unit  43  is a network card which communicates with other devices through the network  50 . 
         [0055]    The storage unit  44  is a storage device such as a memory or hard disk drive. The storage unit  44  stores information such as a schedule  44   a  and a task  44   b . In the following description, the schedule  44   a  is information indicating plans whose execution time is determined, whereas the task  44   b  is information indicating plans whose execution time is not determined. 
         [0056]    More specifically, the schedule  44   a  is information indicating schedules of the users holding the terminal devices  20   a  to  20   c . The action encouragement device  40  retrieves, from the terminal devices  20   a  to  20   c , information indicating schedules of the users registered in the terminal devices  20   a  to  20   c  and stores the information indicating of the schedules as the schedule  44   a.    
         [0057]    The task  44   b  is information indicating tasks of the users holding the terminal devices  20   a  to  20   c . The action encouragement device  40  retrieves, from the terminal devices  20   a  to  20   c , information indicating tasks of the users registered in the terminal devices  20   a  to  20   c  and stores the information indicating the tasks as the task  44   b.    
         [0058]    Referring now to  FIGS. 4A and 4B , the schedule  44   a  and task  44   b  will be described in detail.  FIG. 4A  is a diagram showing an example of the schedule  44   a  according to the present embodiment, and  FIG. 4B  is a diagram showing an example of the task  44   b  according to the present embodiment. 
         [0059]    While  FIGS. 4A and 4B  show daily schedules of a single user and daily tasks of a single user, respectively, the schedule  44   a  and task  44   b  includes schedules and tasks of multiple users who are to be encouraged to take an action. The schedule  44   a  may be storing schedules corresponding to several days. 
         [0060]    As shown in  FIG. 4A , the schedule  44   a  includes a plan indicating that the user will take a lunch “from 12:00 to 13:00” and a plan indicating that the user will have a video conference “from 15:00 to 16:00.” As shown in  FIG. 4B , the task  44   b  includes a task indicating that the user will do “shopping at a shop” and a task indicating that the user will “send mail at a post office.” 
         [0061]    Referring back to  FIG. 2 , the control unit  45  includes a schedule/task retrieval unit  45   a , a charge state retrieval unit  45   b , a facility information retrieval unit  45   c , and a facility determination unit  45   d.    
         [0062]    The schedule/task retrieval unit  45   a  retrieves information indicating a schedule or task from each of the terminal devices  20   a  to  20   c  through the communication unit  43  and network  50 . The schedule/task retrieval unit  45   a  then stores the retrieved schedule or task information in the storage unit  44  as the schedule  44   a  or task  44   b.    
         [0063]    The schedule/task retrieval unit  45   a  determines whether any task is registered in the task  44   b , or compares the current date/time with the information registered in the schedule  44   a  and then determines whether there is any schedule which should be executed within a predetermined time. 
         [0064]    The charge state retrieval unit  45   b  retrieves, from each of the terminal devices  20   a  to  20   c , charge state information indicating the amount of charge of the terminal device  20 . The charge state retrieval unit  45   b  then compares the amount of charge with a predetermined threshold to determine whether the amount of charge of the terminal device  20  is sufficient. 
         [0065]    The facility information retrieval unit  45   c  retrieves information about facilities in which a schedule or task of the user of each terminal device  20  to be executed within a predetermined time can be executed, as well as information indicating the degrees of congestion of the facilities. 
         [0066]    The facility determination unit  45   d  determines a facility to which the user should be guided, on the basis of the information about the facilities and the information indicating the degrees of congestion of the facilities retrieved by the facility information retrieval unit  45   c  and the charge state information of the terminal device  20  retrieved by the charge state retrieval unit  45   b . The facility determination unit  45   d  then transmits a message guiding the user to the determined facility, to the terminal device  20 . 
         [0067]    Specifically, if the amount of charge is sufficient, the facility determination unit  45   d  transmits a message guiding the user to a facility having a low degree of congestion, of the facilities in which the schedule or task can be executed. 
         [0068]    In contrast, if the amount of charge is insufficient, the facility determination unit  45   d  transmits a message guiding the user to a facility having a low degree of congestion, of the facilities in which the schedule or task can be executed and which provide charging services. 
         [0069]    Thus, it is possible to guide the user to a facility suitable for executing the schedule or task while preventing the user from feeling inconvenience due to the battery exhaustion of the terminal device  20 . 
         [0070]    Next, there will be described the steps of an action encouragement process according to the present embodiment.  FIG. 5  is a flowchart showing an example of the steps of an action encouragement process according to the present embodiment. 
         [0071]    First, the schedule/task retrieval unit  45   a  retrieves information indicating a schedule or task from one of the terminal devices  20   a  to  20   c  through the communication unit  43  and network  50  (step S 1 ). 
         [0072]    Specifically, the schedule/task retrieval unit  45   a  receives information indicating a schedule or task transmitted from one of the terminal devices  20   a  to  20   c  on the basis of an operation of the user of the terminal device  20 , who wants to receive an action encouragement service. 
         [0073]    Alternatively, the schedule/task retrieval unit  45   a  may receive information indicating a schedule or task as follows: it receives an encouragement service providing request from one of the terminal devices  20   a  to  20   c  whose user wants to receive an action encouragement service, requests the terminal device  20  to transmit information indicating a schedule or task of the user, and then receives the schedule or task information transmitted by the terminal device  20  on the basis of the request. 
         [0074]    The schedule/task retrieval unit  45   a  then stores the received schedule or task information in the storage unit  44  as the schedule  44   a  or task  44   b.    
         [0075]    The schedule/task retrieval unit  45   a  then retrieves current date/time information from an internal clock (not shown) included in the action encouragement device  40  (step S 2 ). 
         [0076]    The schedule/task retrieval unit  45   a  then compares the current date/time information with the schedule  44   a  and task  44   b  to determine whether there is any schedule or task to be executed within a predetermined time. If there is no schedule or task to be executed within the predetermined time (step S 3 : NO), step S 2  is performed again after the lapse of a certain time. 
         [0077]    For example, if the current time is 14:00 and the predetermined time is one hour, the video conference which the user will have from 15:00 to 16:00, which is included in the schedule  44   a  shown in  FIG. 4A , is a schedule to be executed within one hour. 
         [0078]    If there is any schedule or task to be executed within the predetermined time among the schedules and tasks of the user (step S 3 : YES), the charge state retrieval unit  45   b  retrieves, from the terminal device  20  held by the user, charge state information thereof (step S 4 ). 
         [0079]    The charge state retrieval unit  45   b  then determines whether the amount of charge exceeds a predetermined threshold (step S 5 ). If the charge state exceeds the predetermined threshold (step S 5 : YES), the facility information retrieval unit  45   c  retrieves information indicating the degrees of congestion of facilities in which the schedule or task to be executed with the predetermined time can be executed (step S 6 ). 
         [0080]    Specifically, first, the facility information retrieval unit  45   c  retrieves current location information from the terminal device  20 . The facility information retrieval unit  45   c  then determines a facility type in which the schedule or task to be executed within the predetermined time can be executed. For example, if the schedule to be executed within the predetermined time is “a video conference”, the facility information retrieval unit  45   c  determines a facility type in which the video conference can be executed. 
         [0081]    This determination is made by previously receiving, from the user, the registration of facility types in which respective schedules or tasks can be executed and then referring to the facility types. For example, the user previously registers “coffeehouse” or the like as a facility type in which a video conference is executed. 
         [0082]    Alternatively, the storage unit  44  of the action encouragement device  40  may previously store a table indicating the correspondences between schedules or tasks and facilities in which the schedules or tasks can be executed. In this case, the above determination can be made by previously associating a video conference with coffeehouse in the table. 
         [0083]    The facility information retrieval unit  45   c  then retrieves information indicating a facility which corresponds to the determined facility type and is close to the retrieved current location, from the facilities registered in the facility information shown in  FIG. 3 , as well as retrieves information indicating the degree of congestion of the facility. 
         [0084]    For example, if it is determined that the video conference can be executed at a “coffeehouse,” the facility information retrieval unit  45   c  retrieves information indicating a facility whose type is “coffeehouse” and which is close to the current location, from among the facilities registered in the facility information shown in  FIG. 3 , as well as retrieves information indicating the degree of congestion of the facility. 
         [0085]    The facility close to the current location is, for example, a facility in the same municipality as that of the current location of the user. The facility close to the current location is identified by referring to the address information registered in the facility information shown in  FIG. 3 . 
         [0086]    The facility information shown in  FIG. 3  includes four facilities whose type is “coffeehouse.” At this time, assuming that all the four “coffeehouses” are facilities close to the current location, the facility information retrieval unit  45   c  retrieves information indicating the four facilities whose type is “coffeehouse” and information indicating the degrees of congestion of the four facilities. 
         [0087]    Subsequently, the facility determination unit  45   d  determines a facility which has the lowest degree of congestion, on the basis of the information indicating the facilities and the information indicating the degrees of congestion thereof retrieved by the facility information retrieval unit  45   c  and then transmits a message guiding the user to the facility determined to have the lowest degree of congestion, to the terminal device  20  held by the user (step S 7 ). 
         [0088]    In the example of  FIG. 3 , the facility determination unit  45   d  determines that, of the four “coffeehouses” retrieved by the facility information retrieval unit  45   c , a “coffee shop D” is a facility having the lowest degree of congestion and then transmits a message guiding the user to the “coffee shop D,” to the terminal device  20  held by the user. 
         [0089]    In contrast, if the charge state falls below the predetermined threshold (step S 5 : NO), the facility information retrieval unit  45   c  retrieves information indicating the degrees of congestion of facilities which provide charging services, of the facilities in which the schedule or task to be executed within the predetermined time can be executed (step S 8 ). 
         [0090]    Specifically, first, the facility information retrieval unit  45   c  retrieves information indicating the current location from the terminal  20 . The facility information retrieval unit  45   c  then determines a facility type in which the schedule or task to be executed within the predetermined time can be executed. 
         [0091]    The facility information retrieval unit  45   c  then retrieves information indicating facilities which correspond to the determined facility type, provides charging services, and are close to the retrieved current location, from among the facilities registered in the facility information shown in  FIG. 3 , as well as retrieves information indicating the degrees of congestion of the facilities. 
         [0092]    For example, if the schedule to be executed within the predetermined time is a video conference, the facility information retrieval unit  45   c  determines a facility type in which the video conference can be executed. The facility information retrieval unit  45   c  then determines that the video conference can be executed at a “coffeehouse.” 
         [0093]    In this case, the facility information retrieval unit  45   c  retrieves information indicating facilities which type is “coffeehouse” and which provide charging services and are close to the current location, from among the facilities registered in the facility information shown in  FIG. 3 , as well as retrieves information indicating the degrees of congestion of the facilities. 
         [0094]    The facility information shown in  FIG. 3  includes two facilities whose type is “coffeehouse” and which provide charging services. At this time, assuming that both the two “coffeehouses” are facilities close to the current location, the facility information retrieval unit  45   c  retrieves information indicating the two facilities, whose type is “coffeehouse,” and information indicating the degrees of congestion of the two facilities. 
         [0095]    Subsequently, based on the information indicating the facilities and the information indicating the degrees of congestion of the facilities retrieved by the facility information retrieval unit  45   c , the facility determination unit  45   d  determines a facility which provides charging services and has the lowest degree of congestion. The facility determination unit  45   d  then transmits a message guiding the user to the facility determined to have the lowest degree of congestion, to the terminal device  20  held by the user (step S 9 ). 
         [0096]    In the example shown in  FIG. 3 , the facility determination unit  45   d  determines that, of the two “coffeehouses” retrieved by the facility information retrieval unit  45   c , “B coffee” is a facility having the lowest degree of congestion and then transmits a message guiding the user to “B coffee,” to the terminal device  20  held by the user. 
         [0097]    Referring now to  FIGS. 6A and 6B , there will be described display examples of a message guiding the user to a facility.  FIGS. 6A and 6B  are diagrams showing display examples of a user guide message according to the present embodiment. 
         [0098]      FIG. 6A  shows a display example when the amount of charge of one of the terminal devices  20   a  to  20   c  exceeds a predetermined threshold, that is, when the amount of charge of one of the terminal devices  20   a  to  20   c  is sufficient.  FIG. 6B  shows a display example when the amount of charge of one of the terminal devices  20   a  to  20   c  falls below the predetermined threshold, that is, when one of the terminal devices  20   a  to  20   c  has to be charged. 
         [0099]    As shown in  FIG. 6A , when the amount of charge of one of the terminal devices  20   a  to  20   c  is sufficient, the terminal device  20  displays guide information encouraging the user to move to the next destination “coffee shop D,” as well as information indicating that this facility does not provide charging services. 
         [0100]    As shown in  FIG. 6B , when one of the terminal devices  20   a  to  20   c  has to be charged, the terminal device  20  displays guide information encouraging the user to move to the next destination “B coffee,” as well as information indicating that this facility provides charging services and the terminal  20  can be charged. 
         [0101]    As seen above, the action encouragement device  40  according to the present embodiment can guide the user of the terminal device  20  to the facility suitable for executing the schedule or task of the user, by using the information indicating the schedule or task, the charge state information of the terminal device, and the information indicating the degree of congestion of the facility. 
         [0102]    Alternatively, the action encouragement device  40  may determine a facility suitable for executing the schedule or task of the user on the basis of the information indicating the schedule or task and the charge state information of the terminal device  20  held by the user without using the information indicating the degree of congestion of the facility and then transmit a message guiding the user to the determined facility, to the terminal device  20 . 
         [0103]    If there are multiple facilities suitable for executing the schedule or task, the action encouragement device  40  may transmit a message guiding the user to one of such facilities, to the terminal device  20  held by the user. 
         [0104]    Or, if there are multiple facilities suitable for executing the schedule or task, the action encouragement device  40  may transmit a message guiding the user to a facility closest to the current location, of such facilities, to the terminal device  20 . 
         [0105]    As described above, in the present embodiment, the action encouragement device  40  transmits a message guiding the user to the next facility, to the terminal device  20  held by the user. Additionally, if the facility in which the user is currently staying is a facility suitable for executing the schedule or task, the action encouragement device  40  may transmit a message indicating that the user does not have to move from the current facility, to the terminal device  20 . 
         [0106]    In the present embodiment, if there is a schedule or task to be executed within the predetermined time in step S 3  of  FIG. 5 , the action encouragement device  40  determines a facility suitable as the next destination and transmits a message guiding the user to that facility. However, the present disclosure is not limited to these steps. 
         [0107]    For example, when the amount of charge of any of the terminal devices  20   a  to  20   c  falls below the predetermined threshold, the action encouragement device  40  may determine, as a facility suitable as the next destination, a facility which provides charging services, in which the schedule or task can be executed, and which has a low degree of congestion and then may transmit a message guiding the user to that facility. 
         [0108]    Further, if the degree of congestion of the facility in which the user is currently staying exceeds a predetermined threshold, the action encouragement device  40  may determine, as a facility suitable as the next destination, a facility which has a low degree of congestion and in which the schedule or task can be executed and then may transmit a message guiding the user to that facility. 
         [0109]    The embodiment of the present disclosure has been described in detail with reference to the drawings. The functions of the terminal devices  20 , facility information management device  30 , and action encouragement device  40  can be implemented by a computer program. 
         [0110]      FIG. 7  is a diagram showing the hardware configuration of a computer that implements the functions of the devices on the basis of a program. 
         [0111]    A computer  100  includes an input device  101  such as a keyboard, mouse, touchpad, or buttons, an output device  102  such as a display or speaker, a central processing unit (CPU)  103 , a read-only memory (ROM)  104 , a random access memory (RAM)  105 , a storage device  106  such as a hard disk drive or solid-state drive (SSD), a reader  107  that reads information from a recording medium such as a digital versatile disk read-only memory (DVD-ROM) or universal serial bus (USB) memory, and a network card  108  that performs communication through a network. The respective devices are connected through a bus  309 . 
         [0112]    The reader  107  reads a program for implementing the functions of the devices from a recording medium and stores the program in the storage device  106 . Alternatively, the network card  108  communicates with a server connected to the network, downloads a program for implementing the functions of the devices from the server, and stores the program in the storage unit  106 . 
         [0113]    The CPU  103  copies the program stored in the storage device  306  to the RAM  105 , and sequentially reads commands included in the program from the RAM  105  and executes the commands. Thus, the functions of the devices are implemented. 
         [0114]    The technology described in the above embodiment can be implemented, for example, in the following types of cloud services. However, the types as which the technology described in the above embodiment can be implemented is not limited thereto. 
       Service Type 1: Company&#39;s Own Data Center Type 
       [0115]      FIG. 8  is a diagram showing service type 1 (company&#39;s own data center type). In the present type, a service provider  12  retrieves information from a group  10  and provides services to a user. In the present type, the service provider  12  has functions of a data center operating company. That is, the service provider  12  holds a cloud server  11   a  which manage big data. Accordingly, there is no data center operating company. 
         [0116]    In the present type, the service provider  12  operates and manages a data center  110   c  (cloud server  11   a ). The service provider  12  also manages an OS  110   b  and an application  110   a . The service provider  12  also provides services using the OS  110   b  and application  110   a  ( 110   d ). 
       Service Type 2: IaaS Type 
       [0117]      FIG. 9  is a diagram showing service type 2 (IaaS type). As used herein, IaaS is the abbreviation of infrastructure as a service and is a cloud service providing model which provides an infrastructure for constructing and operating a computer system, as a service through the Internet. 
         [0118]    In the present type, a data center operating company operates and manages a data center  110   c  (cloud server  11   a ). A service provider  12  manages an OS  110   b  and an application  110   a . The service provider  12  also provides services using the OS  110   b  and application  110   a  ( 110   d ). 
       Service Type 3: PaaS Type 
       [0119]      FIG. 10  is a diagram showing service type 3 (PaaS type). As used herein, PaaS is the abbreviation of platform as a service and is a cloud service providing model which provides a platform serving as an infrastructure for constructing and operating software, as a service through the Internet. 
         [0120]    In the present type, a data center operating company  11  manages an OS  110   b  and operates and manages a data center  110   c  (cloud server  11   a ). A service provider  12  manages an application  110   a . The service provider  12  also provides services using the OS  110   b  managed by the data center operating company and the application  110   a  managed by the service provider  12  ( 110   d ). 
       Service Type 4: SaaS Type 
       [0121]      FIG. 11  is a diagram showing service type 4 (SaaS type). As used herein, SaaS is the abbreviation of software as a service. SaaS is, for example, a cloud service providing model which allows companies or individuals (users) not holding a data center (cloud server) to use an application provided by a platform provider holding a data center (cloud server) through a network such as the Internet. 
         [0122]    In the present type, a data center operating company  11  manages an application  110   a  and an OS  110   b  and operates and manages a data center  110   c  (cloud server  11   a ). A service provider  12  provides services using the OS  110   b  and application  110   a  managed by the data center operating company  11  ( 110   d ). 
         [0123]    In any of the above types, the service provider  12  provides services. The service provider or data center operating company may develop an OS, application, a database of big data, or the like on its own or may outsource such development to a third party. 
         [0124]    The action encouragement method according to the present disclosure is suitably used in servers which encourage the user to take an action.