IP Library Granted Patent US 10,542,149
Granted Patent B2
US 10,542,149 · App. 16/188,272 · Granted Jan 21, 2020

Customer serving control system, customer serving system and computer-readable medium

Inventors: Masayoshi Son (Tokyo, JP); Takashi Tsutsui (Tokyo, JP); Kosuke Tomonaga (Tokyo, JP); Kiyoshi Oura (Tokyo, JP)
Assignee: SoftBank Robotics Corp.
H04M3/58G06Q30/016G10L15/22G10L25/63H04M3/5175H04M3/5183
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 10,542,149
App. No.
16/188,272
Granted
Jan 21, 2020
Kind
B2
Abstract

A customer serving control system includes: a customer information acquiring unit acquiring customer information about a customer that can be served by a customer serving apparatus; a presentation control unit causing the customer information to be presented to a first operator; a serving information generating unit generating, based on operation of the first operator, first serving information indicating a serving content according to which the customer serving apparatus should serve the customer; a serving control unit causing the first operator to serve the customer through the customer serving apparatus by instructing the customer serving apparatus to serve the customer based on the first serving information; an operator emotion identifying unit identifying an emotion of the first operator; and a serving determining unit determining, based on an emotion of the first operator, whether to maintain a state where the first operator is serving the customer through the customer serving apparatus.

Claims (55)

1. A customer serving control system comprising:

a customer information acquiring unit that acquires customer information which is information about a customer that can be served by a customer serving apparatus;

a presentation control unit that causes the customer information to be presented to a first operator;

a serving information generating unit that generates, based on operation of the first operator, first serving information indicative of a serving content according to which the customer serving apparatus should serve the customer;

a serving control unit that causes the first operator to serve the customer through the customer serving apparatus by instructing the customer serving apparatus to serve the customer based on the first serving information;

an operator emotion identifying unit that identifies an emotion of the first operator; and

a serving determining unit that determines, based on an emotion of the first operator, whether or not to maintain a state where the first operator is serving the customer through the customer serving apparatus, wherein

the customer serving apparatus can be in a first state where it autonomously communicates with a customer and in a second state where it communicates with a customer based on serving information based on operation of an operator, and

the customer serving control system further comprises

a serving history notifying unit that notifies an operator of serving history information indicative of a content according to which the customer serving apparatus autonomously served the customer when it is in the first state, if the customer serving apparatus makes a transition from the first state to the second state;

a customer emotion identifying unit that identifies a type and intensity of an emotion of a customer being served by the customer serving apparatus, based on a state of a customer detected by the customer serving apparatus; and

a transition control unit that causes the customer serving apparatus to make a transition from the first state to the second state if an intensity exceeding a predetermined value is identified about a predetermined type of emotion by the customer emotion identifying unit.

2. The customer serving control system according to claim 1 , wherein

the operator emotion identifying unit identifies a type and intensity of an emotion of the first operator, and

if an intensity exceeding a predetermined value is identified about a predetermined type of emotion by the operator emotion identifying unit, the serving determining unit determines not to maintain a state where the first operator is serving the customer through the customer serving apparatus.

3. The customer serving control system according to claim 2 , wherein

the operator emotion identifying unit identifies an intensity of anger of the first operator, and

if the intensity of anger exceeds a predetermined value, the serving determining unit determines not to maintain a state where the first operator is serving the customer through the customer serving apparatus.

4. The customer serving control system according to claim 1 , further comprising:

an operator selecting unit that selects, from a plurality of operators, a second operator to serve the customer if the serving determining unit determines not to cause the customer serving apparatus to perform serving based on the first serving information; and

a serving notifying unit that notifies the second operator to start serving the customer.

5. The customer serving control system according to claim 4 , wherein

after the serving notifying unit notifies the second operator to start serving the customer, based on operation of the second operator, the serving information generating unit generates second serving information indicative of a serving content according to which the customer serving apparatus should serve the customer, and

the serving control unit causes the second operator to serve the customer through the customer serving apparatus by instructing the customer serving apparatus to serve the customer based on the second serving information.

6. The customer serving control system according to claim 1 , wherein

the first serving information includes text data indicative of a content of utterance by the first operator, and

the serving control unit transmits the text data to the customer serving apparatus and causes the customer serving apparatus to utter.

7. A customer serving control system comprising:

a customer information acquiring unit that acquires customer information which is information about a customer that can be served by a customer serving apparatus;

a presentation control unit that causes the customer information to be presented to a first operator;

a serving information generating unit that generates, based on operation of the first operator, first serving information indicative of a serving content according to which the customer serving apparatus should serve the customer;

a serving control unit that causes the first operator to serve the customer through the customer serving apparatus by instructing the customer serving apparatus to serve the customer based on the first serving information;

an operator emotion identifying unit that identifies an emotion of the first operator; and

a serving determining unit that determines, based on an emotion of the first operator, whether or not to maintain a state where the first operator is serving the customer through the customer serving apparatus, wherein the customer serving apparatus can be in a first state where it autonomously communicates with a customer and in a second state where it communicates with a customer based on serving information based on operation of an operator,

the serving information generating unit generates as the first serving information utterance text data indicative of a content of utterance by the first operator based on sound data of the first operator, and

the serving control unit transmits the utterance text data to the customer serving apparatus and causes the customer serving apparatus to utter the utterance text data.

8. The customer serving control system according to claim 1 , wherein

the customer emotion identifying unit identifies an intensity of anger of a customer being served by the customer serving apparatus.

9. The customer serving control system according to claim 1 , further comprising an emotion notifying unit that notifies an operator of information indicative of a type of an emotion of the customer.

10. The customer serving control system according to claim 1 , wherein the customer information includes at least any one of pieces of information about: an image of the customer acquired by the customer serving apparatus; a content of utterance by the customer acquired by the customer serving apparatus; and a history of purchase of items purchased by the customer in a past.

11. A customer serving system comprising:

the customer serving control system according to claim 1 ; and

the customer serving apparatus.

12. A computer-readable medium having a program stored thereon, the program causing a computer to perform procedures of:

acquiring customer information which is information about a customer that can be served by a customer serving apparatus that can be in a first state where it autonomously communicates with a customer and in a second state where it communicates with a customer based on serving information based on operation of an operator;

causing the customer information to be presented to a first operator;

generating, based on operation of the first operator, first serving information indicative of a serving content according to which the customer serving apparatus should serve the customer;

causing the first operator to serve the customer through the customer serving apparatus by instructing the customer serving apparatus to serve the customer based on the first serving information;

identifying an emotion of the first operator;

determining, based on an emotion of the first operator, whether or not to maintain a state where the first operator is serving the customer through the customer serving apparatus;

notifying an operator of serving history information indicative of a content according to which the customer serving apparatus autonomously served the customer when it is in the first state, if the customer serving apparatus makes a transition from the first state to the second state;

identifying a type and intensity of an emotion of a customer being served by the customer serving apparatus, based on a state of a customer detected by the customer serving apparatus; and

causing the customer serving apparatus to make a transition from the first state to the second state if an intensity exceeding a predetermined value is identified about a predetermined type of emotion by the customer emotion identifying unit.

13. The customer serving control system according to claim 1 , further comprising:

an operator selecting unit that selects, from a plurality of operators, an operator having a higher ability to serve as the intensity of the emotion of the customer being served by the customer serving apparatus becomes more intense.

Assignments (4)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Apr 2, 2026
From: SOFTBANK ROBOTICS CORP.
To: SOFTBANK GROUP CORP.
Reel/Frame 074847/0779 →
CHANGE OF ADDRESS Recorded Mar 10, 2021
From: SOFTBANK ROBOTICS CORP.
To: SOFTBANK ROBOTICS CORP.
Reel/Frame 055542/0806 →
MERGER AND CHANGE OF NAME Recorded Sep 12, 2019
From: COCORO SB CORP.; SOFTBANK ROBOTICS CORP.
To: SOFTBANK ROBOTICS CORP.
Reel/Frame 050351/0001 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Nov 13, 2018
From: SON, MASAYOSHI; TSUTSUI, TAKASHI; TOMONAGA, KOSUKE; OURA, KIYOSHI
To: COCORO SB CORP.
Reel/Frame 047491/0981 →
Priority Claims (1)
JP 2016-097819 · May 16, 2016 · national
Continuity (2)
Continuation PCTJP2017014877 · Apr 11, 2017
Related Publication 20190082055A1 · Mar 14, 2019
Cited By (1)
US 12,445,556