JP2007122450A - Automatic information acquisition apparatus and automatic information acquisition method - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention provides a technique capable of setting so as to acquire only the minimum necessary data.
An automatic information acquisition apparatus includes an initial setting unit 401 for specifying a hypertext to be acquired and setting conditions for acquisition, and a file acquisition / storage unit for acquiring and storing hypertext placed on a network. 403, a file analysis unit 404 for extracting a link destination from the stored hypertext, and a file acquisition control for performing repeated control of hypertext acquisition, storage, and analysis while following the link to the link hierarchy set by the initial setting unit 401 Means 402, file conversion means 405 for converting the description of the link destination in each acquired and saved hypertext to the location of the save destination in the apparatus, and displaying the contents of the converted hypertext on the terminal screen And specify whether or not to acquire the hypertext of the link destination in the future. Having yl display-setting unit 406.
[Selection] Figure 4

Description

  The present invention relates to a technology of an apparatus capable of automatically acquiring and storing a content of a hypertext file from a server on a network and browsing the file while following a link on a terminal even when offline.

  The present invention assumes an HTML (Hyper Text Markup Language) file automatic circulation / acquisition system using WWW (World Wide Web) on the Internet. WWW automatic patrol software already exists, and there are some that are generally used. However, they are assumed to be used in terminals connected to a wired network with high speed and stable quality, and are premised on that communication speed and quality are stable. Therefore, the size of data to be acquired and the number of files do not become a problem, and it is not considered to select a file to be acquired in detail. In addition, the countermeasure when the acquisition process fails is not sufficient. For example, Patent Document 1 targets automatic browsing and automatic acquisition of the WWW. However, as a method of specifying the operation, simply specifying the basic policy of the order of circulation and the depth of the link, for each link destination. Do not specify whether to acquire individually. For this reason, if the connection time and communication quality are not sufficient, there is a possibility that a file that cannot be acquired may appear. In addition, since it is assumed that the user acquires at the same time while browsing in real time, when the screen transitions, the user waits for a certain period of time to browse, and instead it takes time to acquire. ing.

Japanese Patent No. 3098546

  In a conventional automatic patrol system based on the WWW, there is a high possibility that all files to be acquired cannot be acquired if there is a limit on connection time and communication quality. For example, when a user moves while moving in a narrow service area as in a wireless LAN environment, if the user exits the service area during communication, all the files he / she wants to acquire may not be acquired. In addition, if the quality of the wireless line is poor, data acquisition may fail.

  Under such conditions, it is necessary to shorten the time required for acquisition as much as possible. For this purpose, it is necessary to make detailed settings in advance so that only the minimum necessary data is acquired according to the conditions, and data with a high degree of necessity is acquired preferentially.

  Of the inventions disclosed in this application, the outline of typical ones will be briefly described as follows.

  According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an automatic information acquisition apparatus for connecting to a network and automatically acquiring a hypertext file placed on a server on the network in order to set a condition relating to designation and acquisition of the hypertext file to be acquired. Initial setting means, file acquisition / save means for acquiring and saving a hypertext file placed on the network, file analysis means for analyzing the saved hypertext file and extracting a link destination from the hypertext file; , A file acquisition control unit that performs control to repeat acquisition, storage, and analysis of a hypertext file while following a link to the link hierarchy set by the initial setting unit, and a link destination in each acquired and stored hypertext file Description on the network File conversion means for converting from the address to the storage location in the device, and the contents of the converted hypertext file are displayed on the terminal screen, and for each individual link destination from the hypertext file on the screen And a file display / setting means for designating whether or not to acquire a linked hypertext file in the future.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, the file display / setting unit has a unit for designating a priority of an order in obtaining a hypertext file of a link destination for each individual link destination from the hypertext file on the screen. It is characterized by having.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, the file display / setting unit is provided only when the communication environment, the communication quality, or the terminal position information satisfies a certain condition for each individual link destination from the hypertext file on the screen. It has a means to designate acquisition of the hypertext file of a link destination, It is characterized by the above-mentioned.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the file display / setting unit has already acquired a hypertext file at the link destination for each individual link destination from the hypertext file on the screen displaying the contents of the hypertext file. It has the means to display whether or not.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, the file acquisition control means stores the state at the time of disconnection when the network connection of the device is disconnected during the hypertext file acquisition processing, and then restarts the processing. And a means for starting the hypertext acquisition process from the interrupted state.

  The sixth invention is characterized in that acquisition, storage, and setting processes are similarly performed when the link destination of each hypertext file is not a hypertext format file.

  According to the present invention, when hypertext content is acquired from a server on a network by following a link, the communication time and communication quality are not sufficient by specifying the acquisition conditions in a simple operation on the screen. In this case, it is possible to efficiently acquire necessary contents.

  FIG. 1 shows an example of the system configuration. 101 is a terminal device (automatic information acquisition device), 102 is a wireless LAN base station, 103 is a network, 104 is a web server 1 (www.aaa.jp), and 105 is a web server 2 (www.bbb.jp). 111 is a file (1) (index.html), 112 is a file (2) (abc.html), and 111 and 112 are files held by the web server 1. Reference numeral 113 denotes a file (3) (xyz.html), and reference numeral 113 denotes a file held by the web server 2. In file (1) (index.html), links to file (2) (abc.html) and file (3) (xyz.html) are described. Reference numeral 121 denotes an initial setting screen of the terminal device 101. 131, 132, and 133 are received files received by the terminal apparatus 101, and 141, 142, and 143 are converted files converted in the terminal apparatus 101. Reference numerals 151, 152, and 153 denote converted files (1), (2), and (3) displayed on the screen.

  The terminal device 101 connects to the network 103 via a wireless LAN and acquires content from a Web server. Assume that there are a server 1 (www.aaa.jp) and a server 2 (www.bbb.jp) as shown in FIG. It is assumed that the user acquires the file (1) (index.html) of the server 1 on the initial setting screen 121. Here, the depth of the link layer to be acquired is 1, and the file (2) (abc.html) in the server 1 and the file in the server 2 are linked to the file (1) one layer below. (3) Automatically obtain (xyz.html). As an acquisition procedure, first, the URL (http://www.aaa.jp/index.html) of the file (1) to be acquired is designated on the initial setting screen 121 of the terminal device 101. Next, the wireless LAN connection is performed, and the file (1) is first acquired (see 131). Thereafter, the contents of the file (1) are analyzed, and it is recognized that there are the file (2) and the file (3) as link destinations (see (2) and (3) in 131). Next, file (2) and file (3) are acquired (see 132, 133). Of the contents of the acquired and saved files (1), (2), and (3), the description of the link destination part is placed from "http: // ..." on the network and the file location in the terminal device (See 141, 142, and 143). By this conversion work, it is possible to browse files while following links in the apparatus even offline.

  The converted files (1), (2), and (3) are browsed on the screen of the terminal device (see 151, 152, and 153). At this time, on the screen of the file (1), a function for setting the acquisition of the next link destination file (2) (3) is provided. That is, it is possible to specify whether or not to obtain the file (2) and the file (3) when connecting to the network next time. Moreover, what is preferentially acquired between them can be specified. Furthermore, a file can be acquired only when the communication environment, communication quality, or terminal location information satisfies a certain condition. Thereby, for example, information regarding the position of the terminal apparatus 101 is acquired only when the wireless LAN connection is established, or only when the communication quality is 10 Mb / s or higher, or when the wireless LAN SSID = “abcde”. It is possible to set conditions such as acquiring only when a specific condition is satisfied.

  In actual processing, for files that have been acquired before, the time stamp of the file in the terminal device 101 is compared with the update date and time of the file with the same name in the server. The operation is to acquire. Thereby, useless file acquisition processing can be avoided.

Next, with reference to FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, an example of link file acquisition setting will be described.
In FIG. 2, 201 is a file displayed on the screen, and four link destinations are displayed. For each link destination, whether to perform automatic acquisition next time, whether to preferentially acquire it, and designation of conditions for acquisition can be set while specifying the link destination portion with a pointer. In the case of a personal computer, the right mouse button is clicked, and in the case of a PDA, the setting item can be selected as shown in the fourth link destination in FIG. 2 (see 211). Here, it is assumed that the condition to be acquired can be selected from a plurality of options. The contents of the conditions are specified and registered in a separate screen in advance.

  The setting contents are displayed on the screen with a mark for each link destination, etc., to improve the convenience for the user. In addition, whether or not the link destination file has already been acquired is clearly indicated by changing the color for each link destination so that it can be used as a reference when setting the user.

  FIG. 3 shows an example of the relationship between the setting contents and the acquisition order. For link destinations that are set not to be acquired next time, the acquisition operation is not performed. In addition, the link destination set to be acquired preferentially is acquired before other link destinations. In FIG. 3, 301 is a file displayed on the screen, 311 indicates a state in which setting is made for the link destination 4, and 321 indicates setting contents. In the example of FIG. 3, as indicated by reference numeral 321, the link destinations 1, 3, and 4 are specified for acquisition, and 2 is not specified for acquisition. Only 4 is set to high priority. In this case, it is acquired in the order of (1) → (2) → (3).

  FIG. 4 shows a block diagram of the terminal device (automatic information acquisition device) 101 for realizing these operations. 401 is an initial setting unit for specifying a hypertext file to be acquired and setting conditions for acquisition. 402 is a hypertext file acquisition / tracking function that follows a link hierarchy set by the initial setting unit 401. A file acquisition control unit that performs control to repeat storage / analysis, 403 is a file acquisition / storage unit that acquires and stores a hypertext file placed on the network, and 404 analyzes the stored hypertext file. And 405 is a file analysis means for extracting a link destination from the hypertext file, and 405 stores the description of the link destination in each acquired and saved hypertext file from the address on the network. Is a file conversion means to convert to 406 displays the contents of the converted hypertext file on the screen of the terminal device 101, and whether or not to acquire a linked hypertext file for each individual link destination from the hypertext file on the screen in the future. This is a file display / setting means for designating.

  First, the URL of the file to be acquired is designated by the initial setting means 401. The contents are notified to the file acquisition control means 402. The file acquisition control unit 402 controls overall acquisition operations such as the order of file acquisition. From here, the file to be obtained is notified to the file obtaining / saving means 403, and the file is obtained / saved. The saved file is analyzed by the file analysis means 404, and the link destination in the file is extracted. Based on this information, the file acquisition control unit 402 determines acquisition of the link destination, and the file acquisition / storage unit 403 newly acquires and stores the link destination. All the acquired / saved files are transferred to the file conversion means 405. Here, the description of the link destination in the file is rewritten from the link by http to the link to the file in the apparatus. This makes it possible to browse files while following links within the device even offline. The converted file is displayed by the file display / setting unit 406. In addition, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, it is possible to set the file acquisition operation for the next and subsequent times. The contents set here are notified to the file acquisition control means 402 and reflected in the file acquisition operation after the next time.

  Although not shown in FIG. 4, the file display / setting unit 406 designates the priority of the order in acquiring the hypertext file of the link destination for each individual link destination from the hypertext file on the screen. For each individual link destination from the hypertext file on the screen, the link destination hypertext file is acquired only when the communication environment, communication quality, or terminal location information satisfies certain conditions. A means for specifying, a means for displaying whether or not the hypertext file at the link destination has already been obtained for each individual link destination from the Harper text file on the screen for displaying the contents of the hypertext file; Have Further, the file acquisition control unit 402 stores the state at the time of disconnection when the network connection of the apparatus is disconnected during the hypertext file acquisition process, and when the process is resumed after that, To start hypertext acquisition processing.

  FIG. 5 shows an example of installation and acquisition order of file acquisition when the depth of the link to be acquired is 2. Ten files are acquired at the first acquisition. (1)-(10) show the acquisition order at the time of the first acquisition. In this way, in order from the upper layer, the links are acquired from the link destination at the upper part of the screen while following the link for the specified depth. Next, it is assumed that each file is displayed on the screen and whether or not the link destination is acquired and the priority is designated. Here, the link 2 and the link 3-1 are not acquired, and the link 3 and the link 1-3 are set to be acquired preferentially. Subsequently, the next acquisition is performed based on this setting. At this time, only six files are acquired, and the acquisition order is also changed.

  As described above, even when the connection time to the network is short or the communication quality is poor, it is possible to select only files with a high degree of necessity and obtain them with priorities.

  Here, consider a case where communication is disconnected during connection. For example, in the example of FIG. 5, when the file (3) is disconnected during acquisition, the file acquisition control unit 402 stores the file (3) and acquires it from the file (3) when connected next time. To resume. Thereby, an unacquired file can be acquired preferentially.

  In the above example, the explanation has been made on the assumption that the format of the link source file and the link destination file is a hypertext file, but the link destination file can also be applied to a general file that is not a hypertext file. Processing such as acquisition, storage, and setting can be performed.

  The terminal device (automatic information acquisition device) described above can be composed of a computer and a program stored in a storage device. Alternatively, some or all of them may be configured by hardware.

  As mentioned above, the invention made by the present inventor has been specifically described based on the embodiment. However, the invention is not limited to the embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. Of course.

It is a figure which shows the system configuration | structure of embodiment of this invention, and the whole process sequence. It is a figure which shows the example of the acquisition setting of the link destination on a screen. It is a figure which shows the acquisition setting and acquisition order of a link destination. It is a block which shows the structure of the apparatus of embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the example of the setting content and acquisition order when there are two or more hierarchy of the link to acquire.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 101 ... Terminal device (automatic information acquisition apparatus), 102 ... Wireless LAN base station, 103 ... Network, 104, 105 ... Server, 111, 112, 113 ... File in server, 121 ... Initial setting screen, 131, 132, 133 ... Received files 141, 142, 143 ... converted files, 151, 152, 153 are converted files displayed on the screen, 201, 301 ... files displayed on the screen, 401 ... initial setting means, 402 ... files Acquisition control means, 403 ... File acquisition / storage means, 404 ... File analysis means, 405 ... File conversion means, 406 ... File display / setting means

Claims (7)

In an automatic information acquisition device that connects to a network and automatically acquires a hypertext file placed on a server on the network,
An initial setting means for specifying a hypertext file to be acquired and setting conditions for acquisition;
File acquisition and storage means for acquiring and storing hypertext files placed on the network,
Analyzing the saved hypertext file and extracting the link destination from the hypertext file;
File acquisition control means for performing control to repeat acquisition, storage, and analysis of a hypertext file while following a link to the link hierarchy set by the initial setting means;
File conversion means for converting the description of the link destination in each acquired hypertext file from the address on the network to the storage destination location in the device;
Display the contents of the converted hypertext file on the terminal screen, and on the screen, for each individual link destination from the hypertext file, specify whether or not to obtain a linked hypertext file in the future・ Setting means,
An automatic information acquisition apparatus comprising:   The file display / setting means has means for designating the priority of the order in obtaining the linked hypertext file for each individual link destination from the hypertext file on the screen. The automatic information acquisition apparatus according to claim 1.   The file display / setting means displays a hypertext file of a link destination only when the communication environment, communication quality, or terminal location information satisfies a certain condition for each individual link destination from the hypertext file on the screen. The automatic information acquisition apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising means for specifying acquisition of the information.   The file display / setting unit displays, for each individual link destination from the hypertext file, whether or not the hypertext file at the link destination has already been acquired on the screen displaying the contents of the hypertext file. The automatic information acquisition apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: means.   When the network connection of the device is disconnected during the hypertext file acquisition process, the file acquisition control unit stores the state at the time of disconnection, and when the process is resumed thereafter, the file acquisition control unit starts from the interrupted state. 5. The automatic information acquisition apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising means for starting a text acquisition process.   6. The automatic information acquisition apparatus according to claim 1, wherein acquisition, storage, and setting processing are similarly performed when each hypertext file is linked to a file that is not in a hypertext format. In an automatic information acquisition method in an automatic information acquisition apparatus that automatically connects to a network and automatically acquires a hypertext file placed on a server on the network,
The automatic information acquisition apparatus has an initial setting means, a file acquisition / storage means, a file analysis means, a file acquisition control means, a file conversion means, and a file display / setting means,
An initial setting step in which the initial setting means sets a condition for specifying and acquiring a hypertext file to be acquired; and
The file acquisition / storage means acquires and stores a hypertext file placed on the network, and a file acquisition / storage step;
The file analyzing means analyzes the stored hypertext file and extracts a link destination from the hypertext file; and
A file acquisition control step in which the file acquisition control means performs control to repeat acquisition, storage, and analysis of a hypertext file while following a link to the link hierarchy set in the initial setting step;
A file conversion step in which the file conversion means converts the description of the link destination in each acquired and stored hypertext file from a network address to a storage destination location in the device;
The file display / setting unit displays the contents of the converted hypertext file on the screen of the terminal, and on the screen, for each individual link destination from the hypertext file, obtains a hypertext file at the link destination in the future. A file display / setting step to specify whether or not
An automatic information acquisition method comprising:

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