Abstract: An information management apparatus 50 according to the present invention comprises: a database 30d for storing information relevant to a printer 40 therein; output request reception means 20a for receiving an output request transmitted from a portable terminal 14; inquiry signal transmission means 20a for transmitting an inquiry signal on the printer 40 being an output destination to the portable terminal 14; communication means for receiving image data transmitted from the portable terminal 14; recognition means 30b for recognizing the identification information of the printer 40 by analyzing the image data transmitted in response to the inquiry signal; retrieval means 30c for retrieving the information relevant to the printer 40 from the data base 30d on the basis of the acquired recognition information; and printing means 20c for outputting the information to the printer 40 on the basis of the information relevant to the printer 40 retrieved by the retrieval means 30c.

Abstract: A guide apparatus 50 according to the present invention is provided with a service information DB 30d storing service information containing a service providing place and attribute information of a target user; a recognizing device 30b for acquiring an ID from image data transmitted from a cell phone 14; a retrieving device 30c for retrieving service information from the service information DB 30d on the basis of the acquired ID and for retrieving such service information that attribute information of the user of cell phone 14 coincides with attribute information of a target user, out of service information provided at service providing places near the service providing place; and a route retrieving device 20c for retrieving a route between the information about the service providing place retrieved and the cell phone 14; and transmits the route information and service information as guide information to the cell phone 14.

Abstract: An object is to efficiently retrieve data stored and managed in a plurality of devices in a distributed manner. A PC 10 issues a retrieval request with a designation of a profile name and a profile identifier to the profile retrieval unit 2. The profile retrieval unit 2 uses the profile name to perform retrieval on a profile specification management unit 5 and obtains a physical or logical profile specification. The profile retrieval unit 2 uses another profile name further contained in the obtained logical profile specification to perform retrieval on the profile specification management unit 5 to finally obtain the physical profile specification alone. The profile retrieval unit 2 uses the profile identifier to retrieve an attribute from an attribute management unit 4 indicated by management information contained in the obtained physical profile specification.

Abstract: An information management apparatus 50 according to the present invention comprises: a database 30d for storing information relevant to a printer 40 therein; output request reception means 20a for receiving an output request transmitted from a portable terminal 14; inquiry signal transmission means 20a for transmitting an inquiry signal on the printer 40 being an output destination to the portable terminal 14; communication means for receiving image data transmitted from the portable terminal 14; recognition means 30b for recognizing the identification information of the printer 40 by analyzing the image data transmitted in response to the inquiry signal; retrieval means 30c for retrieving the information relevant to the printer 40 from the data base 30d on the basis of the acquired recognition information; and printing means 20c for outputting the information to the printer 40 on the basis of the information relevant to the printer 40 retrieved by the retrieval means 30c.

Abstract: An information management apparatus 50 according to the present invention comprises: a database 30d for storing information relevant to a printer 40 therein; output request reception means 20a for receiving an output request transmitted from a portable terminal 14; inquiry signal transmission means 20a for transmitting an inquiry signal on the printer 40 being an output destination to the portable terminal 14; communication means for receiving image data transmitted from the portable terminal 14; recognition means 30b for recognizing the identification information of the printer 40 by analyzing the image data transmitted in response to the inquiry signal; retrieval means 30c for retrieving the information relevant to the printer 40 from the data base 30d on the basis of the acquired recognition information; and printing means 20c for outputting the information to the printer 40 on the basis of the information relevant to the printer 40 retrieved by the retrieval means 30c.

Abstract: Data and/or services associated with a given object are easily searched by using a search system having a global unique object identifier, a metadata store, an input for entering the global unique identifier, a metadata reader for reading a set of metadata including the input global unique identifier from the metadata store, and a metadata search engine for searching for specific metadata by searching for a specific description sentence included in each metadata of the read set of metadata.

Abstract: Method and computer program product stored on a tangible medium that store instructions including providing a procedure file, storing and managing a plurality of tickets, each ticket including a first identifier given to a commodity, and searching, based on the first identifier and a ticket request submitted by a user, a ticket of the plurality of tickets corresponding to the first identifier. The method and computer program product then presents information about the commodity included in the ticket, information about a service that provides the commodity, and service provision content information acquired during the search.

Abstract: A database system for creating a database of a directory tree form by associating each of one or more association nodes with one or more topic nodes, each of the one or more topic nodes having data belonging thereto, and an association attribute being defined to represent each of associations between the associated association nodes and topic nodes, the database system including a directory tree creating element for creating an association node entry for each of the association nodes and an association attribute entry for each of the association attributes, and for creating a directory tree by correlating the entries in accordance with an association between the respective association node and the respective association attribute; and a data correlating element for correlating the data belonging to one of the topic nodes with the created association attribute entry in accordance with an association between the topic node and the respective association attribute.

Abstract: An object is to implement timely service provision or information provision better suited for users, while decreasing efforts to construct link information or affiliation relation prepared for linkage with many service providers (or information providers), for both the service providers (or information providers) and users.

Abstract: A guide apparatus 50 according to the present invention is provided with a service information DB 30d storing service information containing a service providing place and attribute information of a target user; a recognizing device 30b for acquiring an ID from image data transmitted from a cell phone 14; a retrieving device 30c for retrieving service information from the service information DB 30d on the basis of the acquired ID and for retrieving such service information that attribute information of the user of cell phone 14 coincides with attribute information of a target user, out of service information provided at service providing places near the service providing place; and a route retrieving device 20c for retrieving a route between the information about the service providing place retrieved and the cell phone 14; and transmits the route information and service information as guide information to the cell phone 14.

Abstract: Data and/or services associated with a given object are easily searched by using a search system having a global unique object identifier, a metadata store, an input for entering the global unique identifier, a metadata reader for reading a set of metadata including the input global unique identifier from the metadata store, and a metadata search engine for searching for specific metadata by searching for a specific description sentence included in each metadata of the read set of metadata.

Abstract: An information management apparatus 50 according to the present invention comprises: a database 30d for storing information relevant to a printer 40 therein; output request reception means 20a for receiving an output request transmitted from a portable terminal 14; inquiry signal transmission means 20a for transmitting an inquiry signal on the printer 40 being an output destination to the portable terminal 14; communication means for receiving image data transmitted from the portable terminal 14; recognition means 30b for recognizing the identification information of the printer 40 by analyzing the image data transmitted in response to the inquiry signal; retrieval means 30c for retrieving the information relevant to the printer 40 from the data base 30d on the basis of the acquired recognition information; and printing means 20c for outputting the information to the printer 40 on the basis of the information relevant to the printer 40 retrieved by the retrieval means 30c.

Abstract: An object is to reduce the burden of processing on both a service server and a service utilizing terminal and improve operability for the both. There is provided a storage part 11 for integrally managing service provision information of various service types about an identical commodity, whereby user 50 can receive provision of a desired service by simply outputting a service provision request containing at least a commodity ID to system 1, which reduces the burden on the user who was required before to individually request the service provision from service providers 60 different depending upon the service types. The load of registration and the load of management of service provision information are also lighter than in conventional cases where the service provision information about one commodity was separately registered.

Abstract: A system is provided for printing data with an output device installed at a remote location such as an office where a user occasionally visits. The system comprises an information ticket database for storing one or more information tickets that can be retrieved using an identifier of an object as a search key. The system also includes a service portal that searches the information ticket database to provide service information to a user in response to the identifier transmitted from a user's mobile device through the Internet. The database stores, for each of output devices registered in the system, an access-information ticket containing information for accessing the output device. The service portal searches the database to retrieve the ticket of the output device identified by the identifier transmitted from the user's mobile device and outputs the data specified by the mobile device onto the output device according to the information obtained from the ticket.

Abstract: The system comprises a terminal apparatus that views or plays the content acquired from a data provider which embeds an identifier to the content. The system comprises a database for storing information tickets for each of the identifiers. The terminal apparatus captures the identifier embedded in the content. The system further comprises a service portal that, in response to the identifier which has been captured by and transmitted from the terminal apparatus over the Internet, searches the database and provides a service for connecting the terminal apparatus to a web page associated with the identifier.