Information providing apparatus, information providing method, and system

An information providing method comprising:

• a server receiving, from a portable electric power supply device including a storage battery that stores electric power to be supplied to electrical equipment detachably connected, electric power information relating to an amount of electric power stored in the storage battery and a feature quantity relating to electric power supplied to the electrical equipment;
• the server calculating an amount of electric power used by the user of the electric power supply device based on the electric power information received;
• the server inferring a kind of the electrical equipment based on the feature quantity received;
• and
• the server determining an added value to be provided to the user of the electric power supply device based on the amount of electric power calculated and the kind of the electrical equipment inferred, wherein
• in the determining, in a case where the kind of the electrical equipment inferred is a specified kind of electrical equipment, the added value to be provided to the user is determined in such a manner that the added value to be provided to the user is higher than an added value in a case where the kind of the electrical equipment inferred is not the specified kind of electrical equipment.

A system including a plurality of portable electric power supply devices each including a storage battery that stores electric power to be supplied to a piece of electrical equipment detachably connected, and an information providing apparatus capable of communicating with the plurality of portable electric power supply devices over a network,

• wherein the information providing apparatus includes:
• a receiving unit configured to receive, from each electric power supply device, electric power information relating to an amount of electric power stored in each storage battery and a feature quantity relating to electric power supplied to each piece of electrical equipment;
• a calculating unit configured to calculate an amount of electric power used by a user of each electric power supply device based on the electric power information received by the receiving unit;
• an inferring unit configured to infer a kind of each piece of electrical equipment based on the feature quantity received by the receiving unit;
• and
• a determining unit configured to determine an added value to be provided to the user of each electric power supply device based on the amount of electric power calculated by the calculating unit and the kind of each piece of electrical equipment inferred by the inferring unit, wherein
• in a case where the kind of each piece of electrical equipment inferred by the inferring unit is a specified kind of electrical equipment, the determining unit determines the added value to be provided to the user in such a manner that the added value to be provided to the user is higher than an added value in a case where the kind of each piece of electrical equipment inferred by the inferring unit is not the specified kind of electrical equipment.