Facility-guidance process, facility-guidance apparatus, and computer-readable medium storing facility-guidance program

A process to be executed by a computer for guiding a visitor to an exhibition place in a facility, comprising the steps of:

• (a) preparing in the computer a target-facility-information storage unit which stores first place-identification information items and first article-character information items respectively corresponding to the first place-identification information items, where the first place-identification information items respectively identify first exhibition places in a target facility, and each of the first article-character information items indicates first characters of first exhibited articles exhibited at one of the first exhibition places corresponding to said each of the first article-character information items;
• (b) preparing in the computer a substitute-facility-information storage unit which stores second place-identification information items and second article-character information items respectively corresponding to the second place-identification information items, where the second place-identification information items respectively identify second exhibition places in a substitute facility different from the target facility, and each of the second article-character information items indicates second characters of second exhibited articles exhibited at one of the second exhibition places corresponding to said each of the second article-character information items;
• (c) designating one of said second place-identification information items in response to an external input when the computer receives the external input;
• (d) referring to said target-facility-information storage unit and said substitute-facility-information storage unit, and determining a degree of similarity between each of said first article-character information items and one of said second article-character information items corresponding to said one of the second place-identification information items;
• and
• (e) determining a priority order among said first exhibition places on the basis of said degree of similarity, and outputting in the priority order the first exhibition places as candidates for said exhibition place to which said visitor is to be guided.

A facility-guidance apparatus for guiding a visitor to an exhibition place in a facility, comprising:

• a target-facility-information storage unit which stores first place-identification information items and first article-character information items respectively corresponding to the first place-identification information items, where the first place-identification information items respectively identify first exhibition places in a target facility, and each of the first article-character information items indicates first characters of first exhibited articles exhibited at one of the first exhibition places corresponding to said each of the first article-character information items;
• a substitute-facility-information storage unit which stores second place-identification information items and second article-character information items respectively corresponding to the second place-identification information items, where the second place-identification information items respectively identify second exhibition places in a substitute facility different from the target facility, and each of the second article-character information items indicates second characters of second exhibited articles exhibited at one of the second exhibition places corresponding to said each of the second article-character information items;
• a substitute-place designation unit which designates one of said second place-identification information items in response to an external input;
• a similarity determination unit which refers to said target-facility-information storage unit and said substitute-facility-information storage unit, and determines a degree of similarity between each of said first article-character information items and one of said second article-character information items corresponding to said one of the second place-identification information items;
• and
• a candidate-place output unit which determines a priority order among said first exhibition places on the basis of said degree of similarity, and outputs in the priority order the first exhibition places as candidates for said exhibition place to which said visitor is to be guided.