JPH10232955A - Ticket issuing machine with image display device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make the use of only a part on the front surface side of the ticket issuing machine be sufficient as a space for image display by calling and displaying photograph images or video image for indicating a merchandize or a service. SOLUTION: In this ticket issuing machine 1, a display 2 is arranged at a part of a front surface and a hard disk drive 21, a merchandize selection button 11, a ticket issuing part 3 and a cash processing part 4 are directly connected to a built-in personal computer main body 20 and controlled. Then, the price data of the respective merchandizes and respective produce selection buttons are related and stored in the hard disk 21. The data on the hard disk 21 are called along with an operation program and developed on the memory 22 when a built-in personal computer main body 20 is activated. In the case that the merchandize selection button 11 is pressured, the data of the price and the images relating to the pressed merchandize selection button 11 are selected from the data on the memory 22 and supplied to the display of the display 2.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a ticket vending machine for selling service tickets such as meal tickets, admission tickets, and boarding tickets or commodity exchange tickets.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art The prior art will be described by taking a ticket vending machine as an example.

[0003] A method in which a customer purchases a meal ticket in advance at a ticket vending machine and receives food and drink in exchange for the meal ticket is widely used in cafeterias, cafes, and the like, which is useful for saving labor and ensuring ordering and accounting. ing.

[0004] Such a ticket vending machine is generally provided with a selection button for a customer to select a desired food. The selection button includes, for example, "ramen set meal", "seafood". Food names such as "fortunate ramen" are shown.

[0005] Since the selection button has no space for indicating the specific contents of the product, the selection button is pasted at another location, for example,
It is widely used to say "Ramen set meal: ramen (medium) + rice (small) + gyoza one serving". This is because it is usually difficult to display a large number of samples side by side in a small shop, and also because the production of a large number of samples is costly.

However, in the description of such a sticker,
It is difficult to understand the contents at a glance, and it is impossible to know the specific contents about the quantity and type. The customer has no choice but to know the contents and quantity unless he asks a busy clerk for details or happens to see the food served by other customers.

[0007] In recent years, it has been common practice to post a color photograph showing the contents of a menu on a wall in a store. Large, vibrant color photographs are easy to understand at a glance, even from a short distance away, and the quantity can be recognized.

[0008]

However, it takes time to match the product name of the selection button of the ticket vending machine with the photograph one by one, and it may be difficult for an unfamiliar customer to find it.

In order to display a large number of easily viewable large photographs in a store, a large amount of space is required on a wall surface or the like. When changing products, it is necessary to develop and print each large photo, so it takes a lot of time and cost, especially when it is a daily menu,
It had to be shown separately on a piece of paper or a sample.

[0010] In view of the above problems, the present invention can display an arbitrary image representing a product or service without creating or changing an exhibit such as a sample or a photographic print one by one. As a space, a ticket vending machine which is sufficient only at a part of the front side of the ticket vending machine is provided.

[0011]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a ticket vending machine for selling a service use ticket such as a meal ticket, an admission ticket, and a ticket, or a commodity exchange ticket, which is a photographic image representing the product or service. Or image display means for displaying a video image on the front side of a ticket vending machine, image storage means for storing the image, and, from the image stored in the image storage means, calling an image relating to the specific product or service. Image display calling means for displaying the image on the image display means.

[0012] According to the above-described structure, an arbitrary image representing a product or service can be called and displayed without creating or changing an exhibit such as a sample or a photographic print, and a ticket sales area is used as a space for displaying the image. Only a part of the front side of the machine is sufficient.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the ticket vending machine according to the first aspect, the image display calling means has a commodity selecting means for selecting the commodity or service.

According to the above configuration, an image of each content of a desired product or service can be displayed only by operating the product selection means for the customer to select a desired product or service. Therefore, the labor for the customer to collate the display of the product selection means and the display for image display selection for each product or service one by one can be omitted.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the ticket vending machine according to the first aspect, the image is stored as digital data in the image storage means.

According to the above configuration, image data can be stored in a general-purpose device such as a hard disk of a personal computer, and the image quality does not deteriorate even after long-term use.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the ticket vending machine according to the first aspect, the image display means is a small-to-medium-sized matrix type liquid crystal display (LCD) or a cathode ray tube display (CRT).

With the above configuration, a personal computer, a small television,
A general-purpose display device used for a car navigation system or the like can be used.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the ticket vending machine according to the second aspect, the ticket vending machine includes image data updating means for updating image data stored in the image storage means. And

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the ticket vending machine of the fifth aspect, the image data updating means comprises a digital camera.

According to the above configuration, the clerk can easily update the image representing the product or service related to each selection button.

[0022]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an electric configuration of a ticket vending machine 1 according to the present embodiment. The display 2, the hard disk drive 21, the product selection button 11, the ticket issuing unit 3, and the money processing unit 4 are directly connected to the built-in personal computer body 20 and controlled.

The built-in personal computer main body 20 has a main body of the personal computer built in the ticket vending machine 1. The built-in personal computer main body 20 is provided with a memory 22 and a connection port 23, and can be connected to the digital camera 5 or the scanner 51 via the connection port 23.

The product selection button 11 is used to select a product or service (hereinafter referred to as a product) desired by the customer. Price data of each product and image data of each product are stored in the hard disk 21 in association with each product selection button. These data on the hard disk 21 are called together with an operation program when the built-in personal computer 20 is started, and are expanded on the memory 22. When the product selection button 11 is depressed, the price and image data related to the depressed product selection button are selected from the data in the memory 22 and are displayed on the display 2. These displays are controlled by the MPU of the built-in personal computer body 20 and the image processor.

The programs stored in the hard disk 21 include an image update program. If the image input means such as the digital camera 5 or the scanner 51 is connected to the connection port 23 when the built-in personal computer body 20 is started or restarted, the connection state is recognized by the start program of the ticket vending machine 1 and the image update program is executed. Is launched.

The display 2 displays an image and a message relating to a product, and is a small and medium-sized liquid crystal display (LCD) or a cathode ray tube screen (CRT). EL (electroluminescence) display, FE
It may be a D (field emission display) or a plasma display (PDP). Display 2
May be as small as 5 inches diagonal, and 10-15 diagonals
It may be a medium size of about inches. 256 color V
If the resolution is GA (640 × 480 pixels) or higher, a sufficiently good image display can be obtained.

FIG. 2 is an external view of the ticket vending machine of the embodiment.
On the front of the ticket vending machine 1, a display 2, a bill insertion slot 41, a coin insertion slot 42, and a refund lever 43 are provided at an upper stage, a plurality of product selection buttons 11 are provided at a middle stage, and a ticket / change takeout opening 12 is provided at a lower stage. I have. On each product selection button 11, a name of a food or drink such as "ramen set meal" or "seafood ramen" is displayed.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart for explaining the operation in the ticket selling operation of the ticket vending machine 1 of the embodiment.

In step a1, the power of the vending machine is turned on, and a ticket vending machine operation program including an image display program is started.

In step a2, the user is prompted to select a product image. For example, "Press the product button to see the picture of the product" is displayed on the display 2. Alternatively, a simple moving image can indicate that an image of a product is displayed when the product selection button is pressed down. For example, the image is displayed in the order of “an image of a button written“ Ramen set meal ”” → “an image of pressing a button with a finger” → “an image of“ Ramen set meal ””.

In step a3, the press of the product selection button is detected, and a photographic image of the selected product is displayed on the display 2. For example, if the button labeled "Ramen set meal" is depressed, as shown in Fig. 2, "Ramen set meal" in which ramen (medium), rice (small) and gyoza one serving are arranged on a tray Image ”is displayed.

At step a4, it is determined whether or not money corresponding to the price of the selected commodity has been inserted. If it is determined that the input has been made, the process proceeds to the next step a5,
If it is determined that the product has not been inserted even after a certain time of pressing the product selection button, the process proceeds to step a10.

Step a10 branched from Step a4
Then, a message urging money input is displayed on display 2.
To be displayed. For example, "Ramen set meal is 500 yen.
Please put money. Is displayed. Alternatively, the procedure can be shown by a moving image. In the case of showing a moving image, the screen can be divided into left and right, and the image of the product can be continuously displayed on one of the divided screens. After Step a10, Step a
Return to 4.

At step a5, confirmation of product selection is prompted. For example, the message "Please press the" Ramen set meal "button again to confirm your purchase" is displayed.

In step a6, it is determined whether or not the selection of the product has been confirmed. If the product selection button 11 that is the same as the product selection button 11 pressed down in step a3 is pressed down again, or if the product selection button 11 is not operated or the refund lever 43 is not pressed down during a certain period of time, the product It is determined that the selection has been confirmed, and the process proceeds to the next step a7. If another product selection button 11 is pressed down, the process returns to step a3, and the display 2 displays a photographic image of the product related to the newly pressed product selection button 11.

In step a7, a ticket is issued and paid out to the outlet 12. At the same time, the amount of the balance is displayed on the display 2. For example, "500 yen remains" blinks.

In step a8, it is determined whether or not the commodity selection button 11 has been depressed within a predetermined time.
If there is no push-down, proceed to the next step a9,
If there is a depression, the process returns to step a3.

In step a9, change is paid out. Thereafter, the process returns to step a2.

In any of the above steps, if the refund lever 43 is pushed down, the balance is paid out and the process returns to step a2.

The display of the message in steps a2, a4 and a5 can be performed simultaneously with the display of the image of the product. In this case, the message can be displayed by superimposing characters on the image or by dividing the screen so as to include subtitles of the movie. It can be performed by animation instead of character display, or by voice message.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining updating of image data.

In step b1, the digital camera 5 acquires a photographic image of the product.

In step b2, the connection cable of the digital camera 5 is connected to the connection port 23 of the built-in personal computer body 20.
Connected to.

In step b3, the image update program is started by restarting the built-in personal computer body 20 in this connected state.

In step b 4, the image data of the digital camera 5 is transferred to the built-in personal computer body 20, expanded in the memory 23 and displayed on the display 2. If there are a plurality of image data, they are sequentially displayed according to the stored order.

In step b5, a product selection button to be associated with the image being displayed on the display 2 is selected. For example, while the “image of ramen set meal” is displayed on the display 2, the product selection button 11 on which the print of “ramen set meal” is pasted is pressed down. Here, it can be pressed twice to confirm the operation.

At step b6, the image data displayed on the display 5 is stored in the image storage area of the hard disk by overwriting. The storage of the image data is performed in association with the product selection button 11. That is, the image data is stored in the image storage area in combination with the number specifying the product selection button 11.

In steps b′1 to b′2, which are modified steps of steps b1 and b2, a film photograph and a scanner 51 are used in place of the digital camera 5. If the scanner 51 is a film scanner, an image can be read from a positive film such as a slide film.

The update image can be input by reading from a floppy disk or the like containing the image data. In this case, the data is stored in a floppy disk or the like using a separate personal computer and the digital camera 5 or the like.

According to the configuration of the above embodiment, as the product selection button 11 of the ticket vending machine is depressed, a photographic image of the product or service related to the depressed product selection button 11 is displayed on the front of the ticket vending machine. Therefore, there is no need for the customer to collate the display of a plurality of photos or samples with the printed display of the product selection button one by one.

Further, the space for displaying the image may be only the space for the display, and does not require the space for displaying a large number of photographs or samples side by side on the inner wall of the store or the like.

Further, the image contents can be updated by the clerk himself without difficulty and in a short time by inputting an image using a digital camera.

In the above embodiment, the display is described as being built in the ticket vending machine. However, a small television can be provided on a ticket vending machine having a video output terminal.

The ticket vending machine 1 may be provided with a visitor detection sensor so that when a visitor is interrupted for a certain period of time or more, the display is put into a sleep mode and display on the display is resumed immediately after the visitor is detected.

In the above-described embodiment, the ticket vending machine has been described. However, the same applies to other service use tickets, such as amusement park ride tickets.

The same structure as that of the above embodiment can be used for a vending machine for selling various kinds of products such as a vending machine for telephone cards and picture cards. in this case,
The space in front of the vending machine for displaying product samples can be saved.

In the above embodiment, a static photographic image is used, but a dynamic video image is effective depending on the contents of services and products. For example, in the case of a use ticket for a vehicle in an amusement park, the use of the vehicle can be shown in a video image.

[0059]

According to the ticket vending machine of the present invention, the contents of each of a plurality of products or services can be displayed as images, a plurality of exhibits for each of the plurality of products or services, and a selection means. The customer's trouble of collating the display of each product or service in the above with each other can be saved. Also,
Space for displaying these exhibits can be omitted.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an electrical configuration of a ticket vending machine according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an external view of the ticket vending machine of the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation of the ticket vending machine of the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining updating of image data in the embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Ticket vending machine 11 Product selection button 2 Display 20 Built-in personal computer main body 21 Hard disk drive 22 Memory 23 Connection port 3 Ticketing section 4 Cash processing section 5 Digital camera

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A ticket vending machine for selling a service use ticket such as a meal ticket, an admission ticket, and a ticket, or a commodity exchange ticket, wherein an image display means for displaying a photographic image or a video image representing the product or service on the front side of the ticket vending machine. Image storage means for storing the image; and image display calling means for calling an image relating to the specific product or service from the image stored in the image storage means and displaying the image on the image display means. A ticket vending machine characterized by the following. 2. The ticket vending machine according to claim 1, wherein said image display calling means has a commodity selection means for selecting said commodity or service. 3. The ticket vending machine according to claim 1, wherein said image is stored as digital data in said image storage means. 4. The ticket vending machine according to claim 1, wherein said image display means is a small- or medium-sized matrix-type liquid crystal display (LCD) or a cathode ray tube display (CR).
T) A ticket vending machine characterized in that: 5. The ticket vending machine according to claim 2, wherein said ticket vending machine includes image data updating means for updating image data stored in said image storage means. 6. A ticket vending machine according to claim 5, wherein said image data updating means comprises a digital camera.