JP2002074479A - Vending machine management system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a vending machine management system, furnished with the function of efficiently assisting the supply of articles for sale with respect to vending machines. SOLUTION: This system is provided with managing functions of gathering article sale information in vending machines (sales information gathering means) and generating a list of articles that should be supplied to the vending machines (article list generating means). Then vending machines which can be supplied with articles by one distribution vehicle are selected (vending machine selecting means), by referring to a vending machine location database stored with the installation locations of the vending machines, according to the mentioned list and a distribution route for supplying the article is determined by referring to map information (distribution route determining means). The system also provided with a function that the determined distribution route and the location of the vending machines are shown on a map drawing and presented to the delivery vehicle (map-presenting means).

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vending machine management system having a function of efficiently supporting a plurality of vending machines for replenishing sales products.

[0002]

[Related Background Art] In recent years, vending machines that sell beverage products in which beverages such as juices and coffee are filled in cans and bottles, and packaged products such as tobacco have been remarkably spread, and are widely installed indoors and outdoors. It has become. In order to operate such a vending machine efficiently, it is important to accurately grasp the sales situation of the product in the vending machine and replenish a new product before the product is sold out.

[0003] Recently, for example, the sales status of commodities in a plurality of vending machines distributed in a plurality of places in an urban area is monitored by using a telemetry technique, and the vending machines for each vending machine are controlled under a predetermined inventory control. Various attempts have been made to appropriately instruct product replenishment.

[0004]

However, the replenishment of goods to the vending machines is performed exclusively by the vending machines installed in the corresponding service charge areas by the commodity delivery vehicles assigned to the predetermined service charge areas. It is only performed while tracing in order. The above-described product replenishment instruction is simply given in advance as information on which product (product type) to replenish and how much (replenishment amount) to each of a plurality of vending machines that each product delivery vehicle traces sequentially. is there.

[0005] For this reason, although the sales situation of a plurality of vending machines is monitored as described above and an instruction to replenish goods is given to each vending machine, the work of replenishment of goods to be performed by each commodity delivery vehicle is performed. Is likely to be excessive or insufficient. For example, if the total amount of product replenishment instructed to a vending machine installed in a certain service area exceeds the quantity of products that can be mounted on a product delivery vehicle, the product replenishment by the product delivery vehicle It is necessary to perform the service twice.

Therefore, except for the concept of the service charge area, it is conceivable that a plurality of merchandise delivery vehicles distribute vending machines to be provided with the merchandise replenishment service according to the replenishment amount of the vending machines. However, vending machines are usually widely distributed and installed in each service area described above. For example, it takes time to go to a vending machine installed far away from a normal delivery route. Problems easily occur.

The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a vending machine management system capable of efficiently and accurately performing a product replenishment service for a plurality of vending machines. To provide.

[0008]

In order to achieve the above object, a vending machine management system according to the present invention collects merchandise sales information in a plurality of vending machines to be managed, for example, using telemetry technology. (Sales information collecting means) and a management function for creating a list of commodities to be replenished in each of the vending machines in accordance with the collected merchandise sales information (commodity list creating means). Moreover,
Referring to the vending machine position database in which the installation positions of the vending machines are stored according to the above list, a plurality of vending machines that can be refilled by one delivery vehicle are selected (vending machine selecting means), and the map information is referred to. Then, a delivery route for sequentially replenishing the products to the plurality of selected vending machines is determined (delivery route determining means), and the determined delivery route and the automatic replenishment target products under the delivery route are determined. The position of the vending machine is specified on a map image obtained from the map information and is presented to the delivery vehicle (map presenting means), thereby providing a function of instructing a product replenishment.

Preferably, the delivery route determination means calculates the distance of the delivery route and calculates the time required for the movement to determine whether the delivery route is appropriate. It is characterized in that it has a function of evaluating and changing the delivery route or changing the selection of a vending machine by the vending machine selecting means according to the evaluation result.

That is, according to the present invention, a plurality of vending machines which can be replenished by one delivery vehicle according to the replenishment amount of the plurality of vending machines are selected according to the information on the installation position of each vending machine. Then, a delivery route for sequentially replenishing products to these vending machines is determined with reference to the map information, and the delivery route is verified from the distance and the time required for the movement. Then, a route diagram is created in which the determined delivery route and the installation position of the vending machine are clearly specified on a map image, and is presented to the product delivery vehicle together with a product replenishment list for each vending machine. .

[0011]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A vending machine management system according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The vending machine management system includes a plurality of vending machines 1, as shown in FIG.
Management center (sales headquarters) 10 that manages the operation of 1,1, ...
And an office (delivery center) 20 that is responsible for product replenishment and maintenance for each vending machine 1 and forms an information network. In addition, each vending machine 1 is provided with a communication terminal 2 such as a mobile phone or a specified low-power wireless communication device (PHS), and is periodically notified of product sales information and the like via a communication station 3. Management center (sales head office) 1
0 collects the information given from each vending machine 1 in this manner, thereby grasping the sales situation of the product in each vending machine 1 (sales information collecting means).

Here, the description will be made assuming that the sales status and the like of the vending machine 1 are collected using the mobile phone (communication terminal) 2. However, a handy terminal or a memory carried by a salesman performing a product replenishment service or the like is carried out. The information such as the sales status of the vending machine 1 is stored (recorded) on a card or the like, and these handy terminals, memory cards, etc. are brought back and attached to the information input terminal provided at the management center, 10 or business office 20. The information may of course be input as data. It is of course possible to collect information via a general telephone line or a CATV communication line, and it is also possible to use a dedicated wireless system.

A management center (head office) 10 has a database 11 for storing inventory information of a plurality of vending machines 1,
A database server 13 having a database 12 for storing the sales results and the like of the vending machines 1 is provided. The database server 13 analyzes the sales situation periodically collected from each of the vending machines 1 described above, and stores the analysis result in each of the databases 11 and 12 so that all the vending machines 1 to be managed are analyzed. The company is in charge of managing the sales status in a comprehensive manner in real time.

A computer 14 provided in the management center (head office) 10 supports a vending machine installation plan and a market research support as will be described later. A memory 15 for storing information, a memory 16 for storing position information of a plurality of vending machines 1 installed, and a memory 17 for storing map information of a business expansion strategy range including a current business range. The sales information of the vending machine stored in the memory 15 is obtained by, for example, locally downloading the sales results of the vending machine 1 from the database server 13 via the LAN 18, for example.

On the other hand, a computer 21 provided in a sales office (delivery center) 20 plays a role of supporting replenishment of goods to a plurality of vending machines 1 to be managed. Memory 2 that stores inventory information
2, a memory (vending machine position database) 23 for storing position information where the vending machines 1 are installed, a memory 24 for storing map information, and a memory 25 for storing road network information. In particular, the stock information of the plurality of vending machines 1 stored in the memory 22 is periodically downloaded locally from the database 13 via the web network 4 or the like.

The computer 21 obtains the sales information and the like of the plurality of vending machines 1 installed in the sales office (delivery center) 20 from the memory 22 and obtains, for example, a product of each vending machine 1 in the figure. A list of commodities to be replenished to the vending machine 1 is created from the stock information as shown in FIG. Then, as described below, the map information 2 obtained from the memories 23, 24, and 25 respectively.
8 and plays a role in drafting a product replenishment plan while examining a product delivery route.

The processing using the computer 21 in the sales office (delivery center) 20 will be described. As shown in FIG. 2, the processing is a search function for a product delivery route and a result of the route search processing. , A route diagram and a product replenishment list for product replenishment are created and presented to each product delivery vehicle. In this process, as described above, based on the sales status data collected from each of the plurality of vending machines 1, the vending machine 1 to be replenished with commodities on the next day is obtained (vending machine selecting means). It consists of a process (delivery route determination means) for determining whether a product replenishment service should be executed for each vending machine 1 on the delivery route.

That is, in this computer 21,
First, based on the stock status of a plurality of vending machines 1, a replenishment product list including the types and quantities of commodities to be replenished for each vending machine 1 is created [Step S1].
Thereafter, referring to this product replenishment list and further to the position information of each vending machine 1, a plurality of vending machines 1 capable of replenishing products by one product replenishment service by one product delivery vehicle. Is selected (step S2).

Regarding the selection processing of the vending machine 1,
For example, it is executed while determining the location of the vending machine 1 on a map while determining the regionality and distribution according to the location information of the vending machine 1. At this time, the vending machine 1 may be roughly classified as an area east of the business office (delivery center), an area west of the business office, or the like. Further, according to the information of the road network described above, it is also possible to sort a plurality of vending machines 1 according to a basic delivery route set in advance along some major roads. Naturally, the selection is made in consideration of the quantity of products that can be mounted on one product delivery vehicle and the number of products to be refilled in each vending machine 1.

When the vending machine 1 assigned to one commodity delivery vehicle is selected in this way, for example, as shown in FIG.
, Map information of the corresponding area is obtained, and the position of the vending machine 1 is mapped on this map image as indicated by a black circle in the figure. Then, a sales office (delivery center) 2 indicated by a triangle in the figure
A delivery route that sequentially follows each of the vending machines 1 along the road from the location 0 is obtained as shown by a thick line. In the drawing, the circles indicate the installation locations of the vending machines 1 that have not been selected.

In this state, the distance along the road from the business office 20 to each vending machine 1 according to the road network information stored in the memory 25 is, for example, as shown in FIG.
And the distance of the delivery route is calculated [Step S3]. Further, the time required for traveling through this delivery route is calculated [Step S4]. This time calculation is based on the road network information described above,
It is calculated based on the information on the speed limit of each road and the traveling distance. When infrastructure (infrastructure) information indicating road congestion information is given,
After determining whether or not the congestion state of the road is steady, the required time may be calculated in consideration of the congestion degree.

If the distance calculation result of the delivery route or the time required for passing through the delivery route exceeds a predetermined reference, the vending machine 1 shown in step S2 described above is used. And the selection of the vending machine 1 is repeated. Then, the calculation of the distance of the delivery route to the plurality of vending machines 1 newly calculated and the calculation of the required travel time are redone.

This process is executed for each delivery route for a set of a plurality of vending machines obtained in the selection process of the vending machine 1. That is, for each of the commodity delivery vehicles, it is determined whether the selected vending machine 1 is appropriate and the delivery route is verified. If the verification of the distance and time of the delivery route to each product delivery vehicle is performed, the overall balance is verified, and if necessary, the selection of vending machines and the correction of the delivery route are prompted. Then, the delivery route to be assigned to each of the plurality of commodity delivery vehicles is optimized [Step S5].

When the vending machine 1 to be refilled and the delivery route are determined for each product delivery vehicle as described above [Step S6], the vending machine 1 is displayed on the map image shown in FIG. A route diagram describing the installation position and delivery route of the vending machine 1 selected as described above is created [Step S7].
In this case, it is possible to simultaneously describe information on a target for clearly indicating a delivery route, for example, information on a gas station or a convenience store, a railroad crossing, a bridge, and the like on the map image. At the same time, a list indicating the location and the management number of the vending machine 1 to go along the delivery route is created [Step S9], and the product name and quantity of the product to be refilled in each vending machine 1 are entered. A replenishment product list to be specified is created [Step S10]. Then, the delivery route diagram, the vending machine list and the replenishment product list are notified to the product delivery vehicle, that is, the salesperson who executes the product replenishment service [step S11].

Notification of such information (map presenting means)
Can be transmitted to a facsimile machine mounted on a product delivery vehicle, but is given to a car navigation system mounted on the product delivery vehicle and displayed on a display of the car navigation system. It is also possible to If the functions of such a car navigation system are used together, the installation position of the vending machine 1 is superimposed and displayed on the map image of the navigation system, and the shortest distance to the vending machine 1 is minimized. Since it is also possible to instruct the moving route one after another, it is possible to perform a quicker product replenishment service.

Thus, as described above, a vending machine management system having a function of designating a vending machine 1 for replenishing commodities together with the map information by setting product replenishment routes for a plurality of vending machines 1 is provided. According to this, the product replenishment service can be efficiently performed, and the burden on the salesperson who executes the product replenishment service can be reduced. Further, it becomes easy to optimize the allocation of the product delivery vehicles according to the sales situation of the products in the vending machine 1, and to optimize the number of the product delivery vehicles required for the product replenishment and the work time required for the product replenishment. For example, it is possible to achieve an effect that it is possible to reduce the operating cost by shortening the cost.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, when a delivery route is verified using map information and an appropriate delivery route is specified on a map and presented to a product delivery vehicle, the map image can be enlarged / reduced as necessary. Is also possible. It is also useful that the installation position can be searched on a map according to the management number (ID information) of the vending machine 1. In the above-described embodiment, the position of the vending machine 1 to be replenished with commodities is specified by changing the shape of the mark. However, the display color may be changed. It is of course possible to display roads and buildings in different colors.

It is also possible to display information on the vending machine clicked on the map displayed on the display, for example, a product replenishment list in a dialog format. Further, it is also possible to display the failure state of the vending machine on the map. If such an auxiliary function is provided, more detailed service can be quickly performed. Furthermore, the algorithm for determining the delivery route can be variously modified.

On the other hand, using the function of displaying the installation location of the vending machine 1 on a map, the vending machine 1 is operated as follows.
It is also possible to support the planning of the installation and support for market research. In this case, it is useful to use statistical data such as census information in the area. That is, when a vending machine installation plan is prepared as shown in FIG. 5, the management center (head office) 10 first places a vending machine 1 on a map image of a predetermined area in accordance with the position information of the vending machine 1 as shown in FIG. The position of the vending machine 1 is displayed as shown. At this time, according to the sales record information of each vending machine 1, for example, the size or color of the symbol / mark is changed so that the sales situation can be visually recognized [Step S21]. Then, according to the statistical data, the population density, the age of product purchase, and the like are hierarchically color-coded and displayed on the map [Step S22]. Regarding the display of the statistical data, a display in accordance with the purpose of the verification may be used.

Thereafter, a position where a new vending machine is to be installed is specified (assumed) on the map, and a change in the sales performance of the surrounding vending machines is considered [step S23]. In this case, if a simulation such as recounting the distribution of statistical data described above is executed according to a product sales area expected to change due to the installation of a new vending machine, the verification can be more effectively performed. Can be performed. Further, such a simulation can be used as a material for judging whether the number of vending machines is sufficient or not in a predetermined business target area.

If necessary, if the map image is output together with the effects expected due to the installation of the vending machine and the change of the installation location [Step S24], the vending machine sells the product in the area. Since the situation can be presented as regional distribution information, it becomes possible to effectively support the installation plan of the vending machine 1 and market research.

In addition, the present invention can be variously modified and implemented without departing from the gist thereof.

[0033]

As described above, the present invention not only collects sales information of a plurality of vending machines, but also executes a product replenishment instruction based on the sales information while utilizing map information. The vending machine to be refilled can be presented as map information specifying the delivery route and the like, while appropriately assigning the delivery vehicle to the product delivery vehicle. As a result,
This has a great effect in practical use, such as efficient supply of goods to vending machines.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall schematic configuration diagram of a vending machine management system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a view showing a flow of basic processing functions in the system shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a display example of a map image, an installation position of a vending machine, and a product delivery route.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of distance information of a delivery route.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing processing functions for assisting in vending machine installation planning and market research, which are auxiliary functions of the present system.

FIG. 6 is a view showing an example of a map image used in the processing shown in FIG. 5;

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Vending machine 2 Communication terminal (mobile phone) 10 Head office 13 Database server 20 Sales office (delivery center) 22 Memory (Vending machine sales information) 23 Memory (Vending machine installation position) 24 Memory (Map information) 25 Memory (road network) S1 Product replenishment list creation means S2 Vending machine selection means S3 Delivery route distance calculation means S4 Delivery route travel time calculation means S7 Delivery route determination means S8 Route diagram creation means S9 Automatic Means for creating a vending machine list S10 Means for creating a replenishment product list S11 Notification means

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Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A sales information collecting means for collecting merchandise sales information of a plurality of vending machines to be managed, and a list of merchandise to be replenished to each vending machine in accordance with the collected merchandise sales information. Merchandise list creating means, and a vending machine selecting means for selecting a plurality of vending machines which can be replenished with one delivery vehicle by referring to a vending machine position database storing installation positions of the vending machines according to the list. A delivery route determining means for determining a delivery route for sequentially replenishing the products to the plurality of vending machines selected with reference to the map information; and the determined delivery route and the products under the delivery route. Map presenting means for specifying the position of the vending machine to be refilled on the map image obtained from the map information and presenting it to the delivery vehicle. Vending machine management system according to claim. 2. The delivery route determination means calculates the distance of the delivery route, calculates the time required for the movement, and evaluates the suitability of the delivery route, and according to the evaluation result, 2. The vending machine management system according to claim 1, further comprising a function of prompting a user to change a delivery route or change a vending machine selection by the vending machine selection unit.