JP2002170008A - Sales system and sales method of contact lens - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To allow a person to re-purchase a desired quantity of disposable contact lends when required without requiring much time. SOLUTION: In this sales system, purchase information transmitted from a user through a communication network is received (steps S9-S11), and the sales of contact lens is managed on the basis of the preliminarily stored information for the prescription of the user by an ophthalmologist and purchase information (steps S1-S8, S12-S18, P1, and P2).

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a disposable contact lens sales system and a sales method based on a server system established on the Internet.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, contact lenses have been used by many people because they have a wider field of view than spectacles. Among these contact lenses, soft type (so-called,
Disposable type) contact lenses are rapidly spreading.

[0003] When a user purchases a contact lens, he or she is examined by an ophthalmologist, and a contractor manufactures the contact lens based on a prescription entered in the examination. Especially for disposable contact lenses,
If the prescription has been submitted to the trader, it can be repurchased without a prescription for a certain period of time defined by the prescription. Such a fixed period (also referred to as an expiration date) is determined for each ophthalmologist and is a period such as three months or six months.

[0004]

However, in the above-mentioned method of selling disposable contact lenses, it has been pointed out that it is necessary to go to a contact lens dealer every time a repurchase is performed, which is troublesome. is there. In addition, this repurchase may be forgotten in daily life, and the stock may be lost.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the problems of the conventional selling method, and repurchases a desired amount of a disposable contact lens in a timely manner when required, without any trouble. It is a first object of the present invention to provide a sales system and a sales method that can be used.

In addition, the present invention achieves the first object described above, and also includes a method for purchasing a disposable type contact lens, such as a schedule for repurchasing a lens of a user or a reexamination of an ophthalmologist. The second object of the present invention is to provide a sales system and a sales method which are excellent in convenience for the user by automatically performing the peripheral management of the user.

[0007]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a sales system for disposable contact lenses, which is sent via a communication network. A receiving unit for receiving purchase information from the user, a storage unit in which information on the user's prescription by the ophthalmologist is stored in advance, and managing the sale of the contact lens based on the purchase information and the information on the prescription. Management means.

[0008] Preferably, the purchase information includes a purchaser name and a purchase date, and the management means searches for a prescription matching the purchaser name from the prescription information, Is included in the information of the prescription searched by the search means, within the expiration date determining means for determining whether or not the expiration date determined by the ophthalmologist, the purchase date is within the expiration date When it is determined that the purchase of the contact lens is permitted, while when it is determined that the purchase date has passed the expiration date, the purchase of the contact lens is not permitted. Command means.

[0009] The management means may include a near-state determining means for determining information on the prescription stored in the storage means from the viewpoint of whether or not the expiration date is approaching, and the near-state determining means. When it is determined that the expiration date is approaching, a notification unit that notifies a user corresponding to the prescription of this determination that the expiration date of the prescription is imminent together with an ophthalmologist consultation guide is provided. Is also good. Thereby, the above-described second object is achieved.

For example, the management means described above estimates the remaining amount of the contact lens, which is considered to be held by the user who purchased the contact lens, whether or not the remaining amount of the contact lens has decreased to a certain value or less. And a sales promotion means for, when the remaining amount estimating means estimates that the remaining amount is equal to or less than a predetermined value, prompting a user corresponding to the prescription to be estimated to purchase additional contact lenses. Thereby, the above-described second object is achieved.

Further, as an example, the communication network is the Internet, and the sales system is a server system established on the Internet.

Further, in order to achieve the first object described above, a selling method according to the present invention is a method for selling disposable contact lenses, wherein a method of selling disposable contact lenses from a user sent via a communication network is provided. The system is characterized in that purchase information is received, and sales of the contact lens are managed based on pre-stored information of a user's prescription by an ophthalmologist and the purchase information.

[0013]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The contact lens sales system according to this embodiment is realized by a server system constructed on the Internet as a communication network.

Here, the contact lenses to be sold are soft type, so-called disposable contact lenses. The expiration date for disposable contact lenses is in units of, for example, one day or two weeks. In addition,
As described below, users are not limited to contact lenses,
Eye care products such as eye drops, which are quasi-drugs, are also available for purchase.

First, an outline of a contact lens selling method using this selling system will be described.

A user who uses the sales system for the first time receives a diagnosis by an ophthalmologist and obtains a prescription. The user sends the prescription to a store or the like of a distributor managing the sales service by mail, fax, or bringing. The sales company digitizes the prescription and registers it in the sales system, and receives the first order for the contact lens from the user via the Internet or at a store. The seller delivers the contact lens to the user at the store or via a delivery method such as a courier service according to the order.

In a prescription prescribed by an ophthalmologist, eye conditions such as eyesight tend to change easily, and it is preferable to perform a checkup at regular intervals. Therefore, usually, a fixed expiration date determined for each ophthalmologist (eg, 3 months, 6 months, etc.) ) Is set. Within the expiration date, the user (patient) can directly repurchase (additional purchase) the contact lens based on the prescription already submitted from the dealer.

The present sales system further enables a contact lens to be repurchased via the Internet based on a prescription that has already been digitized and registered by the distributor, thereby improving the convenience of the user when purchasing. Improve. In addition to being able to simply repurchase, various services are added as described later to further improve the convenience of the user and to assist the user in managing the repurchase of the contact lens. .

The sales system is operated as a membership system because of its ease of management.

FIG. 1 shows an outline of hardware of the sales system, and FIG. 2 shows an outline of processing by the system.

This sales system is specifically composed of a server system 1 as shown in FIG. The server system 1 is communicably connected to a user's personal computer 3A, 3B,... (Hereinafter, referred to as a client terminal) as a client via the Internet 2 as a communication network. The server system 1 is operated by, for example, a seller that provides a contact lens sales service.

The server system 1 functionally opens a website for providing such a contact lens sales service. In terms of hardware, the server system 1 includes a router 11 connected to the Internet,
It comprises a load balancer 12, a web server array (hereinafter, referred to as a web server) 13 composed of a plurality of web servers, and a database 14, which are connected in this order. Each of the servers 13A (13B,...) Of the web server 13 cooperates with other servers to perform user authentication processing, purchase acceptance processing (including authentication processing), and sales processing described in FIGS. , Various management processes such as expiration date management and user stock management. In this process, the database 1
4 and a communication control process between the user and the client terminals 3A, 3B,...

For this reason, each server 13A (13B,...)
Is provided with a memory M as a recording medium in which application software for executing such processing is stored in advance. This application software is installed on the server 13A, 1
3B,... Operates on an operating system (OS).

The database 14 includes a plurality of database units 14A and 14B, and stores and updates data related to contact lens sales based on a command from the web server 13 while backing up each other.

The Internet 2 as a communication network handles bidirectional communication between the server system 1 and client terminals 3A, 3B,... Of an unspecified number of users under a predetermined communication protocol. I have.

On the other hand, the user's client terminals 3A, 3
B,... Are each composed of a general-purpose personal computer, and are connected to the network 2 from a provider (not shown) via, for example, a public line or a dedicated line. Of course,
The client terminals 3A (3B, ...) may be connected to an intranet. Each client terminal 3A (3
B,...), A browser for browsing a website is installed. By starting this browser, the user can access each client terminal 3A (3B,...)
, Various web sites on the Internet 2 can be accessed. As a result, the user and the server system 1 operate as a server and client system that performs bidirectional communication under a predetermined communication protocol. The user is an individual because he handles a product called a contact lens, which is premised on diagnosis by a doctor.

Next, the operation of this sales system will be described, focusing on the sales management processing shown in FIGS.

The web server 13 waits while judging whether or not there is access from each of the user's client terminals 3A (3B,...). When a user accesses from a certain client terminal 3A, the web server 13 displays the top screen of this sales service website on the client terminal 3A (see FIG. 2, steps S1, S2, and FIG. 4). ).

As shown in FIG. 4, the top screen includes a description of the contents of the sales service and a contract clause together with the user ID.
Windows W1 and W2 for inputting numbers and passwords are set. Since this sales system adopts a membership system, an ID number and a password are set in advance by a registration process. As the ID number, a member number uniquely issued by the seller or a health insurance card number described in a prescription is used.

For this reason, the user can select I
Enter the D number and password, and enter this into the web server 13
(Step S3). The web server 13 having received the transmission information transmits the user registration information (information for identifying an individual, prescription information,
Authentication processing is performed with reference to a settlement method or the like (stored in step P1), and it is determined whether or not authentication is performed (steps S4 and S5). If the user is not authenticated by this process, the web server 13 notifies the client terminal 3A to urge member registration (step S5N).

If the authentication process is passed, the user I
The D information is transferred to a prescription confirmation process (step S
6). Specifically, the web server 13 refers to the user's prescription information stored in the database 14 in advance (stored in step P2), and includes
It is determined whether there is a prescription for the user who has just accessed (step S7).

If the judgment is NO, that is, if there is no corresponding prescription, the client terminal 3A is notified of that (step S7N). Conversely, if the determination is YES, that is, if there is a corresponding prescription, the web server 13 determines whether this access is within the expiration date of the prescription (expiration date: a fixed period determined by the ophthalmologist) (step). S8).

If the determination is NO, the web server 13 displays a screen on the client terminal 3A stating that "The prescription has expired and recommends a re-examination by an ophthalmologist" (step S8N). Fig. 5 shows an example of this screen.
Shown in Conversely, if it is determined in step S8 that the prescription is within the validity period of the prescription (YES), the web server 13 then causes the client terminal 3A to display a purchase screen (step 9).

FIG. 6 schematically shows an example of the purchase screen. As can be seen from the figure, on the purchase screen, a window W3 for inputting the lens product name (type of disposable days), a window W4 for the unit price of the lens, a window W5 for inputting the order quantity, a window W6 for the total lens, and a window for the delivery destination A window W7, a desired delivery date window W8, and the like are displayed. When the user inputs the lens product name in the window W3 in, for example, a pull-down method, the unit price of the member price linked thereto is automatically displayed in the window W2. Also, when you enter the quantity in window W5,
The total amount is automatically calculated and displayed on the window W6. Regarding the quantity, a minimum order number may be set, and the minimum order number may be set as a sales unit. If the minimum order number is exceeded, an arbitrary number of orders may be set to be inputtable.

The delivery destination is, for example, home, work,
You can specify a nearby convenience store. The desired delivery date can be specified by the date and time (day and morning or afternoon) desired by the user.

Further, on the purchase screen shown in FIG. 6, advertisements W9 (for example, banner advertisements) of various eye care products (for example, eye drops of quasi-drugs) are displayed.
In response to this, windows W10 to W13 in which care products can be ordered are displayed on the purchase screen. When a care product is ordered, the price including the price of the care product and the price of the contact lens is displayed as a total in the window W14. When care products are not ordered, the total is the contact lens price.

The user makes an input on the purchase screen of the client terminal 13A and transmits it to the web server 13 (step S10). In response, the web server 13 accepts the purchase information, and determines whether the order quantity indicated by the information satisfies a predetermined standard and whether the lens product name matches the previous one. It is determined whether or not there is (Steps S11, S12).

This determination is made, for example, when there are only one week remaining before the expiration date of the prescription, but there are three months worth of orders (including cases where the number of orders is very large), and This is done assuming prevention of purchasing lenses with incorrect disposable days. For this reason, as for the remaining days, the ratio between the number of days remaining until the expiration date of the prescription and the number of purchases is predetermined, and it is determined whether or not the number of purchases is abnormal based on this ratio.

If it is determined that the number of purchases is abnormal (YES in step S12), the web server 13 notifies the client terminal 3A that the number of orders exceeds the standard and / or A confirmation notification that the lens product names are different is sent (step S12Y). In response to this confirmation notification, the user returns some response to the web server 13 (step S13). If there is validity or correction information in the response information, the information is determined to determine whether or not the purchase is permitted (OK) (step S14). Even with this judgment,
If the purchase cannot be permitted (NO), this is notified to the client terminal 13A (step S14N). Conversely, if the purchase is possible (YES), the purchase information from the user is processed (step S15). The determination as to whether or not the above purchase satisfies the predetermined criteria may be made using or using communication means such as e-mail, telephone, and fax, as necessary.

Note that the web server 13 executes step S1
If it is determined that the number of orders satisfying the predetermined criterion is appropriate in the determination of step 2 (YES), steps S13 and S14 are performed.
The process directly skips to the order information processing for purchase information (step S15). In this order processing, the order information is sent to the database 14, and the purchase history data of the user is updated (step S16).

After the above-mentioned order receiving process (step S15), the web server 13 arranges for delivery of the ordered contact lens, and performs a billing process (step S17).
S18).

As described above, the server system 1
After receiving the user's access via the Internet 2, processing is performed until the lens is requested for delivery and billed. On the other hand, the server system 1 provides push-type information to the user to enhance the convenience of the user. FIG. 3 shows an outline of the information providing process. This process is periodically executed, for example, every day.

More specifically, the web server 13 reads the prescription information of each user (member) stored in the database 14 as shown in FIG. Is determined (steps S21, S22). It is determined that the current date is close to the reference date (for example, 10 days) from the expiration date.
Day) is checked. If the determination is YES (that is, the expiration date is imminent), the ID information of the user of the corresponding prescription is stored (step S23). On the other hand, in the case of NO, such storage processing is not performed. A series of processes for this close judgment is performed for all of the user's prescription information currently stored in the database 14 (step S24).

When the close judgment for all the users is completed in this way, to all the users stored in step S23, "The prescription is about to expire,
It is instructed to notify the guidance information "recommend to have a re-examination of the ophthalmologist" (step S25). This guidance is provided by e-mail, for example, but may be fax, telephone, or mail. FIG. 7 schematically shows an example of a screen based on this guidance e-mail. When this notification instruction is completed, the information stored in the database 14 is rewritten to update the notification record (step S26).

It should be noted that this near-term notification may be divided into a plurality of times, for example, one month and two weeks before the expiration date.

Further, the web server 13 performs a process for sales promotion. This process is also executed at a regular time every day.

More specifically, the purchase history data of the purchaser stored in the database 14 is searched to determine the stock of the contact lenses currently held by each purchaser (steps S27 and S28). That is, it is estimated whether the stock on hand up to the expiration date of the prescription has been consumed to a predetermined number. For example, when it can be estimated that the stock on hand has reached the remaining three weeks (step S28, YES), the corresponding user is specified, for example, ID information is stored (step S29). Then, the process of estimation and storage is sequentially repeated for all purchasers (step S30).

The user thus listed is instructed to send a notice for sales promotion (early additional order), for example, as schematically shown in FIG. 8 (step S31). This notification is sent by e-mail, for example,
Communication means such as mailing or faxing a document or making a telephone call may be employed. The sales promotion guidance record already stored in the database 14 is updated with this notification information (step S32). In addition, the notification for this sales promotion may be performed stepwise multiple times.

In the present embodiment, the database 14 of the server system 1 and the functional processing of step P2 in FIG. 2 constitute the storage means of the present invention. Further, the function processing of steps S9 to S11 in FIG. 2 executed by the server system 1 constitutes a receiving unit of the present invention, and the processing in steps S1 to S1 in FIG.
8, S12 to S18, step P1, and the functional processing of steps S21 to S32 in FIG. 3 constitute the management means of the present invention.

Since the sales system according to the present embodiment is configured and functions as described above, the user once registers necessary information (user personal information and prescription information) in the sales system, and thereafter, The first purchase or subsequent repurchase of a contact lens can be ordered via the Internet 2 and the delivery can be automatically received.

Accordingly, the labor and labor for purchasing contact lenses can be significantly reduced, and the convenience for the user can be improved. That is, the user can save time and effort to go to the store at the time of the initial purchase or subsequent repurchase.

[0053] In addition, the user receives a member registration,
Thereafter, the system can automatically receive the term management information (expiration date) of the prescription and the management information of the stock on hand, so that it is possible to receive extremely reliable and convenient management as compared with the case of performing it by yourself.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the configuration of the above-described embodiment, and it is needless to say that the present invention can be modified into various forms based on the gist of the claims.

For example, in the above-described embodiment, the membership system is used in combination. However, the membership system is not necessarily required, and may be applied to a general user who purchases at a spot, or both the membership system and the non-member system are used. You may do so. In this case, it is desirable to give a user who is a member some kind of privilege (for example, a discount on the price of a contact lens) from the viewpoint of expanding sales services.

In the above-described embodiment, the case where the communication network is the Internet has been described. However, a communication function using a public line, a dedicated line, or the like, or a transmission function from a user in BS digital broadcasting. May be used.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the client system used when the user accesses the web server is described as a general-purpose personal computer, but this personal computer is a desktop type, a notebook type, a laptop type, etc. It is needless to say that a mobile phone, various mobile terminals with a communication function, a home appliance with a communication function, or the like may be used.

Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the mechanism in which the user presents his / her own prescription to the seller has been described. However, the present invention is not necessarily limited to this. May be configured to be sent from the ophthalmologist to the server system managed by the ophthalmologist or the server system of the contact lens vendor.
In that case, the user searches his / her prescription from the server system, presents the prescription, and places the order for the first or repurchase online.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, before or after the order receiving process in step S15 of FIG. 2, it may be instructed to send an electronic mail for confirming the order to the user. It is desirable that the e-mail be accompanied by a notice by an ophthalmologist that the expiration date of the prescription is valid and that it is desirable to consult as frequently as possible. Further, when the contact lens is delivered, a payment slip is also attached together with the product, and it is desirable that the above-mentioned precautionary note is also made on this payment slip.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the billing process is performed online, but the bill may be attached together with the above-mentioned payment slip, and the settlement may be separately paid later.

[0061]

As described above, according to the present invention,
It is possible to provide a sales system and a sales method which are extremely convenient for users and which can re-purchase a desired amount of a disposable type contact lens in a timely manner when necessary and when necessary.

In addition to the above-described effects, when purchasing disposable contact lenses, such as when repurchasing a lens of a user or re-examination by an ophthalmologist, peripheral management after the initial purchase is easy and labor-saving. A possible sales system and a sales method can be provided.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an outline of a contact lens sales system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating an outline of a process related to sales management executed in the sales system in cooperation with FIG. 3;

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an outline of a process related to sales management executed in the sales system in cooperation with FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a top screen displayed on a client terminal.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of a screen that displays the expiration date of a prescription displayed on the client terminal.

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a purchase screen displayed on a client terminal.

FIG. 7 is a schematic view of an example of a screen displayed on the client terminal for notifying that the expiration date of the prescription is imminent.

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of an example of a sales promotion screen displayed on the client terminal for prompting an additional order.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Server System (Sales System) 2 Internet (Communication Network) 3A, 3B,... User Personal Computer (Client Terminal) 13 Web Server 14 Database

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A disposable type contact lens sales system, comprising: a receiving means for receiving purchase information sent from a user via a communication network; and preliminarily storing information of a user's prescription by an ophthalmologist. A contact lens sales system, comprising: a storage unit configured to manage sales of the contact lens based on the purchase information and the prescription information. 2. The sales system according to claim 1, wherein the purchase information includes a purchaser name and a purchase date, and the management unit searches a prescription that matches the purchaser name from the prescription information. Search means, and the purchase date is
An in-term determining means included in the information of the prescription searched by the searching means, which determines whether or not the expiration date is determined by an ophthalmologist, and the purchase date is within the expiration date by the in-time judging means. When it is determined that the purchase of the contact lens is permitted, while when it is determined that the purchase date has passed the expiration date, the permission / non-permission command means for rejecting the purchase of the contact lens is determined. A contact lens sales system comprising: 3. The sales system according to claim 2, wherein the management unit determines the information of the prescription stored in the storage unit from the viewpoint of whether or not the expiration date is approaching. Judging means, when it is determined that the expiration date is imminent by the near-state judging means, the ophthalmologist consultation guide that the expiration date of the prescription is approaching for the user corresponding to the prescription of this judgment target A contact lens sales system, comprising: 4. The sales system according to claim 2, wherein the managing unit is configured to reduce a remaining amount of the contact lens, which is considered to be held by a user who purchased the contact lens, to a certain value or less. The remaining amount estimating means for estimating whether or not the remaining amount has been reached, and when the remaining amount estimating means has estimated that the remaining amount is equal to or less than a certain value, a contact lens is additionally purchased for a user corresponding to the prescription to be estimated. A sales system for contact lenses, comprising: a sales promotion unit for promoting sales. 5. The sales system according to claim 1, wherein the communication network is the Internet, and the sales system is a server system established on the Internet. Contact lens sales system. 6. A method for selling disposable contact lenses, comprising: receiving purchase information sent from a user via a communication network; and storing in advance a prescription of the user by an ophthalmologist. A method for selling contact lenses, comprising: managing sales of the contact lenses based on information and the purchase information.