JP2003084930A - Printing system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve the efficiency of a delivery request. SOLUTION: A printing system prints a delivery related character string indicating information related to the delivery of an article using a predetermined printing means. The printing system has an information input supporting means for supporting a delivery client to input a delivery request signal as the information into a printing means. The delivery request signal stores delivery origin information specifying a delivery origin of the article and delivery destination information specifying a delivery destination. On receiving the input of the delivery request signal, the printing means prints the delivery related character string specified by the delivery request signal on predetermined printing paper.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a printing system, and is suitable for application to, for example, a case where a parcel delivery agency such as a convenience store requests delivery of parcels.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, when requesting delivery by courier, the parcel is brought to a counter (counter) of a parcel delivery agency such as a convenience store and becomes a delivery destination (delivery destination) of the parcel. The person's address, name, phone number, and the address, name, phone number, etc. of the person requesting delivery are entered.

After that, if various items such as the size and weight of the package, whether the package is broken or not, etc. are reported and the necessary fee is paid, the package is officially accepted and the package is delivered to a desired delivery destination.

[0004]

However, in the convenience store counter, it is complicated and burdensome for the convenience store to fill in the necessary items one by one by hand, which is also a burden for the convenience store. While the requester is filling in the necessary items, the space around the counter is often blocked, which prevents the processing of other shoppers from being performed.

[0005]

In order to solve such a problem, in the present invention, in a printing system for printing a delivery-related character string indicating information on delivery of an article using a predetermined printing means, as the information, An information input support unit for assisting a delivery requester to input a delivery request signal containing delivery source information specifying the delivery source of the article and delivery destination information identifying the delivery destination to the printing unit. When the delivery request signal is input, the printing means prints a delivery-related character string designated by the delivery request signal on a predetermined printing paper.

[0006]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION (A) Embodiment Hereinafter, the case where the printing system according to the present invention is applied to a printer system that effectively utilizes a printer device already arranged in a backyard of a convenience store will be described as an example. The form will be described.

This embodiment not only prints out the necessary items described on the label of the parcel delivery service by using the existing printer, but also prints out the necessary items other than the necessary items such as coupons and advertisements. The feature is that it also prints.

(A-1) Configuration of Embodiment FIG. 1 shows an example of the overall configuration of a printer system 10 of this embodiment.
Shown in.

In FIG. 1, the printer system 10 is shown.
Is the Internet 11 and mobile phone network 1
2 and 13.

Among these, a printer set 23 installed in a counter of a convenience store store CV1 or the like exists on the mobile phone network 12, and a mobile phone 24 carried by a user U2 exists on the mobile phone network 13. . The printer set 23 is a printer device when viewed from the user U1 or the clerk C1 of the convenience store store CV1, but is the same as a normal mobile phone except that it hardly moves when viewed from the mobile phone network 12.

Of course, the printer set 23 and the mobile phone 24 may exist on the same mobile phone network, but here, for the sake of generality, it is assumed that they are on different mobile phone networks.
Further, in the present embodiment, a case will be mainly considered in which the user U1 carrying the mobile phone 24 serves as a delivery source and the parcel CG is delivered to a delivery destination (not shown).

In the present embodiment, since the user (eg, U1) carrying each mobile phone (one of which is 24) uses the electronic mail system when requesting the delivery of the package,
Each mobile phone network 12, 13 needs to have an electronic mail system.

These mobile phone networks 12, 13
Is operated by different mobile phone carriers based on different policies, so the content of each electronic mail system differs for each mobile phone network. Further, in order to cope with this difference, the functions of the printer set 23 and the mobile phone 24 as mobile phones are also usually different.

Further, the functions of (the mobile phone portion of) the printer set 23 and the mobile phone 24 differ not only according to the mobile phone network to which they belong, but also between mobile phones belonging to the same mobile phone network, depending on the manufacturer. Different, even among mobile phones of the same manufacturer, depending on the model.

The mobile telephone networks 12 and 13
Basically, the contents of the e-mail system inside can be freely decided by each mobile phone carrier, but if the system is too peculiar to connect to the Internet 11, it will Since there is a high possibility that the connection cannot be normally made, it is considered that a system that is the same as or similar to the Internet 11 is usually constructed.

FIG. 3 shows a structural example of the main part of the printer set 23.

(A-1-1) Example of Configuration of Printer Set In FIG. 3, the printer set 23 includes an adapter device 31, a printer device 32, and an additional information storage device 36.
It has and.

Of these, the printer device 32 may be any general printer device capable of printing an instructed character string or image on a predetermined sheet, but the printer device 32 may be a back device of the convenience store CV1. It is possible to use the dot printer (printing mechanism is a dot impact type printer) already existing in the yard or the like as it is. However, it is desirable that the printer device is a type that does not require a button operation or the like when performing print output, is activated only based on the input of an electrical signal from the connector, and automatically performs printing.

Further, since the printer device 32 is used for printing the tag labels LB1 to LB5 to be attached to the parcel of the courier, it is preferable that the printer device 32 is capable of printing a single sheet suitable for the tag label.

To physically connect the adapter device 31 to the printer device 32, the connector is mounted in accordance with the connector already provided in the printer device 32, such as an amphenol connector.

Inside the adapter device 31, a mobile phone interface unit 33, an interface conversion unit 34,
A printer interface unit 35 is provided.

The mobile phone interface section 33 provides an interface similar to a normal mobile phone (not shown) belonging to the mobile phone network 12 to a base station or a mail server in the mobile phone network 12. Part of. The mobile phone interface section 3
3 is equipped with a mailer (MUA) for mobile phones.

However, the mobile phone interface section 3 concerned
3 provides the same interface as a normal mobile phone only to the mobile phone network 12 side,
It is not necessary to equip the convenience store store CV1 with an interface for the clerk C1 or the like. That is, it is not necessary to equip the ordinary mobile phone with the display unit 42 (see FIG. 2) provided for the user to see various information and the operation unit 46 for receiving the input of the instruction from the user. .

In addition, since it is not necessary to display the content of the received electronic mail EM1 on the screen of the display unit and to send an electronic mail, the mailer installed in the mobile phone interface unit 33 is a normal mobile phone. It is possible to reduce the functions compared to the mailer of the telephone. The e-mail EM1 is sent to the convenience store store CV1 in which the printer set 23 is installed, and is an e-mail in which the necessary items regarding the delivery source and the delivery destination are described in the text.

At present, all major mobile phone carriers have a limit on the number of characters of e-mail that can be sent. However, the limit on the number of characters varies depending on the mobile phone carrier. Characters, 250 characters in the most restrictive example. On the other hand, the number of characters of the necessary items regarding the delivery source and the delivery destination of the present embodiment is unlikely to exceed the 250 characters due to its nature, so that it is considered that there is no problem with the number of characters of the email EM1. .

On the other hand, in order to reduce the processing amount of the adapter device 31 which receives the electronic mail EM1, the necessary information about the delivery source and the delivery destination is described in the body of the electronic mail EM1 in a fixed form as much as possible. Is required.
However, even if a general user requests a strict canonicality for the body of an e-mail, there is no guarantee that the canonicality is actually ensured, so some natural language processing is performed within the mobile phone interface unit 33. Is likely to be needed.

However, as a method of guaranteeing perfect formality, the following procedure can be used in the case where the mailer of the mobile phone 24 supports the Reply-To function.

First, the user U1 side causes the printer set 23 to send an e-mail in which nothing is written in the body (ignoring even if something is written in the body of this e-mail), and the printer set 23 side Fr of received email
Source mobile phone 24 described in the om field
Is described in the To field indicating the destination, and the e-mail address M of the printer set 23 is set as the reply destination in the Reply-To field.
An email that describes U1 and has a form corresponding to the standard form in the body (fields that describe each required items of the delivery destination and the delivery source (for example, a field that describes a name, a field that describes an address, etc.)) Is sent to the mobile phone 24. This e-mail is delivered on the mobile phone network 12, the Internet 11, and the mobile phone network 13 and received by the mobile phone 24, as in the case of a normal e-mail. Instead of the form, a predetermined description position designation character string that prompts the description of each item in the necessary items (for example, "Delivery destination name", "Delivery address", "Delivery source name", "Delivery source" Address ") and its location
You may make it ensure the said fixed formability.

The mobile phone 2 that receives this e-mail
On the side of 4, the fields corresponding to the fields in the form and the positions designated by the description position designation character strings are described, and the completed e-mail is returned (Reply-To) to the printer set 23. It becomes possible to guarantee the perfect formality.

Even if the mailer of the mobile phone 24 does not have the Reply-To function but has the standard e-mail storage function described later, the e-mail sent from the printer set 23 and containing the form in the text is sent. Is stored in the mobile phone 24 as a standard e-mail, the necessary editing is performed, and then the e-mail is sent to the printer set 23, so that it is possible to guarantee the equivalent formality.

By the way, in the case of an ordinary mobile phone, when the electronic mail EM1 addressed to itself arrives at the mailbox server, the incoming call or vibration is transmitted to the mobile phone user. In addition, the mechanism for receiving the email EM1 in the mobile phone is that the user sends the email under the initiative of the mailbox server (regardless of the user's operation) as long as the mobile phone is available. There is a type in which the mobile phone can receive the electronic mail EM1 only when an operation of taking out an e-mail from the mailbox is performed on the mobile phone.

The mobile phone interface section 33 of the adapter device 33 operates the e-mail E by the mailbox server.
If it corresponds to the type that sends M1, it is not necessary to perform a special operation from the mobile phone interface unit 33 side to receive the email EM1, but unlike the case of a general user, the adapter device 31 Since the number of incoming e-mails (one of which is EM1) is likely to be enormous, the mobile phone interface unit 3
It is advisable to mount a reception buffer having a sufficient capacity in 3 so as to deal with this. Further, if the capacity of the mailbox secured in the mailbox server can be specified, the maximum capacity of the mailbox should be specified.

On the other hand, in the case of the type that can receive the e-mail EM1 only when the portable telephone interface unit 33 in the adapter device 31 performs the take-out operation, when the ring tone or the like is received, there is no delay. It is preferable to automatically execute the take-out operation or automatically repeat the take-out operation at regular time intervals.

In order to prepare for new incoming emails EM1 one after another, the emails once taken out (for example, EM
Of course, 1) should be deleted from the mailbox immediately. When this deletion is performed, the mobile phone interface unit 33 automatically sends an instruction to that effect to the mailbox server.

The mobile phone interface section 33 is
Then, since all processes such as reception of the electronic mail EM1 are automatically executed, it is not necessary to output the ringtone or vibration to the outside. However, the printed label tag LB1
When the clerk clerk C1 to LB5 are arranged, it is useful to externally output the ring tone to notify the clerk C1 of the incoming call.

In the case of the present embodiment, the user U1 sends the electronic mail EM1 from anywhere to send the tag label (for example,
Since it is possible to print out LB1), generally, the order of printout of the tag labels LB1 to LB5 is as follows.
User (eg U1) is actually a package (eg CG)
It is different from the order in which it appears in the convenience store store CV1. Therefore, if the user directly handles the printed tag label, it may take time for other users to accidentally attach the printed tag label to his / her own luggage or find his / her tag label. Therefore, the tag label LB1 printed and output to the clerk C1 in advance
~ It is desirable to organize LB5 etc. When organizing this information, it is advisable to use the order of Japanese syllabary of the name in the necessary items of the delivery source described in the label on the label.

Then, when a user carrying luggage appears,
The clerk C1 inquires the name of the user, and selects from among the printed tag labels LB1 to LB5 the tag label in which the user name is described in the necessary items of the delivery source. The clerk C1 may affix the selected tag label to the bag by himself or give it to the user and have the user attach it, but a general user (for example, U1) can print it by another user. It is advisable not to see or touch the tag label.

The user's tag label that does not appear even after a certain storage period (for example, about one week) may be discarded.

On the other hand, the printer interface section 35 is
It is a part that provides an interface adapted to the printer device 32 to the printer device 32. This interface may be the same interface as a personal computer or the like that can be generally connected to the printer device 32.

The interface of the printer device 32 includes
There may be various types depending on the manufacturer of the printer device 32 or even the same manufacturer depending on the model of the printer device 32. For example, the interface differs depending on whether the printer device 32 is a serial printer or a page printer, or the type of the printer control code. However, in the case of the present embodiment, the interface provided by the printer interface unit 35 to the printer device 32 may correspond to one type of printer device already existing in the backyard of the convenience store.

The interface converting unit 34 interposed between the printer interface unit 35 and the mobile phone interface unit 33 is a printer interface having the mobile phone interface of the mobile phone interface unit 33. Is the part to be converted to.

In this interface conversion, the character string or the like indicating the above-mentioned necessary matters, which is the content of the body of the electronic mail EM1 received by the mobile phone interface section 33, is printed out on the printer device 32 to generate a tag label. Is done for.

With the above functions, the mobile phone user U
Although it is possible for 1 to print out the tag label requested via the network, in the present embodiment, in addition to this, since the coupon and the advertisement are printed in the blank area of the tag label, the additional information storage device 36 Are connected to the printer interface unit 35.

The additional information storage device 36 is a device that stores data such as character strings and images showing the contents of coupons and advertisements. If necessary, the additional information storage device 36
The function of may be incorporated in the adapter device 35.

The layout configuration of the front surface of the tag label may be, for example, that shown in FIG.

In FIG. 4, the tag label is composed of four areas A1 to A4. In the area A1, the necessary items of the delivery destination are the telephone number, the electronic mail address ST11, the address ST12, and the name. ST13 will be described. Similarly, in the area A2, the telephone number and e-mail address ST21 of the user U1 who is the delivery source and the address ST22
And the name ST23.

Further, in the area A3, a product name ST31, a description ST32 for distinguishing a broken product, a raw product, etc. are arranged. Usually, the parcel CG of the parcel delivery service is taken to the counter of the convenience store in a packed state, so it is also necessary to describe the contents of the parcel such as a product name, a fragile object, a distinctive object, etc.

However, since the description such as the product name and the distinction between the broken pieces and the raw materials is written by hand, it is not so troublesome as the name and the address corresponding to the above-mentioned necessary matters. It may be described in.

By writing the e-mail address of the delivery destination in the description ST11, it becomes possible to send the absence notification by e-mail. This is convenient for both the delivery company and the user at the delivery destination.

Predetermined coupons, advertisements, etc. are arranged in the area A4 which occupies substantially the left half of the label. Only one of the coupon and the advertisement may be placed in the area A4, but both may be mixed.

Further, it is easy to use a predetermined coupon or advertisement content to be placed in the area A4 regardless of the delivery destination or the delivery source, but by linking it with a customer management system (not shown) or the like. The content of the coupon or the advertisement may be selected according to the delivery destination or the delivery source, or the delivery source may specify the content of the coupon or the advertisement from some candidates.

The customer management system may be arranged on the Internet 11 or the mobile phone network 12, and like the additional information storage device 36, the adapter device 31.
You may connect directly with. The customer management system stores information such as a purchase history of products related to a delivery source user (for example, U1) and a delivery destination user, and stores the contents of the necessary items contained in the body of the email EM1. By analyzing, it is possible to select advertisements or coupons that match the hobbies and preferences of each user.

Further, the coupon may be selected by a lottery process using a random number or the like.

In order to print out the necessary items described on the package label of the courier by using the existing printer device 32, various configurations other than the use of the adapter device 31 are conceivable. In the configuration using the adapter device 31, the user U1 who is the requester of the courier does not have to perform troublesome procedures such as member registration, and the required items of the delivery source and the delivery destination are input at the counter of the convenience store store CV1 at the time of the request. There is no need and it is easy to use. Further, for the convenience store side, there is an advantage that the space around the counter can be prevented from being blocked while the user U1 is writing necessary items.

Next, a configuration example of the main part of the mobile phone 24 carried by the user U1 will be described with reference to FIG.

(A-1-2) Example of Configuration of Mobile Phone In FIG. 2, the mobile phone 24 includes a transmitting / receiving unit 41.
, The display unit 42, the print request generation unit 43, and P
An IM (personal information management) unit 44 and an operation unit 46 are provided.

Of these, the display unit 42 is used by the user U.
Reference numeral 1 denotes a portion used when visually observing a screen provided by PIM software such as a telephone book or an address book, or when composing the e-mail EM1, and the operation unit 46 is such that the user U1 operates the mobile phone 23. This is a part equipped with buttons for doing.

Further, the print request generation section 43 receives input of necessary items such as name, address, telephone number, e-mail address, etc. regarding the delivery destination and the delivery source, and as a print request signal, according to the request of the user U1. Email EM
This is a part for generating 1. Therefore, the print request generation unit 43 includes a mailer (MUA). The mailer is preferably operable in cooperation with the PIM unit 44 according to the operation of the operation unit 46 performed by the user U1.

The transmitting / receiving section 41 is a section equipped with, for example, a CDMA (code division multiple access) type processing circuit in addition to an antenna and various high frequency circuits. The transmitting / receiving unit 4
Reference numeral 1 is a part that directly executes communication using a radio signal with a base station (not shown) in the mobile phone network 13, but the components in the mobile phone network 13 such as the base station and the Internet. Finally, it becomes possible to deliver the electronic mail EM1 to the printer set 23 on the mobile phone network 12 via the mail delivery server (MTA) or the like on 11.

The PIM section 44 in the mobile phone 43 is a section in which the PIM software is installed. Originally, the personal database 45 is included in the PIM unit 44, but here, it is illustrated as being expanded to the outside.

Originally, PIM is a free-form database software for storing miscellaneous information whose data type and data size (number of digits) cannot be specified in advance. However, in the case of a mobile phone, the capacity of the storage device that can be installed. Is very small, so there are many restrictions on the data types that can be stored. However, it is usually possible to handle at least character-type data for storing names, addresses, URLs, electronic mail addresses, and the like, and numeric-type (integer-type) data for storing telephone numbers and the like.

The personal database 45 is stored in the user U1.
Is a database in which the user U1 itself has accumulated data for use by the. For example, in the case of a telephone directory, the telephone number, name, address, etc. of the other party recognized by the user U1 are stored as the data of the corresponding data items.

For example, the name of the convenience store store CV1 in which the printer set 23 is installed is NA1 and
If the address is RD1, the telephone number is NU1, and the email address is MU1, then the NA2 is stored in the data item “name”, and the RD2 is stored in the data item “address”. The NU2 is stored in the "phone number", and the data item "email address"
Will store MU2. It should be noted that the electronic mail address MU1 and the like may be displayed large in the convenience store store CV1 or the like as an electronic mail address for the printout service of the tag label.

If necessary, the mobile phone 2
If the name of the user U1 himself carrying 3 is NA2, the address is RD2, the telephone number is NU2 and the email address is MU2, these NA2, RD2, NU
It is often convenient to store 2, MU2 in the personal database 45 as well.

The function of the PIM unit 44 that manages and processes the personal database 45 may differ for each mobile phone, but can be roughly divided into the following three types.

That is, the first PIM having only the function of allowing the user U1 to visually check the contents of the personal database.
Then, while making the contents of the personal database visible to the user U1, in response to an instruction from the user U1, the value of the corresponding data item (for example, the email address) is set in the corresponding field (for example, the email address of the destination). The second PIM that can be entered only in the To field for entry and the content of the personal database can be made visible to the user U1, and the value of the corresponding data item (for example, , E-mail address) the relevant field (eg To field)
Is a third PIM that can be filled in only in the field, and can be filled in an arbitrary field (for example, a field in which the text of the e-mail is described) according to an instruction from the user U1.

The instruction from the user U1 given here can be executed by a button operation of the operation unit 46 which is much simpler than the case of inputting an e-mail address or the like character by character. The PIM of 3 is the best, then the second PIM, and finally the first PIM. In the case of the first PIM, it has only the function of supplementing the memory capacity of the user U1, but in the second PIM and the third PIM,
Not only will the memory be supplemented, but the input labor of the user U1 will be greatly reduced.

At present, P of most mobile phones
The IM remains in the second PIM. For example, when the PIM unit 44 is the third PIM,
As described above, if the personal database 45 stores the name, address, telephone number, e-mail address, and the like of the user U1 itself, the effect of reducing the number of input steps is very large.

However, in the case of the third PIM, the PIM unit 44
Requires a function of coordinating with other software (mailer in this embodiment) and exporting (writing) the search result to other software in CSV format or the like.

Of course, the mobile phone 23 is connected to the PIM section 44.
Even if the personal database 45 is not installed, the electronic mail EM1 can be transmitted. However, in that case, the user U1 completely stores the delivery address, telephone number, e-mail address, or the like, or carries a memo sheet or the like on which they are written and uses the operation unit 46 to store them. You need to enter each character one by one.

In the mobile phone, a standard e-mail for the user is stored in the mobile phone up to the title, the address, and the content of the text according to the designation from the user, and if necessary. Just edit a part,
Some have a standard email storage feature that allows you to easily compose and send new emails,
For users who often request delivery by courier,
If you save the e-mail describing the necessary items regarding the delivery destination and the delivery source in the standard e-mail storage function,
It is possible to significantly reduce the number of input steps.

The contents of the data items stored in the personal database 45 also differ depending on the mobile phone, but even if the name of each data item is not as described above, it is substantially the PIM of the mobile phone as long as it is the PIM of the mobile phone. Is considered to include at least data items such as name, telephone number, address, telephone number, and email address.

The operation of this embodiment having the above-mentioned structure will be described below.

(A-2) Operation of Embodiment When the user U1 wants to use the tag label printout service of the printer set 23 by using the mobile phone 24 to request the delivery of the package CG, the operation unit 46 is operated. By operating and utilizing the function of the PIM unit 44 and the standard e-mail storage function described above, the e-mail EM1 including the above-mentioned necessary items regarding the delivery destination and the delivery source is created and transmitted.
The position of the user U1 at the time of this transmission is not limited to the inside of the convenience store store CV1, and may be located anywhere within the coverage area of the mobile phone network 13.

As the convenience store store CV1 in which the printer set 23 is installed, the user U1 is the luggage CG.
It is common to choose a convenience store store near your home or work place that is convenient for you to take with you, but you can also send the email EM1 from a travel destination or a business trip destination. It is possible.

In the mobile phone network 13, the e-mail address MU of the convenience store store CV1
When the electronic mail EM1 in which 1 is written in the To field is sent to the Internet 11, an additional charge for the label label printing service can be charged in addition to the charge required for sending a normal electronic mail. As a result, it is possible to prevent the act of printing out the tag label by mischief even if there is no intention to request the delivery of the package. If necessary, this surcharge may be supplemented by the cost required to deliver a standard package, which may be the minimum cost required to deliver the package. In this case, when the luggage is actually taken to the counter of the convenience store store CV1 and the procedure for accepting the delivery of the luggage is performed, the difference is settled.

When the electronic mail EM1 transmitted from the mobile phone 24 and delivered on the Internet 11 arrives in its own mailbox, the mobile phone interface section 33 functions in the adapter device 31 of the printer set 23 to operate the electronic mail. Receive the mail EM1. The contents corresponding to the necessary items contained in the body of the received e-mail EM1 are processed by the interface conversion unit 34 and the printer interface unit 35, and then the information corresponding to the advertisement or the coupon by the additional information storage device 36 is processed. After receiving the addition, it is supplied to the printer device 32. In the printer device 32, the necessary items, advertisements, coupons, etc. regarding the delivery source (U1 in this case) and the delivery destination included in the e-mail EM1 are printed on a predetermined sheet and printed, for example, as shown in FIG.
The label label having the configuration shown in is output.

When the electronic mail EM1 is transmitted in the convenience store store CV1 or in the vicinity thereof,
Immediately after the transmission, the user U1 goes to the counter of the convenience store store CV1 with the luggage CG. Usually, by this time, the necessary tag label has already been printed out, so by telling the clerk C1 his / her name, etc., the necessary tag label can be obtained and the delivery request for the package CG can be promptly made (reception procedure). ) Can be done.

On the other hand, when the electronic mail EM1 is sent at a travel destination or a business trip destination, the luggage CG is immediately sent.
It is not possible to visit the convenience store store CV1 while holding the luggage C
If G is taken, the delivery request for the package CG can be promptly completed, as in the case where the electronic mail EM1 is transmitted in the convenience store store CV1 or in the vicinity thereof.

Further, by linking with the customer management system, it is possible to print advertisements and coupons that match the hobbies and preferences of each user on the tag label, so that the delivery destination user (and the delivery source by the advertisement effect or coupon) It is possible to further enhance the satisfaction of the user U1).

(A-3) Effects of the Embodiment As described above, according to the present embodiment, it is necessary to use the printer device already existing in the backyard of the convenience store to describe the label on the package label of the courier service. In addition to printing out the matters, it is possible to print out coupons and advertisements in addition to the necessary matters when printing out the matters.

As a result, for the user (U1),
The number of steps for requesting delivery of parcels (CG) is reduced, and for convenience stores, the space around the counter will not be blocked while the user is filling in the necessary items as in the past. , It will be a very user-friendly and efficient system for both parties.

Further, the present embodiment is excellent in practicability since the existing electronic mail system mounted on the Internet or the mobile phone network and the existing mobile phone can be used almost as they are.

(B) Other Embodiments In the above embodiment, the case where the mobile phone is mainly equipped with the PIM (including the personal database) has been described, but the PIM is not an essential constituent element of the present invention.

Data concerning the necessary items of the delivery source and the delivery destination are not obtained by using the PIM in the mobile phone.
You may input it using the database arranged on the Internet. This may be achieved by using a storage service or an e-mail ASP (application service provider) service.

Further, the mobile phone used in the above embodiment can be replaced with another mobile information terminal such as PDA, mail terminal, PHS terminal.

In the above embodiment, the printer device 3 is used.
Although the case where the label label is printed out from 2 was explained, in general, when requesting a courier, in addition to the label label, multiple documents such as an invoice finally delivered to the delivery destination with the package are created. There is a need to. These documents are the same as the tag label in that they are different only in the person who finally receives and keeps them, and in the point that the necessary items regarding the delivery destination and the delivery source are described, it is the same as the tag label. At the time of output, it is easy to print out these documents at the same time.

In this case, the coupon or advertisement may be printed on all of the plurality of documents. Further, each document may be printed with different advertisements or coupons depending on the person receiving and storing it.

In the above embodiment, the case where the dot printer already existing in the backyard of the convenience store is mainly used has been described, but the printer device used in the present invention is not necessarily limited to the dot printer. Of course not. A printer device may be newly installed for the present invention, or a dedicated printer device may be used. In this dedicated printer device, the function of the adapter device described above can be housed inside the printer device.

If a remote printer having a function of connecting to the Internet 11 and printing out the data received from the Internet can be installed in a convenience store or the like, the remote printer can be used as it is. It is clear that it can be used as. It can be considered that the remote printer device has a function equivalent to that of the adapter device 31 described above (in this case, however, the internet connection by the remote printer device is not necessarily performed through the mobile phone network. Not).

In the above embodiment, the information such as the necessary items of the delivery source and the delivery destination can be freely processed inside the mobile phone interface unit 33, so this information can be stored in the package (eg, CG). It may be transmitted to the courier service operator in charge of delivery via a network so that it can be utilized for efficient delivery of parcels.

A configuration for using the printer device 32 to print out the necessary items and the like described on the package label of a courier service, for example, in addition to the above-described adapter device 31, is as follows. The configurations (1) to (3) are possible.

(1) The touch panel device is the printer device 3
A configuration in which the necessary items are input in accordance with the operation of the touch panel device when a courier is requested by connecting to No. 2.

(2) The card reader device is replaced by the printer device 3
2 is connected, and when requesting a courier, the necessary items are input while utilizing a card (IC card or magnetic card) distributed in advance to each user (requester of the courier).

(3) The above-mentioned necessary items are input in advance at a home or the like into a PDA (personal information management) function-equipped PDA or mobile phone, and at the time of request, the printer device 3 is used.
A configuration in which the necessary items are input via the connector of 2.

In the configuration (1) using the touch panel device, when the user is unfamiliar, the time required for inputting the necessary items by operating the touch panel device is equal to or longer than that of the conventional handwriting input. However, if the operability of the touch panel device is good, it is possible to shorten the time as compared with the conventional case. In addition, the data of the necessary items input on the touch panel device is stored in a database, and if there are requests from repeaters who request delivery many times, the data can be reused to dramatically reduce the input time. Can be achieved.

Furthermore, if a database in which telephone numbers and postal codes that are easy to input are associated with addresses are prepared in advance, when inputting the delivery destination, the telephone numbers and postal codes will be input, and this telephone number will be input. By searching the database using the or postal code as a key, most of the delivery address can be automatically generated using the search result of the database, and the troublesome inputting of addresses etc. can be reduced. It is possible.

When the input by the touch panel device is completed,
The printer device may immediately print out the label or the like, but the touch panel device issues a receipt to the user, the user brings the receipt to the store clerk, and the printout is started by the operation of the store clerk. You may do it.

Next, in the configuration (2) in which the card reader device is used, the address, name, etc. of the requester (these can be aggregated into the member number given at the time of member registration) are stored in the card in advance. If necessary, it is possible to omit the input of the necessary items as far as the requester (that is, the delivery source) is concerned, but the delivery destination remains inconvenient in that the touch panel device and the handwriting are required.
In order to distribute the card in advance, it is necessary to take steps such as member registration and it may be disadvantageous in some cases, but considering the cooperation with the customer management system as described above, it is efficient. There is a possibility that it will be a different system.

In the configuration (3) using a PDA having a PIM function, a mobile phone, or the like, it is possible that an unspecified number of users requesting home delivery do not repeat the mounting operation on the connector of the printer device 32 every time the request is made. However, problems may occur in terms of usability and durability (wear, metal fatigue, etc.) of the connector portion on the printer device 32 side. Also, at the moment, with mobile phones and PDAs,
There is almost no model equipped with a connector that can be directly connected to a connector of a general printer using a cable or the like, and there is a problem in terms of feasibility. Considering these points, in the case of this configuration (3), it may be advantageous to utilize the infrared port instead of the connector.

However, in the configuration (3), since it is possible to omit the input of the required items of the delivery destination in addition to the required items of the delivery source, the labor for inputting the required items may be considerably reduced. The probability that the space around the counter in the store will be blocked and the processing of other shoppers will be prevented can be greatly reduced.

Since many mobile phones are equipped with a connector for connecting to a PDA, a notebook computer or the like, an interface similar to the adapter device 31, for example, is provided between the connector and the connector of the printer device 32. By interposing a device having a conversion function, it is possible to solve the problem of feasibility regarding the configuration (3).

In the above configurations (1) to (3), as in the above-described embodiment, since the data such as the necessary items has already been digitized before being input to the printer, the data concerned can be obtained. Can be used for customer management (it can also be processed by the existing POS (point of sale information management) system),
It is easy to use for improving the efficiency of parcel delivery.

Note that these configurations (1) to (3) and the above embodiment may be used alone, or may be used in combination as appropriate.

Further, in the configurations (1) to (3) and in the above-described embodiment, the charge settlement method when the tag label is printed out may be selected from cash, credit card, prepaid card and the like.

[0106]

As described above, according to the present invention, when the delivery requester inputs the delivery request signal, the printing means prints the delivery-related character string on a predetermined printing paper, so that compared to the prior art. It is possible to improve the efficiency of delivery requests.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an overall configuration example of a main part of a printer system according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration example of a main part of a mobile phone used in the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration example of a main part of a printer set used in the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing a layout configuration example of a tag label used in the embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

10 ... Printer system, 11 ... Internet, 1
2, 13 ... Mobile phone network, 23 ... Printer set, 24 ... Mobile phone, 31 ... Adapter device, 32 ... Printer device, 33 ... Mobile phone interface unit, 34 ...
Interface conversion unit, 35 ... Printer interface unit, 36 ... Additional information storage device, 43 ... Print request generation unit,
44 ... PIM section, 45 ... Personal database, LB1 to L
B5 ... Tag label.

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued Front Page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification Code FI Theme Coat (reference) G06F 19/00 300 G06F 19/00 300G

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A printing system for printing a delivery-related character string indicating information on delivery of an article using a predetermined printing means, wherein the information includes delivery source information for identifying a delivery source of the article and a delivery destination. A delivery request signal accommodating delivery destination information to be specified is provided with information input support means for assisting the delivery requester to input to the printing means, and the printing means receives the delivery request signal,
A printing system, wherein a delivery-related character string designated by the delivery request signal is printed on a predetermined printing paper. 2. The printing system according to claim 1, wherein the information input support unit receives a basic request signal, which is a general-purpose portable information communication terminal that transmits a basic request signal that is a basis of the delivery request signal. And a signal conversion unit that converts the delivery request signal to match the printing unit, and then supplies the converted delivery request signal to the printing unit. 3. The printing system according to claim 1, wherein the printing paper has a second area in addition to the first area for printing the delivery-related character string. A printing system characterized by printing a coupon ticket or an advertisement in the area (2).