JP2004035143A - Electronic shelf tag system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To realize an electronic shelf tag system with which a display position of a goods can be easily known at goods display work and work efficiency can be improved. <P>SOLUTION: This system is provided with a plurality of electronic shelf tags 23 arranged in accordance with goods displayed on a goods-display shelf, a wireless portable terminal 24 having a scanner for reading goods identification information, a file in which the goods identification information is set in accordance with device identification information of the electronic shelf tag 23, an LED lamp provided on the electronic shelf tag 23 for notifying the display position of the applicable goods, and an electronic shelf tag controller 21 for lighting the LED lamp of the applicable electronic shelf tag 23 based on the goods identification information read by the wireless portable terminal 24. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an electronic shelf label system used for displaying products in a supermarket or the like.
[0002]
[Prior art]
A plurality of display devices (electronic shelf labels) are respectively arranged on the shelf at the product display position, and connected to a management device (electronic shelf label controller) wirelessly or the like, to display product information such as product selling price and discount information, A so-called electronic shelf label system that changes the selling price in real time has already been put to practical use. Even stores that have introduced such an electronic shelf label system are required to display products that have actually arrived at predetermined display shelf positions in a short time. This is particularly important in the case of popular products, etc., in order to quickly arrange the products in front of customers and not lose business opportunities.
[0003]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, in the case of an unskilled worker such as a part-time worker, it may take time to display products because the display position of each product at the sales floor is not accurately grasped. Also, even for a skilled worker, it is difficult to know the exact product display position for all products because the products themselves may be replaced or the display position may be changed. As a result, there is a problem that the efficiency of the product display work is low.
[0004]
The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide an electronic shelf label system capable of easily identifying a display position of a product at the time of a product display operation and improving work efficiency. It is in.
[0005]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, an electronic shelf label system according to claim 1 includes a plurality of display devices arranged in association with products displayed on a product display shelf, and a wired or wired display device. An electronic shelf label system, comprising a management device that is connected by wireless communication and displays product information on the display device by communicating with the management device, wherein the management device reads product identification information attached to the product and reads the product identification information. A reading unit that transmits, a file in which the product identification information and the device identification information of the display device are set in advance in association with each other, and a notification unit that is provided on the display device and notifies a display position of the corresponding product; The management device operates the notification means of the corresponding display device based on the product identification information read by the reading means.
[0006]
The electronic shelf label system according to claim 2, wherein an LED is used as the notification means.
The electronic shelf label system according to claim 3, wherein the reading unit includes a communication unit that communicates with the management device by a wireless communication method used between the management device and the display device.
[0007]
In the electronic shelf label system according to claim 4, when the notification unit of the display device corresponding to the first product identification information is operating and the second product identification information is read by the reading unit, A control processing unit is provided for stopping the operation of the notifying unit in operation and performing a process for operating the notifying unit of the display device corresponding to the second product identification information.
[0008]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a product sales system using an electronic shelf label system 20 according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, a POS system 10 includes a plurality of POS registers 11 that are arranged at a check-out area and register a customer's purchased merchandise and perform a charge accumulation process, and a PLU file (product file) used by the POS register 11. A store server (PC) 12 that stores and stores in real time the registered product data from the POS register 11 in real time online, and a WEB that is loaded with browser software and browses various data stored in the store server 12 with the browser software. And a server (PC) 13. The file in which the sales performance data for each product described above is stored is called a performance file.
The store server 12 and the web server 13 are so-called computer systems including an input unit including a mouse and a keyboard, a screen display unit, and a storage device. The storage device of the store server 12 stores various files such as a product file and an actual sales file.
[0009]
As shown in FIG. 2, the product file 101 includes a product code (product identification information), which is the content of a barcode attached to the product, a product name, a selling price, an internal capacity, and a display shelf on which the product is displayed. Stored is product data in which device identification information (shelf label ID) and the like of the corresponding display device (electronic shelf label display) arranged are associated with each other.
As shown in FIG. 3, the sales record file 102 stores sales record data in which a product code, a sales amount, a sales point, and the like are associated with each other.
[0010]
Next, the operation of the POS system 10 having the above configuration will be briefly described.
When the bar code of the product purchased by the consumer is read by the scanner of the POS register 11, the read bar code data (product code) is transmitted to the store server 12 via the LAN 50.
The store server 12 reads out the product data specified by the received product code from the product file 101, transmits the read product data to the POS register 11 that is the source of the product code, and updates the sales record file 102. .
The POS register 11 that has received the product data displays the product data and performs a checkout process based on the data.
[0011]
Various files such as the product file 101 and the sales record file 102 stored in the store server 12 are used by the WEB server 13, the electronic shelf label system 20, and other devices connected to the LAN 50 as necessary. Can be referred to as needed.
[0012]
Next, the electronic shelf label system 20 includes an electronic shelf label controller (PC) 21 and a plurality of electronic shelf label displays (hereinafter, referred to as “infrared communication”) connected to the electronic shelf label controller 21 via the transceiver 22 by wireless (infrared communication). An electronic shelf label 23 and a wireless portable terminal 24 that can obtain and display desired data such as a product file 101 from the electronic shelf label controller 21 via the transceiver 22.
[0013]
4 and 5, the electronic shelf label 23 includes a CPU 31, a ROM 32, a RAM 33, an infrared signal receiving unit 34 having an infrared signal receiving sensor 34a, a liquid crystal (LCD) display unit 36, and an LED lamp 37. It is driven by a solar cell 38. In addition, a button battery 39 such as a lithium battery is incorporated as a backup for the solar battery 38.
[0014]
The LED lamp 37 is used when it is desired to draw the attention of a customer or a clerk. As shown in FIG. 5, the LCD display unit 36 has a large display unit 36a capable of displaying a 5-digit numerical value at the top, a small display unit 36b capable of displaying a 5-digit numerical value at the lower left, and a three-dimensional display unit 3 at the lower right. It comprises a small display section 36c capable of displaying digit values. On these display units 36a to 36c, product information (such as product prices and discount rates) received from the electronic shelf label controller 21 is displayed.
A product information label 40 is attached to a space on the left side of the electronic shelf label 23. The product information label 40 has a notation in which a product name 41, a shelf label ID 42, a barcode 43, and the like are printed.
[0015]
The electronic shelf label 23 having the above-described configuration is arranged in association with each product displayed on the product display shelf, and stores information (for example, the price of the product) transmitted from the electronic shelf label controller 21 in the RAM 33. It is stored and displayed on the liquid crystal display 36 in real time.
[0016]
The electronic shelf label controller 21 (management device) associates the product code of each product with the shelf label ID of the electronic shelf label 23 corresponding to the product code in order to control the electronic shelf label 23, and FIG. It is set and stored in the shelf label ID file 103 as shown. The association information between the product code and the shelf label ID set in the shelf label ID file 103 is obtained by downloading the product data of the product file 101 shown in FIG. This download is executed when the product file 101 is updated.
[0017]
The shelf label ID is a unique, for example, six-digit identification number assigned to each electronic shelf label 23. As shown in FIG. 2, in the product file 101, a shelf label ID is set in advance for each product code, and based on this information, the corresponding electronic shelf arranged on the display shelf where the product is displayed. The tag 23 can be identified and its position can be grasped. Therefore, even if the display position of the product is suddenly changed, if the association between the product and the electronic shelf label 23 is changed on the product file 101, the electronic shelf label controller 21 By obtaining the shelf label ID by searching the shelf label ID file 103, the electronic shelf label 23 corresponding to the desired product can be grasped, and various controls including the control of the LED lamp 37 of the electronic shelf label 23 can be performed. It is possible to do.
[0018]
Whether the LED lamp 37 of the electronic shelf label 23 is turned on, turned off, or blinked is controlled by a lighting command, a light-off command, and a shelf tag ID of the electronic shelf label 23 for which the LED lamp 37 is controlled. This is done by sending one of the blinking commands. Further, by transmitting the end command, the LED lamps 37 of all the electronic shelf labels 23 can be turned off.
[0019]
The electronic shelf label controller 21 has the same hardware configuration as a general personal computer, and includes a computer main body including a CPU, a memory (ROM, RAM), a mouse, a keyboard, and a screen display device. The shelf label ID file 103, the product code transmitted from the wireless portable terminal 24, and the like are stored in a built-in or external storage device.
[0020]
Next, the wireless portable terminal 24 communicates with the electronic shelf label controller 21 via the transceiver 22 and can obtain necessary information from the electronic shelf label controller 21 in a timely manner. For transmitting and receiving data to and from the transceiver 22, infrared rays, which are the same communication medium used for transmitting and receiving data between the transceiver 22 and the electronic shelf label 23, are used. As described above, since the transceiver 22 is shared by using the infrared ray, which is the communication medium of the existing electronic shelf label system, there is no need to construct a new wireless communication system. An introduction can be made.
[0021]
FIG. 7 shows the appearance of the wireless portable terminal 24, and FIG. 8 shows the internal configuration thereof. In FIG. 8, various control programs are stored in a ROM 51, and a product file received from the electronic shelf label controller 21 and barcode information read by a scanner unit 53 are stored in a RAM 52. The scanner unit 53 reads the barcode attached to the product and outputs the barcode to the CPU 54. The CPU 54 transmits the barcode information to the electronic shelf label controller 21 via the transceiver 22 by the wireless communication unit 55. The wireless communication unit 55 transmits and receives data using the transceiver 22 and infrared rays as a communication medium.
[0022]
The operation unit 56 includes a plurality of keys as shown in FIG. The display unit 57 includes a liquid crystal display panel that displays information input from the operation unit 56, information received via the wireless communication unit 55, and the like. The touch input unit 58 is for enabling pen input and handwriting input with the touch pen 59.
The touch input unit 58 is a film formed on the display unit 57 and can perform various input operations by touching the film with a touch pen 59 or the like. Further, by providing the interface 60, data can be transmitted and received by connecting to an external device, for example, a PC or the like via the interface 60.
[0023]
9 and 10 show screen display examples of the wireless portable terminal 24. FIG. Screen 201 in FIG. 9 is a menu screen for selecting a mode to be executed using wireless mobile terminal 24. The screen 202 in FIG. 10 is displayed when “scan lighting mode” is selected on the screen 201 in FIG. With this screen 202, the operator can give an instruction such as the start or end of barcode scanning. When the start of barcode scanning is instructed, the CPU 54 of the wireless portable terminal 24 turns on the LED lamp 37 of the electronic shelf label 23 corresponding to the product code included in the barcode information read from the barcode. In response to this, a process for instructing the electronic shelf label controller 21 to turn off the LED lamp 37 of the electronic shelf label 23 that was turned on last time is performed.
When the end of the barcode scan is instructed, a process for instructing the electronic shelf label controller 21 to turn off the LED lamps 37 of all the electronic shelf labels 23 is performed.
[0024]
The bar code attached to the product is scanned by the wireless portable terminal 24 to register the product on the product file 101 via the electronic shelf label controller 21 or to change the selling price of the product. be able to.
[0025]
Next, the operation of the above-described electronic shelf label system 20 will be described. In the following description, transmission and reception of data between the electronic shelf label controller 21 and the wireless portable terminal 24 are performed via the transceiver 22 shown in FIGS.
First, the operation of the wireless portable terminal 24 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of processing performed by the CPU 54 (control processing unit) of the wireless portable terminal 24. 11, the CPU 54 of the wireless portable terminal 24 determines which mode has been selected on the screen 201 of FIG. 9 (step ST1), and if “scan lighting mode” has been selected, proceeds to step ST2 and proceeds to step ST2. If the mode is selected, the corresponding process is executed in step ST9.
[0026]
In step ST2, the CPU 54 executes initialization related to the scan lighting mode (such as clearing the used area of the RAM 52), displays the screen 202 of FIG. 10, and determines which instruction is selected on the screen 202 (step ST2). As a result, when “Yes” is selected, the process proceeds to step ST3, and when another instruction is selected, the corresponding process is executed in step ST10.
[0027]
In step ST3, the CPU 54 executes reading of the barcode attached to the product by the scanner unit 53. Next, the CPU 54 transmits the barcode information and the light-off command stored in the previous area provided in the RAM 52 to the electronic shelf label controller 21 (step ST4). Accordingly, the electronic shelf label controller 21 turns off the LED lamp 37 of the electronic shelf label 23 that was turned on last time.
The processing of the electronic shelf label controller 21 will be described later. However, in step ST4, when reading the barcode for the first time after the initialization in step ST2, the CPU 54 skips the process in step ST4 because the barcode information is not stored in the previous area of the RAM 52.
[0028]
Next, the CPU 54 transmits the bar code information and the lighting command read immediately before in step ST3 to the electronic shelf label controller 21 and stores the bar code information in the previous area of the RAM 52 (steps ST5 and ST6). Thus, the electronic shelf label controller 21 turns on the LED lamp 37 of the electronic shelf label 23 corresponding to the product code included in the transmitted barcode information. Further, when the barcode of another product is continuously read next without a barcode scanning end instruction being issued, the LED of the electronic shelf label 23 illuminated this time based on the barcode information stored this time in the previous area. The lamp 37 is turned off.
[0029]
Next, the CPU 54 determines whether or not the “end” instruction has been selected on the screen 202, and if it has been selected, transmits an end command to the electronic shelf label controller 21 and ends the processing (steps ST7 and ST8). Thereby, the LED lamp 37 of the lit electronic shelf label 23 is turned off by the electronic shelf label controller 21.
On the other hand, when the instruction of “end” is not selected and the scan start “Yes” is selected, the process returns to step ST3, and the barcode reading process of the product is continuously performed. If "NO" is selected to start the scan, no process is performed, and the process waits until an instruction to "end" or "start" is issued in step ST7.
[0030]
Next, the operation of the electronic shelf label controller 21 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing the flow of processing performed by the CPU of the electronic shelf label controller 21. In FIG. 12, the electronic shelf label controller 21 determines whether or not a lighting command and barcode information have been received from the wireless portable terminal 24. If it has been received, the process proceeds to step ST12; if not, the process proceeds to step ST13. The process proceeds to (ST11).
[0031]
In step ST12, the electronic shelf label controller 21 searches the shelf label ID file 103 to obtain a shelf label ID corresponding to the product code included in the received barcode information. Then, by transmitting a lighting command together with the shelf label ID, the LED lamp 37 of the corresponding electronic shelf label 23 is turned on. After this process is completed, the process returns to step ST11.
[0032]
In step ST13, the electronic shelf label controller 21 determines whether or not the light-off command and the barcode information have been received from the wireless portable terminal 24. If the command has been received, the process proceeds to step ST14. If not, the process proceeds to step ST15. Proceed to.
In step ST14, the electronic shelf label controller 21 searches the shelf label ID file 103 to obtain a shelf label ID corresponding to the product code included in the received barcode information. Then, by transmitting a light-off command together with the shelf label ID, the LED lamp 37 of the corresponding electronic shelf label 23 is turned off. After this process is completed, the process returns to step ST11.
[0033]
In step ST15, the electronic shelf label controller 21 determines whether an end command has been received from the wireless portable terminal 24. If it has been received, the process proceeds to step ST16, and if not, the process proceeds to step ST17.
In step ST16, the electronic shelf label controller 21 turns off the LED lamps 37 of all the electronic shelf labels 23 by transmitting the end command. After this process is completed, the process returns to step ST11.
In step ST17, the electronic shelf label controller 21 executes other processing such as management and maintenance, and returns to step ST11 after the processing is completed.
[0034]
As described above, according to the present embodiment, when the worker instructs the wireless portable terminal 24 to start scanning the barcode attached to the received product when displaying the received product, the product is displayed. The LED lamp 37 of the corresponding electronic shelf label 23 arranged on the displayed shelf is turned on. Thereby, since the display position of the product is notified, the worker can easily grasp the display position of the product during the product display work, and as a result, the effect that the working efficiency is improved is obtained. In particular, the effect is remarkable in a large supermarket having a large number of received products.
[0035]
As described above, the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, as long as the object of the present invention can be achieved, the specific configuration is not limited to this embodiment, and the gist of the present invention is as follows. Design changes that do not deviate from the above. For example, the configuration and display screen example of the wireless portable terminal 24 shown in FIGS. 7 to 10 are merely examples, and are not limited to this configuration.
[0036]
In the above-described embodiment, the LED lamp 37 of the electronic shelf label 23 is turned on to notify the display position of the product, but the LED lamp 37 may be blinked. Further, the display units 36a to 36c of the electronic shelf label 23 may blink.
That is, the display mode of the electronic shelf label 23 corresponding to the product for which the barcode is read by the scanner unit 53 of the wireless portable terminal 24 is different from that of the other electronic shelf labels 23, so that the operator can display the product to the operator. It is only necessary that the display position can be notified.
[0037]
Although the shelf label ID is indicated by six digits, the configuration of the shelf label ID is not limited, and any configuration may be used as long as the electronic shelf label 23 can be individually identified. Further, the shelf label ID file 103 is set with the shelf label ID for each product code, but the configuration of the shelf label ID file 103 is such that the association between the product and the electronic shelf label 23 is uniquely determined. Any configuration may be used. For example, a product code may be set for each shelf label ID, or a file in which a product code is set for each shelf label ID may be separately provided.
[0038]
The web server 13 shown in FIG. 1 may have the function of the electronic shelf label controller 21.
[0039]
In the above-described embodiment, the communication between the electronic shelf label 23 and the electronic shelf label controller 21 is realized wirelessly, but may be realized by wire.
[0040]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, for example, if the product identification information of a product to be displayed is read at the time of product display work in a sales floor such as a supermarket, the display position of the product is notified, so that the worker can The display position of the product can be easily grasped, and as a result, the effect of improving work efficiency can be obtained.
[0041]
According to the third aspect of the present invention, a communication medium used for communication between the management device (electronic shelf label controller) and the display device (electronic shelf label), the management device and the reading means (wireless portable terminal) Since the same communication medium is used for communication between them, a special device for converting the communication medium is not required, and a system can be easily and inexpensively constructed.
[0042]
Further, according to the invention as set forth in claim 4, when the display of one product is completed and another product is displayed, if the product identification information of the product is read, the display of the product which has been Since the display position is changed to the display position and the display position of the commodity to be displayed is notified, the work can be simplified.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a product sales system using an electronic shelf label system 20 according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a product file 101.
FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a sales record file 102;
FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an electric circuit of the electronic shelf label 23.
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an external configuration of an electronic shelf label 23.
FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a shelf label ID file 103.
FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an external configuration of a wireless portable terminal 24.
FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an electric circuit of the wireless portable terminal 24.
FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a first screen display example of the wireless portable terminal 24.
FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a second screen display example of the wireless portable terminal 24.
FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing a flow of a process performed by a CPU 54 of the wireless portable terminal 24.
FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of a process performed by a CPU of the electronic shelf label controller 21.
[Explanation of symbols]
10 POS system, 11 POS register, 12 store server, 13 Web server, 20 electronic shelf label system, 21 electronic shelf label controller (management device), 22 transceiver, 23 electronic shelf label (display device) ), 24 ... wireless portable terminal, 31, 54 ... CPU, 32, 51 ... ROM, 33, 52 ... RAM, 34 ... receiving unit, 34a ... infrared signal receiving sensor, 36 ... LCD display unit, 37 ... LED lamp, 38 ... Solar cell, 39 ... Button battery, 53 ... Scanner unit, 55 ... Wireless communication unit, 56 ... Operation unit, 57 ... Display unit, 58 ... Touch input unit, 59 ... Touch pen, 60 ... Interface, 50 ... LAN

Claims (4)

A plurality of display devices arranged in association with the products displayed on the product display shelf, and a management device that communicates with the display device by wire or wirelessly, and the display device is communicated with the management device. An electronic shelf label system for displaying product information on the
Reading means for reading the product identification information attached to the product and transmitting it to the management device;
A file in which the product identification information and the device identification information of the display device are set in advance in association with each other,
Notifying means provided on the display device, for notifying the display position of the corresponding product,
The electronic shelf label system, wherein the management device operates a notification unit of the display device based on the product identification information read by the reading unit. The electronic shelf label system according to claim 1, wherein an LED is used as the notification unit. 3. The electronic shelf label system according to claim 1, wherein the reading unit includes a communication unit that is connected to the management device by a wireless communication method used between the management device and the display device. 4. . While the notification means of the display device corresponding to the first product identification information is operating,
When the second product identification information is read by the reading device, the operation of the operating notification device is stopped, and the notification device of the display device corresponding to the second product identification information is operated. The electronic shelf label system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising control processing means for performing processing.

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