JP2006202023A - Server and program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an ordering system capable of efficiently implementing an ordering process based on digital data entered by means of a digital pen and on information about the location of a mobile terminal that sends the data. <P>SOLUTION: Using the ordering system, a user enters information about delivery on a document by means of a digital pen. An order server obtains the entered information from the digital pen via a network. From a GPS server, the order server obtains information about the location of the mobile terminal that has sent the entered information. Further, the order server specifies a receiving end from a plurality of customers by comparing the location information that corresponds to the user in a business DB with the location information acquired from the GPS server. The order server also extracts item entry information from the entered information according to a coordinate table and specifies the details entered by recognizing characters in stroke data. In this way, the user can indicate an order by entering minimum information about delivery on the document by means of the digital pen. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a technique for efficiently performing order processing using an electronic pen.

  Conventionally, field sales representatives have mainly handled e-mails over the phone or in a mobile environment as a way to process orders from the office to the company. The information required for order processing is mainly tie-up information related to the delivery destination, product name, quantity, delivery date, and other instructions, but the instructions on the phone are verbal exchanges, making the work on the receiving side complicated. There is a problem that the recording on the paper medium does not remain. In addition, the instruction by e-mail requires the person in charge to input an ordering instruction into the terminal, and the receiving side must again input the ordering instruction described in the e-mail to a predetermined system. There is a problem that is large.

  In recent years, with the development of IT (Information Technology) technology, the digitization of reporting work by mobile PCs has been partially advanced (for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2). For this reason, there may be a mechanism for instructing orders by inputting to a mobile phone or PDA (Personal Digital Assistants). However, because there is a lot of information required for order processing, it is difficult for the person in charge who is unfamiliar with the terminal operation. is there. In addition, when processing a product, it is difficult to convey a fine nuance such as a processing location and its contents.

  On the other hand, in recent years, pen-type input devices called “electronic pens”, “digital pens” and the like have appeared (hereinafter referred to as “electronic pens” in this specification). “Anoto pen” developed by the company is known. Anotopen is used in a pair with dedicated paper (hereinafter referred to as “dedicated paper”) on which a predetermined dot pattern is printed. In addition to the normal ink-type pen tip, the Anoto pen is equipped with a small camera for reading the dot pattern on the dedicated paper and a data communication unit. When a user writes characters on the special paper with an anotopen or checks an image that is designed on the special paper, the small camera detects the dot pattern on the special paper as the pen moves, and the user Entry data (also referred to as “stroke data”) such as written characters and images is acquired. This entry data is transmitted from the Anotopen to a terminal device such as a nearby personal computer or mobile phone by the data communication unit. Therefore, a system using this anotopen can be used as an input device instead of a keyboard.

  Therefore, it is convenient if the person in charge of field sales can make the ordering instruction clear by using the above-mentioned electronic pen from the destination to clarify the ordering instruction and perform the ordering process efficiently.

JP 2003-242315 A JP 2004-78643 A

  The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and performs ordering processing efficiently based on digital data filled in with an electronic pen and location information of a portable terminal that transmits the digital data. It is an object of the present invention to provide an ordering system that can be used.

  One aspect of the present invention is a server that is communicable via a network, and is provided on an electronic pen form on which a dot pattern that can be recognized by an electronic pen is printed, and each of the items on the dot pattern. Sales information in which coordinate information storage means in which the position coordinates of the electronic pen are associated, pen identification information for identifying the electronic pen, and location information of a plurality of customers in charge of a user using the electronic pen Sales information storage means for storing information, entry information acquisition means for acquiring entry information related to the delivery entered in the form from a portable terminal having a GPS function, and the location of the portable terminal when the entry information is obtained Location information acquisition means for acquiring information, pen identification information specifying means for specifying pen identification information based on the entry information, and the pen specified in the sales information. Based on the location information corresponding to the identification information and the acquired location information, the delivery destination specifying means for specifying one of the customers as the delivery destination, the entry information based on the coordinate information, and the item Item entry information extracting means for extracting entered item entry information, and item entry content specifying means for specifying the entry contents of each item by character recognition of stroke data included in the item entry information.

  In the server of the present invention, a user in charge of field sales first makes an entry regarding delivery on a form using an electronic pen. Here, field sales refers to sales performed by visiting a customer away from the company. That is, in the present invention, the user gives an ordering instruction to the company from the destination by making an entry regarding delivery on the form using the electronic pen. Here, it is assumed that one electronic pen is assigned to each user in advance. That is, the user can be specified based on the pen identification information for identifying the electronic pen. The electronic pen reads the dot pattern on the form with the movement of the electronic pen, and acquires entry information regarding symbols and characters entered by the user. Here, the entry information includes position coordinates on the dot pattern and stroke data of the entered symbols and characters. The entry information further includes time information related to entry time and pen identification information for identifying the electronic pen. The server acquires entry information from the electronic pen via the network.

  In addition, the server acquires location information of the mobile terminal that has transmitted the entry information from a GPS server or the like. Here, the mobile terminal is a mobile phone or a PDA having a GPS function. The GPS function is a function capable of acquiring location information (latitude / longitude / altitude) of a mobile terminal by using a position measurement radio wave transmitted from a satellite orbiting the earth. Further, the server specifies pen identification information of the electronic pen used by the user based on the entry information. Then, the server identifies the delivery destination from a plurality of customers by comparing the location information corresponding to the specified pen identification information with the location information of the mobile terminal acquired from the GPS server or the like in the sales information. To do. Specifically, it is conceivable that the customer closest to the location of the mobile terminal is identified as the delivery destination from among a plurality of customers of the user who uses the electronic pen.

  Further, the server extracts item entry information entered in each item from the entry information based on the coordinate information. And the content which the user entered in the form 3 is specified by character-recognizing the stroke data contained in item entry information. As described above, according to the present invention, the user can issue an ordering instruction by performing a minimum entry regarding delivery to the form with the electronic pen. In other words, the server can easily specify the delivery destination and entry contents intended by the person in charge by linking the electronic pen, the form, the portable terminal having the GPS function, and the sales information. Therefore, the input burden on the person in charge can be greatly reduced.

  In one aspect of the server, a confirmation screen creating means for creating a confirmation screen based on the delivery destination specified by the delivery destination specifying means and the entry content specified by the item entry content specifying means, and the created confirmation screen Confirmation screen transmitting means for transmitting to the portable terminal. According to this, the server transmits a confirmation screen created based on the specified delivery destination and the entered content to the mobile terminal. Therefore, the user can easily confirm that there is no mistake in the delivery destination and the contents of entry with the portable terminal.

  In another aspect of the server, the item includes a product item in which product identification information for identifying a product to be delivered is entered, a quantity item in which the quantity of the product is entered, and a delivery date of the product. The item entry content specifying means specifies the product identification information, the quantity, and the delivery date as the entry content. According to this, the user can give an ordering instruction by entering the product, quantity and delivery date to be delivered using the electronic pen. In other words, the user can realize an ordering instruction with a minimum entry act.

  In still another aspect of the server, the server stores inventory information storing means for associating the product identification information with the inventory of the product, and the product specified by the entry content specifying means. Delivery judgment means for judging whether delivery is possible by referring to the inventory information based on the identification information, the quantity, and the delivery date, and the confirmation screen creation means includes the delivery destination A confirmation screen is created based on the contents of the entry and the determination result of the delivery determination means. According to this, the server can determine whether or not the delivery intended by the user is possible by referring to the inventory information based on the specified entry content. Then, the server creates a confirmation screen based on the determination result of delivery availability and transmits it to the mobile terminal, so that the user can recognize delivery availability and inventory status in real time even if he / she is away from home.

  In another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a program executed by a computer that can communicate via a network, the item provided on a form for an electronic pen printed with a dot pattern that can be recognized by the electronic pen, and Coordinate information storage means that correlates each position coordinate on the dot pattern, pen identification information that identifies the electronic pen, and location information of a plurality of customers in charge of the user who uses the electronic pen Sales information storage means for storing attached sales information, entry information acquisition means for acquiring entry information related to deliveries entered in the form from a portable terminal having a GPS function, and when the entry information is acquired, the portable terminal Location information acquisition means for acquiring location information of the pen, pen identification information specifying means for specifying pen identification information based on the entry information, and the business information Based on the location information corresponding to the pen identification information specified in the above and the acquired location information, a delivery destination specifying means for specifying one of the customers as a delivery destination, from the entry information based on the coordinate information, Item entry information extracting means for extracting item entry information entered in the item, and item entry content specifying means for specifying the entry contents of each item by character recognition of stroke data included in the item entry information Make the computer work.

  By executing the above program by a computer, the above-described server can be realized. Moreover, each aspect of the above-described server can be realized in the same manner.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, order processing can be performed efficiently based on the digital data of the content entered with the electronic pen, and the location information of the portable terminal which transmits the said digital data.

  Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. First, an outline of an electronic pen used as an input device in the system of the present invention will be described.

[Electronic pen]
FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing how the electronic pen is used, and FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram showing the structure of the electronic pen. As shown in FIG. 1, the electronic pen 10 is used in combination with a dedicated paper 20 on which a dot pattern is printed. The electronic pen 10 includes a pen tip portion 17 similar to a normal ink pen, and a user writes characters on the dedicated paper 20 in the same manner as a normal ink pen.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the electronic pen 10 includes a processor 11, a memory 12, a data communication unit 13, a battery 14, an LED 15, a camera 16, and a pressure sensor 18 therein. The electronic pen 10 includes an ink cartridge (not shown) as a component similar to a normal ink pen.

  The electronic pen 10 does not convert the locus of the ink drawn on the dedicated paper 20 by the pen tip unit 17, but converts the locus coordinates of the movement of the electronic pen 10 on the dedicated paper 20 into data. While the LED 15 illuminates the vicinity of the pen tip 17 on the dedicated paper 20, the camera 16 reads the dot pattern printed on the dedicated paper 20 and converts it into data. That is, the electronic pen 10 can acquire a stroke generated when the user moves the electronic pen 10 on the dedicated paper 20 as image data or vector data.

  The pressure sensor 18 detects the pressure applied to the pen tip portion 17 when the user writes characters on the dedicated paper with the electronic pen 10, that is, the writing pressure, and supplies the detected pressure to the processor 11. The processor 11 switches the LED 15 and the camera 16 on and off based on the writing pressure data given from the pressure sensor 18. That is, when the user writes characters or the like on the dedicated paper 20 with the electronic pen 10, writing pressure is applied to the pen tip portion 17. Therefore, when the writing pressure exceeding the predetermined value is detected, it is determined that the user has started the description, and the LED 15 and the camera 16 are operated.

  The camera 16 reads the dot pattern on the dedicated paper 20 and supplies the pattern data to the processor 11. The processor 11 calculates X / Y coordinates on the dedicated paper 20 from the supplied dot pattern.

  The processor 11 acquires the writing pressure array data and the X / Y coordinate data while the description of the user is performed, and stores them in the memory 12 in association with the time stamp (time information). Therefore, data corresponding to the description content of the user is stored in the memory 12 in time series. The capacity of the memory 12 can be about 1 Mbyte, for example.

  All the acquired data is held in the memory 12 until a transmission instruction is given by the user. When the user issues a transmission instruction, the data communication unit 13 transmits the data in the memory 12 to the terminal device 25 within a predetermined distance from the electronic pen 10. Basically, once a transmission instruction is given, the electronic pen 10 transmits all the data stored in the memory 12 to the terminal device 25, so that the memory 12 is cleared. Therefore, when it is desired to transmit the same information to the terminal device 25 again after transmission, the user needs to write the description on the dedicated paper 20 again. In this case, the user only has to trace characters written on the dedicated paper 20 with an ink pen.

  The electronic pen 10 itself does not include a function button such as a transmission button, and a transmission instruction and other instructions are performed by a user checking the dedicated box provided at a predetermined position on the dedicated paper 20 with the electronic pen 10. Executed. A transmission instruction is associated with the position coordinates of the dedicated box in advance. When the processor 11 receives the position coordinates of the dedicated box, the processor 11 supplies data in the memory 12 to the data communication unit 13 and transmits the data to the terminal device 25. To do. The electronic pen 10 can indicate completion of data transmission by vibration of the electronic pen.

  The battery 14 is for supplying power to each element in the electronic pen 10, and the electronic pen 10 itself can be turned on / off by a cap (not shown) of the electronic pen, for example.

  As described above, the electronic pen 10 has a function of acquiring coordinate data and writing pressure data corresponding to characters and the like described on the dedicated paper 20 by the user and transmitting them to the nearby terminal device 25. Since the pen tip portion 17 is a normal ink pen, the content described on the dedicated paper 20 remains as an original original. That is, at the same time as describing the original paper, its contents can be digitized in the form of coordinate data in real time.

  According to the standard function of the electronic pen 10, data obtained by the electronic pen 10 is in principle in the form of coordinate data or vector data, and is not text data. However, as a standard function, the electronic pen 10 has a function of converting text into alphanumeric characters by describing it in a dedicated area provided on the dedicated paper 20.

  Also, the electronic pen 10 can hold property information (pen information and pen owner information) regarding the pen itself and its owner, and can be referred to from an application. As the pen information, a battery level, a pen ID, a pen manufacturer number, a pen software version, a subscription provider ID, and the like can be held. The pen owner information can hold nationality, language, time zone, email address, free memory capacity, name, address, fax / phone number, mobile phone number, and the like.

  In the data communication unit 13 in the above example, the electronic pen 10 is connected to the terminal device 25 by various methods such as Bluetooth (registered trademark) wireless transmission, wired transmission using a USB cable, and data transmission by contact with a terminal. It is conceivable to perform data transmission.

  Next, a method for acquiring X / Y coordinate data of contents described by the user with the electronic pen will be described. As described above, a predetermined dot pattern is printed on the dedicated paper 20. The camera 16 of the electronic pen 10 does not read the locus of ink described on the dedicated paper 20 by the user, but reads the dot pattern on the dedicated paper 20. Actually, as shown in FIG. 1, the illumination area by the LED 15 and the shooting area of the camera 16 (located in the illumination area) are deviated from the position where the pen tip portion 17 contacts the dedicated paper 20.

  The dot pattern is printed with a special ink containing carbon, and the camera 16 can recognize only the pattern with the special ink. Even if ruled lines or frames are printed on dedicated paper with inks other than dedicated ink (not including carbon), the electronic pen does not recognize them. Therefore, when creating forms such as various application forms using dedicated paper, input frames, ruled lines, cautions, etc. are printed with ink other than dedicated ink.

  In the dot pattern, as illustrated in FIG. 3, the position of each dot is associated with data. In the example of FIG. 3, the 2-bit information of 0 to 3 is displayed by shifting the dot position vertically and horizontally from the reference position (intersection of vertical and horizontal lines) of the grid. The position coordinates on the dedicated paper are determined by the combination of information expressed in this way. As illustrated in FIG. 4A, 36 dots are arranged in a grid within a range of 2 mm in length and width, and the data array (FIG. 4B) indicated by these dots is displayed on the dedicated paper. Are associated with the position coordinates. Therefore, when the camera 16 of the electronic pen 10 captures a dot pattern as shown in FIG. 4A, the processor 11 changes the data array shown in FIG. 4B based on the dot pattern data input from the camera 16. The position coordinates on the dedicated paper (that is, where the dot pattern is located on the dedicated paper) corresponding to the acquired position are calculated in real time. The minimum unit for recognizing the dot pattern is 2 mm × 2 mm, and the camera 16 takes about 100 shots per second.

  Next, the dedicated paper will be described. An example of the structure of the dedicated paper is shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, the dedicated paper 20 has a dot pattern 32 printed on a mount 30 and a design 34 such as a ruled line printed thereon. The mount 30 is usually paper, and the dot pattern 32 is printed with dedicated ink containing carbon as described above. Further, the design 34 is printed with normal ink or the like. The dot pattern and the design may be printed at the same time, or one of them may be printed first.

  An example of the design 34 is shown in FIG. FIG. 6 shows an example of a certain application form 36 in which a plurality of entry fields 38 and a transmission box 39 are printed. Although it is not clearly shown in FIG. 6 and will be described in detail later, a dot pattern is actually printed on the entire surface of the application form 36, and an entry box 38 and a transmission box 39 are formed on the entire surface using ordinary ink. It is printed. The user can enter the necessary items in each entry field 38 of the application form 36 using the electronic pen 10 in the same manner as a conventional application form without being aware of the dot pattern.

  The area on the dedicated paper 20 can be roughly divided into two types. One is an entry area, in which the content described by the electronic pen 10 is handled as information as it is. In the example of FIG. 6, a plurality of entry fields 38 correspond to this. The other is a functional element, and when the corresponding area is checked with the electronic pen 10, actions, instructions, etc. defined in advance for the area are executed. The transmission box 39 in the example of FIG. 6 corresponds to this.

  The transmission box 39 is used when giving an instruction to transmit data stored in the electronic pen 10 to the nearby terminal device 25 as described above. When the user checks the transmission box 39 with the electronic pen 10, the electronic pen 10 reads the dot pattern in the transmission box. The pattern is associated with a transmission instruction, and the processor 11 in the electronic pen 10 issues a command to transmit data stored in the memory 12 to the data communication unit 13.

  The assignment of dot patterns is usually performed for each application (paper type). In other words, the dot patterns in a certain application form do not overlap in one sheet, but the same dot pattern is printed on the same application form. Therefore, when the user inputs necessary items with the electronic pen 10, it can be specified from the coordinate data on the application form which item of the application form the input item is for.

  As described above, by printing a predetermined design on the dedicated paper on which the dot pattern is printed, various application forms using the dedicated paper can be created. If the user uses the electronic pen 10 and fills in necessary items in a normal manner, the electronic data is automatically acquired.

  In the above example, the dot pattern is printed on the dedicated paper with carbon-containing ink. However, the dot pattern can be printed on ordinary paper using a printer and carbon-containing ink. Furthermore, the design on the dedicated paper can also be formed by a printer instead of printing. When dot patterns are formed on paper by a printer, different dot patterns can be formed on each sheet. Therefore, it is possible to identify and distinguish each of these sheets by the difference in the formed dot patterns.

  In the present specification, the term “printing” has a concept including not only normal printing but also printing by a printer.

  Next, transmission processing of data acquired by the electronic pen will be described with reference to FIG. The data acquired by the electronic pen 10 is mainly data of items input by the user, but usually does not include information on where the service server that is the transmission destination of the data is. Instead, information specifying the application or service related to the dedicated paper is included in the dot pattern on the dedicated paper, and the information is acquired from the dedicated paper during the user's input operation. Therefore, the terminal device 25 that has received the entry data from the electronic pen 10 first makes an inquiry to the inquiry server 26 to which service server 27 the data input to the dedicated paper should be transmitted. The inquiry server 26 has information on a corresponding service server for each dedicated paper, and in response to an inquiry from the terminal device 25, information (such as a URL) of the service server 27 that performs a service related to the dedicated paper. Reply to the terminal device 25. Then, the terminal device 25 transmits the entry data acquired from the electronic pen to the service server 27.

  In the above example, the terminal device 25, the inquiry server 26, and the service server 27 are separately configured. However, some or all of them may be configured as one device. In the present embodiment, it is assumed that the ordering server described later also serves as the inquiry server 26 and the service server 27.

[Order system]
Next, the ordering system of the present invention will be described. FIG. 7 shows a schematic configuration of the ordering system 100. The ordering system 100 shown in FIG. 7 acquires the contents entered by the user in the electronic pen form (hereinafter referred to as “form”) 3 as digital data, and the location of the mobile terminal 28 that transmits the digital data. By obtaining the information, the ordering process can be performed efficiently.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the ordering system 100 is configured by connecting a mobile terminal 28, an ordering server 4, and a GPS server 5 through a network 2. Here, one suitable example of the network 2 is the Internet. The mobile terminal 28 is a terminal device used by a user, and is a terminal capable of exchanging data via the network 2 such as a mobile phone or PDA (Personal Digital Assistants). The mobile terminal 28 is a terminal having a GPS function. The GPS function is a function that can acquire location information (latitude / longitude / altitude) of the mobile terminal 28 using a position measurement radio wave transmitted from a satellite orbiting the earth.

  The ordering server 4 is connected to a sales information database (hereinafter referred to as “DB”) 6, an inventory information DB 7, an order DB 8, and a form DB 9, and digital data of the contents entered in the form 3 from the portable terminal 28. This is a server that acquires location information of the mobile terminal 28 from the GPS server 5 and efficiently performs ordering processing based on the digital data and location information. The GPS server 5 is a server that calculates location information regarding the latitude and longitude of the mobile terminal 28 based on the radio waves for position measurement and transmits the location information to the ordering server 4. 7 includes one mobile terminal 28 as a component for convenience, but the present invention is not limited to this, and a plurality of mobile terminals 28 may be included as a component.

  First, referring to FIG. 8, the outline of the ordering process in this system will be described. FIG. 8A shows an example of the form 3 in which a person in charge of field sales uses the electronic pen 10 to fill in the delivery contents of a predetermined product. FIG. 8B is an example of the form 3 that is actually filled in by the person in charge. In this embodiment, the user is a person in charge of field sales, and fills in the delivery contents on the order sheet as shown in FIG. 8A using the electronic pen 10 assigned to each user. An ordering instruction shall be given. Here, field sales refers to sales performed by visiting a customer away from the company.

  The form 3 is created as the above-mentioned dedicated paper, and is composed of a plurality of items as shown in FIG. Specifically, the form 3 includes a product ID item, a quantity item, and a delivery date item. In the product ID item, a product ID for identifying a product scheduled to be delivered is entered. In the quantity field, the quantity of the product scheduled to be delivered is entered. In the delivery date item, the delivery deadline is entered. Each item is assigned an item ID for identifying each item such as “K01” and “K02”. Although not shown for convenience in FIGS. 8A and 8B, it is assumed that the form 3 includes the above-described transmission box as an item. As described above, the transmission box is an item in which a check mark (letter etc.) is entered when an instruction for transmitting the data stored in the electronic pen 10 to the nearby portable terminal 28 is given.

  As shown in FIG. 8B, the person in charge uses the electronic pen 10 to make an entry regarding the delivery on the form 3. Specifically, the product ID, quantity and delivery date scheduled for delivery are entered in each item of the form 3. The electronic pen 10 acquires the stroke data corresponding to the entered content, temporarily stores it in the memory in the electronic pen 10, and then transmits the stroke data to the portable terminal 28. The portable terminal 28 receives the stroke data entered by the user from the electronic pen 10 and transmits it to the ordering server 4 through the network 2. The ordering server 4 acquires the stroke data as entry information relating to the contents entered in each item on the form 3 by the user. In addition to the stroke data, the entry information includes time information related to the entry time for each item and the pen ID of the electronic pen 10.

  The ordering server 4 extracts item entry information entered in each item from the obtained entry information based on a coordinate table described later. Then, by identifying the stroke data included in the item entry information, the contents to be entered in each item are specified. Specifically, by recognizing the stroke data entered in the product ID item, the product ID of the product scheduled to be delivered is specified as the entry content. By recognizing the stroke data entered in the quantity item, the quantity of the product scheduled to be delivered is specified as the entry content. By identifying the stroke data entered in the delivery date item, the delivery date of the product scheduled to be delivered is specified as the entry content.

  Next, the ordering server 4 specifies the pen ID included in the entry information. Further, the ordering server 4 acquires the location information of the portable terminal 28 when transmitting the entry information from the GPS server 5. Then, the ordering server 4 refers to the sales information DB 6 to be described later based on the identified pen ID and the acquired location information, thereby identifying the delivery destination from the customers of the person in charge. That is, even if the person in charge does not make an entry regarding the delivery destination in the form 3, the ordering server can specify the delivery destination based on the pen ID and the location information. Therefore, the information that the person in charge fills in the form 3 can be reduced, and the burden on the person in charge can be reduced. The ordering server 4 determines whether or not delivery is possible by referring to an inventory information DB 7 described later based on the specified product ID, quantity, and delivery date.

  Then, the ordering server 4 creates a delivery content confirmation screen based on the identified product ID, quantity and delivery date, the determination result whether delivery is possible, and the format data of the form 3, and the confirmation The screen is transmitted to the mobile terminal 28. As a result, the person in charge can realize the ordering instruction with a minimum filling action and can grasp the stock status, that is, whether delivery is possible in real time.

[Order server]
Next, the ordering server 4 will be described in detail. FIG. 9 shows the internal configuration of the ordering server 4 in the ordering system 100 in particular. As illustrated, the ordering server 4 includes an ordering processing program 200, an entry information acquisition function 101, a coordinate table 102, an entry content specification function 103, a pen ID specification function 104, a location information acquisition function 105, a delivery destination specification function 106, a delivery. It is composed of an availability determination function 107, an order storage function 108, and a confirmation screen creation function 109. Each function is realized by the CPU of the ordering server 4 executing a program prepared in advance.

  The order processing program 200 efficiently performs the order processing based on the digital data of the delivery contents entered in the form 3 by the person in charge using the electronic pen 10 and the location information of the mobile terminal 28 that transmits the digital data. It is a program to be performed.

  The entry information acquisition function 101 is a function for acquiring entry information entered in the form 3 by the person in charge using the electronic pen 10 by executing the order processing program 200. It is assumed that the entry information includes time information regarding the time entered in the form 3 and the pen ID of the electronic pen 10.

  Here, the coordinate table 102 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 10 is a diagram schematically showing the data structure of the coordinate table 102. As illustrated, the coordinate table 102 includes a form ID, an item ID, an item name, and coordinate data. The form ID is information for identifying the form 3. The item ID is information for identifying each item constituting the form 3, and the item name is the name of the corresponding item. The coordinate data is position information indicating the arrangement of each item on the dot pattern printed on the form 3.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the entry content specifying function 103 further includes an item entry information extraction function and a character recognition function. The item entry information extraction function is a function of extracting entry information entered in each item as item entry information by referring to the coordinate data of the coordinate table 102 from the entry information acquired by the entry information acquisition function 101. The character recognition function is a function for recognizing characters of stroke data included in item entry information by an OCR (Optical Character Reader) or the like. Thereby, the entry content specifying function 103 can specify the content entered by the person in charge in each item of the form 3 using the electronic pen 10, that is, the product ID, the quantity, and the delivery date.

  The pen ID specifying function 104 is a function for specifying a pen ID included in the entry information acquired by the entry information acquisition function 101. In the present embodiment, since one electronic pen 10 is assigned to each person in charge, the person in charge who filled in the form 3 can be specified by specifying the pen ID.

  The location information acquisition function 105 is a function for acquiring location information of the mobile terminal 28 from the GPS server 5 when the entry information acquisition function 101 acquires entry information by executing the order processing program 200. That is, the location information acquisition function 105 acquires information on the latitude and longitude of the mobile terminal 28 at the time when the electronic pen 10 transmits the entry information to the ordering server 4.

  The delivery destination specifying function 106 refers to the sales information DB 6 on the basis of the pen ID specified by the pen ID specifying function 104 and the location information acquired by the location information acquisition function 105, so that the customer's customer This is a function to specify the delivery destination from

  Here, the sales information DB 6 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 11 is a diagram schematically showing the data structure of the sales information DB. As shown in FIG. 11, the sales information DB 6 includes a pen ID, a person in charge name, a customer name, a customer address, and customer location information. The pen ID is information for identifying the electronic pen 10, and the person in charge name is the name of the person in charge to which the electronic pen 10 is assigned. The customer name is the name of the customer for whom the person in charge is responsible for delivery. The customer address is the address of the customer, and the customer location information is information indicating the location of the customer by latitude and longitude. In this embodiment, the location of the mobile terminal 28 is acquired as location information by latitude and longitude by the GPS function. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and an address converted from latitude and longitude is used. It is good also as acquiring. In this case, the sales information DB 6 may store only the customer address, not the customer location information.

  FIG. 12 is a diagram showing the relationship between the customer on the map and the location of the mobile terminal 28. The delivery destination specifying function 106 can grasp the name of the person in charge and information about the customer of the person in charge by referring to the sales information DB 6 based on the pen ID specified by the pen ID specifying function 104. Specifically, when the pen ID “P001” is specified, the order server 4 is in charge of “Kenichi Tanaka” and the customers are “A company system department”, “B company general affairs department” and “C company". It is possible to grasp that it is a “planning department”. Then, the ordering server 4 specifies the customer closest to the location information acquired by the location information acquisition unit 105 as the delivery destination based on the customer location information in the sales information DB 6. Specifically, when the location of each customer and the location of the mobile terminal 28 are in a relationship as shown in FIG. 12, the ordering server 4 identifies “C company planning department” as the delivery destination. According to this, even if the person in charge does not use the electronic pen 10 to enter information on the delivery destination in the form 3, the delivery destination can be easily specified based on the location information by the GPS function.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the delivery availability determination function 107 further includes an inventory / delivery management function. The inventory / delivery management function is a function for managing the delivery status by storing information relating to product inventory in the inventory information DB 7. Here, the inventory information DB 7 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. FIG. 13 is a diagram schematically illustrating the data structure of the inventory information DB. As shown in FIG. 13, the inventory information DB 7 is composed of a product ID, a product name, a unit price, the number of inventory, and a scheduled addition date. The product ID is information for identifying the product, and the product name is the name of the product. The unit price is the price of one case of each product, and the inventory quantity is a quantity indicating how much each product is currently held. The scheduled addition date is a scheduled date for adding each product. The delivery availability determination function 107 determines whether or not the quantity of the product designated by the person in charge is within the inventory quantity range by referring to the inventory information DB 7 based on the product ID specified by the entry content specifying function 103. To do. As a result of the determination, if the stock quantity is within the range, the delivery availability determination function 107 determines that delivery is possible. On the other hand, as a result of the determination, if it is not within the range of the stock quantity, it is determined whether the delivery date is after or before the scheduled addition date. If the delivery date is after the scheduled addition date, the delivery availability determination function 107 determines that delivery is possible. On the other hand, if the delivery date is before the scheduled addition date, the delivery availability judgment function 107 judges that delivery is impossible. In the present embodiment, the determination is made as described above, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the determination method can be arbitrarily set.

  The order storage function 108 is a function of storing information related to delivery in the order DB 8 based on the entry information acquired by the entry information acquisition unit 101, the determination result of the delivery availability determination unit 107, and the like. Here, the order DB 8 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 14 is a diagram schematically showing the data structure of the order DB 8. As shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 14, the order DB 8 includes a pen ID, a person in charge name, an order time, a delivery destination, a product ID, a product name, a quantity, a delivery date, a total amount, and whether delivery is possible. The pen ID is a pen ID specified by the pen ID specifying function 104. The person-in-charge name is the name of the person in charge who uses the electronic pen 10 indicated by the pen ID, and is extracted from the sales information DB 6. The order time is the time when the electronic pen 10 transmits the entry information to the ordering server 5 and can be specified based on the time information included in the entry information. Specifically, the time when the check mark is entered in the transmission box 39 can be set as the order time. The delivery destination is the name of the delivery destination specified by the delivery destination specifying function 106. The product ID, quantity, and delivery date are the product ID, quantity, and delivery date entered in the form 3 by the person in charge and specified by the entry content specifying function 103. The product name is the name of the product corresponding to the specified product ID, and is extracted from the inventory information DB 7. The total amount is an amount calculated by multiplying the unit price of the product extracted from the inventory information DB 7 by the quantity specified by the entry content specifying function 103. The delivery availability is a determination result by the delivery availability determination means 107. By storing such information in the order DB 8, the ordering server 5 can easily grasp what order has been placed by which person in charge.

  The confirmation screen creation function 109 further includes a format data extraction function. The format data extraction function is a function for extracting format data corresponding to the form 3 from the form DB 9. As shown in FIG. 15, the form DB 9 stores form names and format data using form IDs as keys. Therefore, the format data extraction function extracts the corresponding format data from the form DB 9 based on the form ID of the form 3. The confirmation screen creation function 107 is a function that creates a confirmation screen as shown in FIG. 16 based on the information stored in the order DB 8 and the format data extracted from the form DB 9 and transmits the confirmation screen to the mobile terminal 28.

[Order processing]
Next, the ordering process executed by the ordering system 100 will be described. FIG. 17 is a flowchart of the ordering process.

  A person in charge of field sales first enters information relating to delivery in each item of the form 3 using the electronic pen 10. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 8B, the person in charge fills in information related to delivery such as product ID, quantity, and delivery date. When the entry to the form 3 is completed, the user transmits the entry information to the ordering server 4 via the portable terminal 28 by filling a check mark in the transmission box.

  The ordering server 4 acquires entry information from the portable terminal 28 (step S1), and extracts entry information for each item as item entry information based on the coordinate table 102 (step S2). Then, the ordering server 4 identifies the entry contents for each item by recognizing the stroke data included in the item entry information (step S3). The ordering server 4 specifies the pen ID of the electronic pen 10 used by the person in charge based on the entry information (step S4). Further, the ordering server 4 acquires location information of the mobile terminal 28 from the GPS server 5 (step S5).

  Next, the ordering server 4 refers to the sales information DB 6 on the basis of the identified pen ID and the acquired location information, thereby identifying a delivery destination from the customers of the person in charge (step S6). Further, the ordering server 4 refers to the inventory information DB 7 based on the entry content specified by the character recognition, and determines whether or not delivery can be performed within the designated delivery date (step S8). Further, the ordering server 4 stores the specified entry contents and the determination result as to whether delivery is possible in the order DB 8 as shown in FIG. 14 (step S8). Then, the ordering server 4 creates a confirmation screen as shown in FIG. 16 based on the information stored in the order DB 8 and the format data extracted from the form DB 9 based on the form ID, and transmits the confirmation screen to the portable terminal 28. (Step S9).

  The portable terminal 28 displays a confirmation screen as shown in FIG. 16 through a browser or a dedicated application. If delivery is possible and there is no problem, the user confirms the delivery content by pressing the confirm button. That is, by pressing the confirmation button, confirmation information for confirming the delivery contents is transmitted to the ordering server 4. The ordering server 4 confirms the order for delivery based on the entry in the form 3 when the confirmation information is acquired from the mobile terminal 28. Thereby, the ordering server 4 completes the ordering process. According to this, since it is not necessary to fill in the name of the person in charge and the delivery destination as an ordering instruction, the burden on the person in charge of filling can be reduced.

  In the present embodiment, the person in charge is confirmed by the person in charge on the confirmation screen of HTML (Hyper Text Markup language). However, the present invention is not limited to this, and an e-mail is used. Also good.

  In this embodiment, the ordering server 4 has the inventory / delivery management function and the inventory information DB 6. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the inventory / delivery management function and the inventory information DB 6 are ordered. It is good also as a server different from the server 4 having. In this case, the ordering server 4 performs an ordering process in cooperation with the other server.

  In the present embodiment, the product ID, quantity, and delivery date are entered on the order sheet as shown in FIG. 8A, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, when the product is subjected to processing such as name entry or shape change, the form 3 may be provided with items for illustrating the processing location, processing content, and the like. That is, if the person in charge fills in information related to delivery using the electronic pen 10, the design of the form 3 can be arbitrarily set. According to this, unlike the keyboard input to the conventional terminal etc., the nuance is clearly communicated even when there is an atypical instruction regarding delivery by using the image acquisition function of the electronic pen. Is possible.

  According to the present invention, the person in charge of field sales orders a stock item by linking the electronic pen 10, the form 3, the portable terminal 28 having the GPS function, the GPS server 5, the sales information DB 6, and the inventory information DB 7. Can be realized with a minimum entry act, and whether delivery is possible can be recognized in real time.

  Further, since an order can be instructed by filling in the form 3 using the electronic pen 10, even a user unfamiliar with the terminal operation can easily perform it without using a keyboard or the like. Furthermore, since any arbitrary figure can be filled in freely, non-standard information can be transmitted more easily than order processing using a PC, PDA, or the like.

  As described above, the ordering process can be efficiently performed based on the digital data written with the electronic pen and the location information of the mobile terminal that transmits the digital data.

It is a figure which shows the usage pattern of an electronic pen typically. It is a functional block diagram which shows the structure of an electronic pen. It is a figure explaining the expression method of the information by the dot pattern printed on the exclusive paper. It is an example of a dot pattern and the information corresponding to it. The structure of a form composed of dedicated paper is shown. An example of an electronic pen form is shown. It is a figure which shows schematic structure of the ordering system in this invention. It is an example of the form used in an ordering system. FIG. 8 is a functional block diagram of an ordering server included in the ordering system shown in FIG. 7. It is a figure which shows typically the data structure of a coordinate table. It is a figure which shows typically the data structure of sales information DB. It is a figure which shows the relationship between the customer on a map, and the location of a portable terminal. It is a figure which shows typically the data structure of inventory information DB. It is a figure which shows typically the data structure of order DB. It is a figure which shows typically the data structure of form DB. It is an example of a confirmation screen. It is a flowchart of the ordering process in this embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 2 ... Network 10 ... Electronic pen 11 ... Processor 12 ... Memory 13 ... Data communication unit 14 ... Battery 25 ... Terminal device 26 ... Inquiry server 27 ... Service server 100 ... Ordering system

Claims (8)

A server capable of communicating via a network,
Coordinate information storage means for associating items provided on the electronic pen form on which a dot pattern recognizable by the electronic pen is printed with respective position coordinates on the dot pattern;
Sales information storage means for storing sales information in which pen identification information for identifying the electronic pen is associated with location information of a plurality of customers in charge of a user who uses the electronic pen;
Entry information acquisition means for acquiring entry information related to the delivery entered in the form from a mobile terminal having a GPS function;
Location information acquisition means for acquiring location information of the mobile terminal when the entry information is acquired;
Pen identification information specifying means for specifying pen identification information based on the entry information;
A delivery destination specifying means for specifying one of the customers as a delivery destination based on location information corresponding to the pen identification information specified in the business information and the acquired location information;
Item entry information extraction means for extracting item entry information entered in the item from the entry information based on the coordinate information;
A server comprising: item entry content specifying means for specifying the entry content of each item by character recognition of stroke data included in the item entry information. A confirmation screen creating means for creating a confirmation screen based on the delivery destination identified by the delivery destination identifying means and the entry contents identified by the item entry content identifying means;
The server according to claim 1, further comprising: a confirmation screen transmission unit that transmits the created confirmation screen to the mobile terminal. The item includes a product item in which product identification information for identifying a product to be delivered is entered, a quantity item in which the quantity of the product is entered, and a delivery date item in which the delivery date of the product is entered,
The server according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the item entry content specifying means specifies the product identification information, the quantity, and the delivery date as the entry content. The server
Stock information storage means for storing stock information in which the product identification information is associated with the stock of the product;
Delivery determination means for determining whether or not delivery is possible by referring to the inventory information based on the product identification information, the quantity and the delivery date specified by the entry content specifying means,
The server according to claim 3, wherein the confirmation screen creation unit creates a confirmation screen based on the delivery destination and the entry contents and a determination result of the delivery determination unit. A program executed by a computer that can communicate via a network,
Coordinate information storage means for associating items provided on the electronic pen form printed with a dot pattern recognizable by the electronic pen with respective position coordinates on the dot pattern;
Sales information storage means for storing sales information in which pen identification information for identifying the electronic pen is associated with location information of a plurality of customers in charge of a user who uses the electronic pen;
Entry information acquisition means for acquiring entry information related to the delivery entered in the form from a mobile terminal having a GPS function;
Location information acquisition means for acquiring location information of the mobile terminal when the entry information is acquired,
Pen identification information specifying means for specifying pen identification information based on the entry information;
A delivery destination specifying means for specifying one of the customers as a delivery destination based on the location information corresponding to the pen identification information specified in the business information and the acquired location information;
Item entry information extracting means for extracting item entry information entered in the item from the entry information based on the coordinate information;
A program for causing the computer to function as item entry content specifying means for specifying the entry content of each item by recognizing the stroke data included in the item entry information. A confirmation screen creating means for creating a confirmation screen based on the delivery destination identified by the delivery destination identifying means and the entry content identified by the item entry content identifying means;
The program according to claim 5, further causing the computer to function as a confirmation screen transmission unit that transmits the created confirmation screen to the portable terminal. The item includes a product item in which product identification information for identifying a product to be delivered is entered, a quantity item in which the quantity of the product is entered, and a delivery date item in which the delivery date of the product is entered,
The program according to claim 5 or 6, wherein the item entry content specifying means specifies the product identification information, the quantity, and the delivery date as the entry content. The program is
Stock information storage means for storing stock information in which the product identification information is associated with the stock of the product;
The computer is further provided as a delivery determination means for judging whether delivery is possible by referring to the inventory information based on the product identification information, the quantity and the delivery date specified by the entry content specifying means. Make it work
The program according to claim 7, wherein the confirmation screen creation unit creates a confirmation screen based on the delivery destination and the entry contents and a determination result of the delivery determination unit.

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