JP2006244345A - Electronic cash register and program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an electronic cash register comprising an excellent user interface. <P>SOLUTION: A temporary display column 120 and a fixed display column 140 are set in a sales registration screen 110 which is displayed on the electronic cash register. Even if an operation mode of the electronic cash register is changed, the temporary display column 120 is displayed at almost the same position of the screen. Input information "2" inputted by an operator is displayed once in the temporary display column 120 and the operator is made to check that there is no error. When check by the operator is completed, the input information being displayed on the temporary display column 120 is displayed on the fixed display column 140 by inputting the fixing instruction. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a screen display technique in an electronic cash register. More specifically, the present invention relates to a technique for effectively allocating a display area of a screen.

  An electronic cash register that calculates and outputs an amount charged for a purchased product brought by a customer is used at a cash register counter in a store. When each purchased product is registered and the selling price is input, the electronic cash register outputs the billed amount by summing them and displaying them on a screen or printing a receipt.

  Various information such as information on purchased products and customer information is input to the electronic cash register. Such an electronic cash register is described in Patent Document 1.

  In the device described in Patent Document 1, various input screens are prepared according to input information, and a specific screen is displayed on the display device according to the situation. As a result, the operator can determine information to be input in accordance with a so-called operation mode.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-063955

  However, when the screen becomes large, there is a problem that it is difficult for the operator to grasp what is displayed because various information is displayed simultaneously on one screen. In particular, in the electronic cash register, much of the displayed information is “numeric characters”, but “numeric characters” have a special circumstance that it is difficult to grasp the meaning at a glance. Further, as the types of screens to be displayed become abundant as in the electronic cash register described in Patent Document 1, the burden on the operator increases.

  Also, in an electronic cash register, a number with a large number of digits such as an ID number is often input, and erroneous input is likely to occur. In addition, the number is greatly affected by an erroneous input such as an input error of one character (one digit), and visual confirmation of the input character by the operator is essential. That is, the operator must always grasp the display position of the character being input and determine whether or not a correct character is present before confirming the input.

  Furthermore, the improvement of the user interface for the electronic cash register is an urgent issue, for example, the operator is always required to promptly respond in front of the customer.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide an electronic cash register having an excellent user interface.

  In order to solve the above problems, the invention of claim 1 is an electronic cash register that outputs an amount charged to a customer based on an individual price of at least one purchased product purchased by the customer, The display unit includes a display unit that displays a temporary display field at approximately the same position of the plurality of screens while switching a plurality of screens according to the operation mode, and an input unit that receives an input from an operator. The input information received by the input means is once displayed in the temporary display field and then displayed in the final display field.

  The invention of claim 2 is the electronic cash register according to the invention of claim 1, wherein the input means has a numeric key for inputting a number, and the input information is the numeric key. Is input.

  The invention of claim 3 is the electronic cash register according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the input means finally displays the input information displayed in the temporary display field. It has a designation key for designating.

  The invention according to claim 4 is the electronic cash register according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the display means finally displays the input information displayed in the temporary display field. The column is displayed with a decoration different from other display columns.

  A fifth aspect of the present invention is the electronic cash register according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, wherein the input means includes a touch panel corresponding to the screen of the display means.

  The invention of claim 6 is a computer readable program, and the execution of the program by the computer is based on an individual price of at least one purchased product purchased by a customer, While functioning as an electronic cash register that outputs the amount charged to the customer, the computer displays a temporary display column at approximately the same position on the plurality of screens while switching a plurality of screens according to a plurality of operation modes. The first display step, the input step for accepting input from the operator, the input information accepted in the input step, the second display step for temporarily displaying the temporary display column, and the temporary display column are displayed. A third display step of displaying the input information in the final display column is executed.

  According to the first to sixth aspects of the present invention, while temporarily switching a plurality of screens corresponding to a plurality of operation modes, a temporary display column is displayed at substantially the same position of the plurality of screens, and the received input information is temporarily stored. By displaying in the display column and then in the finalized display column, the display position of the temporary display column does not change even when the screen is switched, so the operator can easily understand where the input information is displayed on the screen I can do it.

  In the invention according to claim 3, since the confirmation display field can be designated by having a designation key for designating the confirmation display field for finally displaying the input information displayed in the temporary display field, It is possible to suppress both incorrect input and input position (item) errors.

  In the invention according to claim 4, the input information displayed in the temporary display field is displayed in the temporary display field by displaying the final display field in which the input information is finally displayed with a different decoration from the other display fields. It is possible to easily confirm where the input information is input.

  DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

<1. Embodiment>
FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of an electronic cash register 1 according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the connection of the electronic cash register 1.

  The electronic cash register 1 mainly includes a terminal 2 and a scanner 3. As shown in FIG. 1, the terminal 2 and the scanner 3 are connected to each other so that data communication can be performed wirelessly. The terminal 2 and the scanner 3 may be connected by a cable as long as data can be transmitted and received between them. The scanner 3 may be of a type installed at a cashier counter or the like.

  The terminal 2 includes a control unit 10 inside, and an operator display 20, a customer display 21, and a keyboard 22.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the control unit 10 includes a CPU 11 that calculates data and generates control signals, a memory 12 that is used as a working area of the CPU 11, a hard disk 13 that stores a program 14, and the like. It has the function as.

  For example, information (product information) related to each product is stored in the hard disk 13 in association with identification information, and a so-called product database is constructed. The product database can be appropriately referred to by the CPU 11. For example, the CPU 11 can acquire product information such as a product name by accessing a product database using “department code” as identification information. The operator creates these databases in advance by operating the keyboard 22 and the like to input various data.

  The hard disk 13 stores screen data to be displayed on the operator display 20. The screen data is information related to the screen layout of the operator display 20. The control unit 10 reads appropriate screen data from the hard disk 13 according to the operation mode of the electronic cash register 1 and displays it on the operator display 20.

  The operator display 20 is a display device that mainly displays data to the operator, and is arranged so that the screen faces the operator's standing position. In the electronic cash register 1 in the present embodiment, a touch panel type liquid crystal display is employed as the operator display 20. That is, the operator display 20 is also used when data is input to the terminal 2, and the operator operates the electronic cash register 1 by operating a soft key (pseudo button) displayed on the screen, or input information. Can be entered.

  The customer display 21 is a display device that mainly displays data to the customer, and is arranged so that the screen faces the standing position of the customer.

  Whether the information displayed by the terminal 2 is displayed on the operator display 20 or the customer display 21 is determined by the control of the control unit 10.

  The keyboard 22 has a structure in which a plurality of buttons are arranged, and is used when an operator inputs an instruction or data to the terminal 2. The keyboard 22 converts the input received from the operator into an electrical signal and transmits it to the control unit 10.

  The terminal 2 includes a magnetic card reader 23 and a receipt printer 24.

  The magnetic card reader 23 is an input device for reading information stored in a magnetic card (not shown). Thereby, the electronic cash register 1 can read information such as a customer's point card, for example.

  The receipt printer 24 is a device that prints and outputs data on receipt paper. Although not shown in detail, the terminal 2 can set a roll paper as a receipt paper inside.

  The scanner 3 is a handy type general bar code reader, and mainly reads a bar code of a label attached to a purchased product and transmits it to the terminal 2. The scanner 3 may be of the type installed on the counter.

  The above is the description of the function and configuration of the electronic cash register 1. Next, the display screen of the electronic cash register 1 will be described while explaining the operation of the electronic cash register 1.

  FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation of the electronic cash register 1. The electronic cash register 1 first displays an initial screen on the operator display 20 when an initial setting process (not shown) is completed (step S11), and waits for a menu display instruction (step S12).

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of the menu screen 100. In response to a menu display instruction from the operator, the electronic cash register 1 displays the menu screen 100 on the operator display 20 in accordance with a control signal from the control unit 10 (step S13).

  The flow of the menu display instruction in the present embodiment will be specifically described. When the menu button 100a prepared at the upper left of the initial screen is operated, the main menu screen 100b is displayed. Further, when any of the main item buttons 100c displayed on the main menu screen 100b is operated, a submenu screen 100d corresponding to the operated main item button 100c is displayed. Similar to the main menu screen 100b, the submenu screen 100d is provided with a plurality of selectable sub-item buttons 100e, and the operation mode of the electronic cash register 1 is determined by the operator selecting it. FIG. 4 shows an example in which “registration” is selected from the main item buttons 100 c and the “registration” submenu screen 100 d is displayed.

  When the menu screen 100 is displayed, the control unit 10 stands by while monitoring a cancel instruction and a selection instruction (steps S14 and S15). If there is a cancel instruction, the menu screen 100 is closed and the process returns to step S11. On the other hand, when there is an instruction to select an operation mode, processing corresponding to the selected operation mode is performed (step S16).

  Hereinafter, an operator input process in the electronic cash register 1 will be described by taking a sales registration process in the operation mode of the electronic cash register 1 as an example. That is, the operation mode executed in step S16 when “registration” of the main item button 100c is selected and “sales” of the “registration” sub-item button 100e is selected will be described.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the operation of the sales registration process. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a display example of the sales registration screen 110. First, when the sales registration process is selected, the control unit 10 displays the sales registration screen 110 on the operator display 20 (step S21).

  The sales registration screen 110 is an input screen in sales registration processing among the operation modes of the electronic cash register 1. As shown in FIG. 6, the sales registration screen 110 is provided with a temporary display field 120, a guidance display field 130, and a confirmation display field 140. In other words, the screen area of the operator display 20 is allocated to the temporary display field 120, the guidance display field 130, and the confirmed display field 140, respectively.

  The temporary display column 120 is an area provided for temporarily displaying input information (characters) input by the operator. Therefore, step S21 mainly corresponds to the first display step in the present invention.

  The guidance display field 130 is an area for displaying operation guidance such as an input prompt message to the operator, and an area near the temporary display field 120 is assigned. The operator can determine what operation should be performed by checking the guidance display field 130. Although the details will be described later, since the temporary display column 120 is an area that the operator is gazing at, the operator's erroneous operation is suppressed by providing a guidance display column 130 in the vicinity thereof and displaying guidance for the operator. Can do.

  The confirmation display column 140 is an area provided for displaying information that is confirmed and registered (mainly input information). In the sales registration process, there is a possibility that a plurality of purchased products may be registered. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 6, a plurality of confirmation display fields 140 are provided. That is, a display area is assigned to each confirmation display column 140.

  In addition, a cursor designation button 150 is provided on the sales registration screen 110. The cursor designation button 150 is a soft key used for designating a finalized display column 140 for finally displaying the input information displayed in the temporary display column 120. Since the operator display 20 is a touch panel type as described above, the operator can operate the cursor designation button 150 by touching the area where the cursor designation button 150 is displayed. It should be noted that a hard key having the same function as the cursor designation button 150 may be provided on the keyboard 22.

  When the sales registration screen 110 is displayed by starting the sales registration process, the control unit 10 waits while monitoring input information, a confirmation instruction, and an end instruction (steps S22, S24, and S26). Note that the input information, the confirmation instruction, and the end instruction are assigned to specific keys on the keyboard 22, and when an inappropriate key is operated, a message to that effect is displayed in the guidance display field 130.

  Although not shown in FIG. 5, the operator designates in advance a confirmation display field 140 for finally displaying the input information to be input by operating the cursor designation button 150 before inputting the input information. Is possible. That is, it is possible to specify a record. Thereby, it is possible to suppress erroneous input of numerical values and input position. The cursor designation button 150 in this embodiment has only a function for designating a record, but may further have a function for designating an item in the record.

  In the example shown in FIG. 6, the color of the confirmation display field 140 displayed at the uppermost position among the plurality of confirmation display fields 140 is decorated so as to be different from that of the other confirmation display fields 140. As a result, the operator can easily identify which of the designated confirmation display fields 140 is. If it is desired to change the designated confirmation display field 140, the cursor designation button 150 may be operated again.

  When input information is input from the operator (Yes in step S22), the input information is displayed in the temporary display column 120 (step S23). Further, when there is a confirmation instruction in the situation where the input information is displayed in the temporary display field 120 (Yes in Step S24), the input information displayed in the temporary display field 120 is displayed in the confirmation display field 140 (Step S24). S25).

  7 to 12 are diagrams showing display examples of the sales registration screen 110 in the sales registration process. First, in the sales registration process, the operator operates the number keys on the keyboard 22 to input the “number” of purchased products. In the example shown here, the “2” key is operated, and “2” is input as the number. The electronic cash register 1 receives the input number “2” as input information, and once displays it in the temporary display column 120 as shown in FIG. 7 by executing step S23. That is, step S23 mainly corresponds to the second display step in the present invention.

  When displayed in the temporary display column 120, the input information “2” is not treated as information effective as “number” for calculating sales. That is, at this time, the input information “2” displayed in the temporary display column 120 is treated as a numerical value.

  The operator visually checks the temporary display field 120 to check whether there is an error in the input number, and gives a confirmation instruction if there is no error. In the example shown here, the instruction for determining the number is performed by inputting “×”. That is, when the “x” key of the keyboard 22 is operated, the control unit 10 determines that a confirmation instruction has been given, executes step S25, and inputs the input information “2” displayed in the temporary display column 120. As shown in FIG. 8, it is displayed in the specified display column 140 that is designated (decorated differently from others). That is, step S25 mainly corresponds to the third display step in the present invention.

  In this way, when the confirmation instruction is given and the input information is displayed in the confirmation display field 140, the input information “2” becomes valid as the number “2” in the subsequent calculation. When the input information displayed in the temporary display column 120 is displayed in the final display column 140, the display of the input information displayed in the temporary display column 120 is deleted. The same applies to the subsequent processing.

  When the input of the number is completed, the operator inputs the unit price of the purchased product as input information. In the example shown here, “210” is input. This input information “210” is also displayed once in the temporary display field 120 as shown in FIG. 9 by executing step S23 again.

  The operator visually checks the provisional display field 120 to check whether the input unit price is correct, and gives a confirmation instruction if there is no error. In the example shown here, the unit price confirmation instruction is performed by inputting “amount”. That is, when the “money” key on the keyboard 22 is operated, the control unit 10 determines that a confirmation instruction has been issued, executes step S25 again, and inputs information “210” displayed in the temporary display column 120. Is displayed in the confirmation display field 140 as shown in FIG.

  Next, the operator inputs the product name of the purchased product as input information. In the example shown here, the department code “101” is input as the product name. This input information “101” is also displayed once in the temporary display field 120 as shown in FIG. 11 by executing step S23 again.

  The operator visually checks the temporary display field 120 to check whether there is an error in the input department code, and gives a confirmation instruction if there is no error. In the example shown here, the confirmation of the product name is performed by inputting “Department”. That is, when the “department” key on the keyboard 22 is operated, the control unit 10 determines that a confirmation instruction has been issued, executes step S25 again, and inputs information “101” displayed in the temporary display column 120. As shown in FIG. 12, the product name “XX milk 1000 ml” is displayed in the confirmation display field 140 as shown in FIG.

  In this way, the input information (department code “101”) displayed in the temporary display field 120 is not directly displayed in the finalized display field 140, but information associated with the input information (product name “XX milk 1000 ml”). ") May be displayed in the final display column 140.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 12, a plurality of items in the confirmation display column 140 may correspond to one piece of input information. In the example shown here, the value of “consumption tax” is fixedly displayed by operating the “department” key.

  When the sales registration input information is confirmed for all the purchased products, the operator inputs an end instruction. In the example shown here, an end instruction is given by operating the “settlement” key. When the end instruction is given, the control unit 10 registers sales of all input information (step S27) and performs a settlement process (step S28).

  Although details are not shown, processing corresponding to steps S22 to S26 is also performed in the settlement process.

  13 to 15 are diagrams showing display examples of the settlement screen 111 displayed in the settlement process. In the settlement screen 111, a temporary display column 120 and a guidance display column 130 are assigned to almost the same position (area) as the sales registration screen 110. That is, even when the screen is switched according to the operation mode, both the temporary display field 120 and the guidance display field 130 are displayed at substantially the same position.

  However, the input information that the operator inputs in the checkout process is only “deposit” from the customer. Therefore, there is only one confirmation display field 140 on the settlement screen 111, and there is no need to designate it, so the cursor designation button 150 is not provided.

  In the settlement process, first, “total” and “remaining money” are displayed based on the information registered in step S27, as shown in FIG. Here, when the operator receives payment from the customer, the operator operates the keyboard 22 and inputs a deposit amount. In the example shown here, 3000 yen is deposited and input information “3000” is input from the keyboard 22.

  The input information “3000” is temporarily displayed in the temporary display field 120 as shown in FIG. At this time, since the input information “3000” is not instructed to be fixed, “change” or the like is not calculated nor displayed. That is, the input information “3000” is treated as a numerical value.

  When the input information is displayed in the temporary display field 120, the operator visually checks the temporary display field 120 to confirm whether the amount has been correctly input. As described above, the provisional display column 120 is displayed on the checkout screen 111 at substantially the same position as the sales registration screen 110. Therefore, even if the sales registration screen 110 is switched to the settlement screen 111, the operator does not need to search where the input information input by the operator is displayed, and can quickly confirm the input information.

  If the amount is correctly input, the operator gives a confirmation instruction. By this confirmation instruction, as shown in FIG. 15, the input information “3000” displayed in the temporary display field 120 is displayed in the confirmation display field 140, and the input information “3000” in the temporary display field 120 is deleted. .

  Further, since the input information is validated by this confirmation instruction (that is, the deposit is numerically registered), the control unit 10 of the electronic cash register 1 calculates change based on the deposit amount and the total amount. indicate. The receipt printer 24 prints a receipt based on the information registered in the sales registration process.

  The operator confirms the amount of change displayed on the settlement screen 111, gives the change and receipt to the customer, and inputs an instruction to end the sales registration process. Thereby, the electronic cash register 1 ends the sales registration process and returns to the process shown in FIG.

  The above is the description of the sales registration process, but some examples of input screens displayed in other operation modes are shown below.

  FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of the deposit registration screen 112. The deposit registration screen 112 is an input screen that is displayed when the deposit registration process is selected in the operation mode of the electronic cash register 1. The deposit registration process is executed when “Register” of the main item button 100c is selected and “Deposit” of the “Register” sub-item button 100e is selected. The deposit registration screen 112 is provided with a temporary display column 120 and a guidance display column 130 at substantially the same position as the sales registration screen 110.

  FIG. 17 is a diagram showing an example of the withdrawal registration screen 113. The withdrawal registration screen 113 is an input screen that is displayed when the withdrawal registration process is selected in the operation mode of the electronic cash register 1. The withdrawal registration process is executed when “registration” of the main item button 100c is selected and “withdrawal” of the sub-item button 100e of “registration” is selected. On the withdrawal registration screen 113, a temporary display column 120 and a guidance display column 130 are provided at almost the same position as the sales registration screen 110.

  FIG. 18 is a diagram showing an example of the point addition / subtraction registration screen 114. The point addition / subtraction registration screen 114 is an input screen displayed when the point addition / subtraction registration processing is selected from the operation modes of the electronic cash register 1. The point addition / subtraction registration processing is executed when “registration” of the main item button 100c is selected and “point addition / subtraction” of the sub-item button 100e of “registration” is selected. On the point addition / subtraction registration screen 114, a temporary display column 120 and a guidance display column 130 are provided at substantially the same position as the sales registration screen 110.

  As described above, the electronic cash register 1 according to the present embodiment displays the temporary display column 120 at substantially the same position on the plurality of screens while switching the plurality of screens according to the plurality of operation modes. Even if is switched, the display position of the temporary display column 120 does not change. Therefore, since the position to be watched on the screen does not change according to the operation mode, the operator can easily understand where the input information is displayed on the screen and can easily check the input information. .

  The electronic cash register 1 requires various information depending on the operation mode, and the information that must be displayed at a time differs for each screen. Therefore, the number, shape, position, size, and the like of the confirmation display column 140 vary from screen to screen. However, the temporary display column 120 for temporarily displaying the input information is made common for each screen, so that the burden on the operator can be reduced. That is, the user interface of the electronic cash register 1 is improved.

<2. Modification>
Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and various modifications can be made.

  For example, the types of operation order and operation modes shown in the above embodiment are examples, and other orders and operation modes may be adopted.

  In the embodiment described above, only “numerals” are input as input information. However, the input information may be characters other than “numerals”.

1 is an external perspective view of an electronic cash register 1 according to the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the connection of an electronic cash register. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of an electronic cash register. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of a menu screen. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of a sales registration process. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of a sales registration screen. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of the sales registration screen in a sales registration process. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of the sales registration screen in a sales registration process. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of the sales registration screen in a sales registration process. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of the sales registration screen in a sales registration process. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of the sales registration screen in a sales registration process. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of the sales registration screen in a sales registration process. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of the payment screen displayed in a payment process. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of the payment screen displayed in a payment process. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of the payment screen displayed in a payment process. It is a figure which shows the example of a payment registration screen. It is a figure which shows the example of a payment registration screen. It is a figure which shows the example of a point addition / subtraction registration screen.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Electronic cash register 10 Control part 110 Sales registration screen 111 Settlement screen 112 Deposit registration screen 113 Withdrawal registration screen 114 Point addition / subtraction registration screen 120 Temporary display field 130 Guidance display field 140 Confirmation display field 150 Cursor designation button 14 Program 20 Operator display 21 Customer display 22 Keyboard

Claims (6)

An electronic cash register for outputting an amount charged to the customer based on an individual price of at least one purchased item purchased by the customer,
Display means for displaying a temporary display column at substantially the same position of the plurality of screens while switching a plurality of screens according to a plurality of operation modes,
Input means for receiving input from the operator;
With
The electronic cash register characterized in that the display means displays the input information received by the input means once in the temporary display field and then in the final display field. The electronic cash register according to claim 1,
The input means is
It has a numeric key for entering numbers,
The electronic cash register, wherein the input information is input by the numeric key. The electronic cash register according to claim 1 or 2,
The input means is
An electronic cash register having a designation key for designating a final display field for finally displaying input information displayed in the temporary display field. The electronic cash register according to claim 1 or 2,
The electronic cash register characterized in that the display means displays a final display field in which input information displayed in the temporary display field is finally displayed with a decoration different from other display fields. An electronic cash register according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The input means is
An electronic cash register comprising a touch panel corresponding to the screen of the display means. A computer readable program, wherein execution of the program by the computer causes the computer to output an amount billed to the customer based on an individual price of at least one purchased item purchased by the customer. While functioning as a cash register, the computer
A first display step of displaying a temporary display column at substantially the same position of the plurality of screens while switching a plurality of screens corresponding to a plurality of operation modes,
An input process for receiving input from an operator;
A second display step of displaying the input information received in the input step once in the temporary display column;
A third display step of displaying the input information displayed in the temporary display field in the final display field;
A program characterized by having executed.

Images