JP2018055507A - Sales support apparatus, sales support system, and sales support method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a technique of enhancing the convenience of purchasing at a shop by effectively utilizing shop resources.SOLUTION: The present invention provides a sales support apparatus connected to a sales management system, and supports sales of items at a shop using a mobile terminal. The sales support apparatus includes a receiving unit that receives data including information represented by a code captured by the mobile terminal and associated with an item, and a virtual cart providing unit for providing a virtual cart for storing an item associated with the code, an inventory management unit that deletes an item from stock information of the item owned by the sales management system in response to storage of the item in the virtual cart, and a purchase certificate issuing unit that issues a purchase certificate certifying purchase of the item in accordance with settlement of the item and showing the purchased item and the settlement thereof by mans of a predetermined code.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a sales support device, a sales support system, and a sales support method, and more particularly to online to offline (O 2 O).

  The product can be purchased by various methods such as mail order, internet shopping, and purchase at a store. While purchasing by mail order or Internet shopping can be easily realized at home, there is a drawback that the actual product cannot be confirmed. In-store purchases have the disadvantage that they must be able to confirm the actual product, but have to line up at the cash register with the product. In order to solve such a problem, the technique of Patent Document 1 is based on the Internet electronic commerce system after a web server registers a service user as a member, sets a virtual cart for the registered member, and confirms the actual product. Proposes a way to purchase goods.

Special table 2003-534606 gazette

  However, the technology of Patent Document 1 is to make a store available as a showroom in the Internet electronic commerce system, and it cannot be said that the store resources are effectively used from the viewpoint of sales support in the store. Sufficient consideration has not been made.

  This invention is made | formed in view of such a condition, and it aims at providing the technique which raises the convenience of the purchase in a shop effectively using the resource of a shop.

  The present invention provides a sales support apparatus that is connected to a sales management system and supports sales of products in a store using a portable terminal. The sales support device stores a receiving unit that receives data including information captured by the mobile terminal and represented by a code associated with the product, and a product associated with the code. A virtual cart providing unit that provides the virtual cart, an inventory management unit that deletes the product from the inventory information of the product that the sales management system has in response to storing the product in the virtual cart, A purchase certificate issuing unit that certifies the purchase of the product in accordance with a payment process and issues a purchase certificate that displays the purchased product and the payment completed with a predetermined code;

  The present invention provides a sales support system that is connected to a sales management system and supports sales of products in a store. The sales support system includes the sales support device and the mobile terminal, and the mobile terminal images a code associated with the product, and stores data including information represented by the code. A transmission unit configured to transmit to the apparatus; and an operation display unit configured to display an operation display screen for putting the product into the virtual cart.

  The present invention provides a sales support method for supporting the sale of products in a store using a sales management system and a portable terminal. The sales support method includes a receiving step of receiving a code imaged by the mobile terminal and associated with the product, and a virtual providing a virtual cart for storing the product associated with the code. A cart providing step, an inventory management step of deleting the product from the inventory information of the product that the sales management system has in accordance with the storage of the product in the virtual cart, and an item of the product in accordance with the settlement of the product A purchase certificate issuance step for issuing a purchase certificate for proving purchase and displaying the purchased product and a settlement with a predetermined code.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the technique which raises the convenience of the purchase in a shop effectively using the resource of a shop can be provided.

It is a block diagram which shows the function structure of the sales assistance system 10 which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the content of the sales support process in the sales support system 10 which concerns on one Embodiment. It is explanatory drawing which shows the operation display part 230 of the smart phone 200 in the sales assistance process which concerns on one Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the content of the virtual cart process in the sales support system 10 which concerns on one Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the content of the goods delivery process in the sales support system 10 which concerns on one Embodiment.

  Hereinafter, modes for carrying out the present invention (hereinafter referred to as “embodiments”) will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of a sales support system 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The sales support system 10 is connected to a POS system 20 that is a sales management system, and is installed in a store (not shown). In the store, products having markings using bar codes or QR codes (registered trademark) are displayed. The POS system 20 has an automatic change machine 21 for payment of a purchase fee.

  The sales support system 10 includes a sales support device 100, a plurality of smartphones 200, and a beacon transmitter group 300. The sales support apparatus 100 includes a control unit 110, an image forming unit 120, an operation display unit 130, a storage unit 140, a communication interface unit 150, and an automatic document feeder (ADF) 160. The image forming unit 120 includes an image reading unit 121 that reads an image from a document and generates image data.

  The smartphone 200 is the property of a customer who has visited the store, and includes a control unit 210, an operation display unit 230, a storage unit 240, a communication interface unit 250, and an imaging unit 260. The smartphone 200 is connected by short-range wireless communication using the sales support device 100, the communication interface unit 150, and the communication interface unit 250. In this embodiment, near field communication uses BLUETOOTH (registered trademark) CLASS1. CLASS 1 of BLUETOOTH (registered trademark) is a communication with an output of 100 mW, and is a short-range wireless communication capable of communication within a distance of about 100 m between the sales support device 100 and the smartphone 200.

  The operation display unit 130 of the sales support apparatus 100 and the operation display unit 230 of the smartphone 200 function as a touch panel, display various menus as input screens, and accept customer operation inputs.

  The control units 110 and 210 include main storage means such as RAM and ROM, and control means such as MPU (Micro Processing Unit) and CPU (Central Processing Unit). The control unit 110 also has a controller function related to various I / O, USB (Universal Serial Bus), bus, and other hardware interfaces. The control units 110 and 210 control the entire sales support apparatus 100 and the smartphone 200, respectively.

  The storage units 140 and 240 are storage devices including a hard disk drive or a flash memory that is a non-temporary recording medium, and store control programs and data for processes executed by the control units 110 and 210, respectively. The storage unit 140 stores a sales support application program 141 (also simply referred to as an application) for installation on the smartphone 200.

  The beacon transmitter group 300 includes a plurality of beacon transmitters 301 to 303. The beacon transmitter 301 is embedded in a floor (not shown) at the store entrance. The beacon transmitter 302 is installed in the sales support apparatus 100. The beacon transmitter 303 is embedded in a floor (not shown) near the service counter.

  In this embodiment, iBeacon (registered trademark) is used as an example. Management of the beacon transmitter group 300 is performed by bidirectional communication between the communication interface unit 150 of the sales support apparatus 100 and the three beacon transmitters 301 to 303. Thereby, the sales support apparatus 100 can confirm the normal operation of the three beacon transmitters 301 to 303. On the other hand, the three beacon transmitters 301 to 303 perform broadcast transmission of each beacon asynchronously every 0.1 seconds. Broadcast transmission is a one-way transmission method that simultaneously sends the same information to an unspecified number of people.

  The beacon is transmitted using Bluetooth (registered trademark) Low Energy (also referred to as BLE). BLE is a standard for performing communication with low power consumption. As a result, the three beacon transmitters 301 to 303 can operate for several months with a general button battery.

  The beacon includes an identifier that is also referred to as a universally unique identifier (UUID), a major value, and a minor value. In this embodiment, the beacon transmitters 301 to 303 have a common UUID associated with the sales support application program 141. The beacon transmitter 301 has a Major value that represents the location of the store entrance. The beacon transmitter 302 has a Major value that represents the vicinity of the sales support apparatus 100. The beacon transmitter 303 has a Major value indicating the position of the service counter. In this example, the Minor value is not used.

  FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the contents of sales support processing in the sales support system 10 according to the embodiment. In step S100, the smartphone 200 detects a beacon. Specifically, the smartphone 200 receives a beacon by broadcast transmission from a beacon transmitter 301 embedded in a floor (not shown) of a store entrance.

  In response to reception of the beacon, the smartphone 200 requests access to the sales support device 100 using the UUID and Major value included in the beacon. The sales support apparatus 100 inquires whether the sales support application program 141 has been installed in the smartphone 200.

  In step S <b> 200, the smartphone 200 determines whether the sales support application program 141 used in the sales support system 10 is installed in the smartphone 200 in response to an inquiry from the sales support apparatus 100. If installed, the process proceeds to step S500, and if not installed, the process proceeds to step S300.

  FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing the operation display screen 231 of the smartphone 200 in the sales support process according to the embodiment. In step S300, the smartphone 200 starts a software installation process. Specifically, the smartphone 200 displays an operation display screen 231 that asks the customer for permission to install the sales support application program 141 by push notification. The smartphone 200 downloads and installs the sales support application program 141 from the sales support apparatus 100 according to the customer's permission.

  In step S400, the customer of the smartphone 200 executes an account registration process. The account registration process is a process for registering a personal account by inputting customer personal information. In the account registration process, the login name, password, credit card information, delivery address, and the like are registered.

  In step S500, the smartphone 200 executes an automatic login process. In the automatic login process, the smartphone 200 transmits login information (login name and password) to the sales support apparatus 100 and is logged in through authentication by the sales support apparatus 100.

  In step S <b> 600, the control unit 110 of the sales support apparatus 100 executes a virtual cart process in response to communication from the smartphone 200. The virtual cart process is a process for virtually creating a state in which a product is put in the cart without using a physical cart. As described above, the control unit 110 functions as a virtual cart providing unit.

  FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the contents of the virtual cart process in the sales support system 10 according to the embodiment. In step S610, the customer scans the barcode or QR code (registered trademark) of the product using the imaging unit 260 of the smartphone 200.

  In step S620, the smartphone 200 proposes a product variation. Specifically, for example, when the product is clothes, the smartphone 200 proposes clothes of different colors and sizes together with the inventory status. The inventory status is managed by the POS system 20 using inventory information representing inventory including the clothes on display and the clothes in the warehouse. The inventory information is transmitted to the smartphone 200 via the sales support apparatus 100. As a result, the customer can obtain information on the inventory status and variations without asking the store clerk.

  In step S630, the customer places the product in a virtual cart. Specifically, it is assumed that the customer A touches an icon (not shown) indicating a virtual cart while the product A is selected on the operation display unit 230 of the smartphone 200. The screen on the operation display unit 230 is displayed by the sales support application program 141. As a result, the control unit 110 of the sales support apparatus 100 transmits to the POS system 20 that the product has been put into the cart, and the POS system 20 updates the inventory information with the product A being temporarily purchased. That is, the product A is temporarily deleted from the stock. Thus, the control unit 110 functions as an inventory management unit.

  The provisional purchase is a virtual state corresponding to a state where the product A is put in the cart of the customer A when using a physical cart. This virtual state is a state in which the product A cannot be purchased by other customers even if it is displayed on the display shelf. As described above, the virtual cart process is a process for virtually creating a state in which a product is put in the cart without using a physical cart. Thereby, there is an advantage that it is possible to look around the store almost empty-handed even after securing the product.

  In step S640, the customer selects an acquisition method (take-away or delivery). When a product that can be delivered is placed in a virtual cart, the sales support apparatus 100 transmits a message to that effect to the POS system 20. The POS system 20 determines whether the address of the customer A is a deliverable area, calculates items such as a delivery fee and a delivery date, and transmits the items to the smartphone 200. The smartphone 200 displays it on the operation display unit 230 and inquires about selection of “take-away” and “delivery”.

  If “delivery” is selected, the process proceeds to step S650, and provisional delivery arrangement is executed. The provisional delivery arrangement is a process for temporarily reserving delivery based on the address information of the customer A. In delivery, it is not necessary to fill in information such as a delivery destination from pre-registered account information, so the delivery procedure can be simplified. Note that the operation display unit 230 can enter a delivery destination different from the account information. On the other hand, if “takeaway” is selected, the process proceeds to step S660.

  In step S660, the customer determines whether or not to continue shopping (product selection). When shopping is continued, the process returns to step S610. When purchasing a plurality of products A, the products A can be put into a plurality of carts by scanning the products A a plurality of times. At this time, the operation display unit 230 displays a list of products in the virtual cart and a purchase price. The customer can check the purchase price at any time, select a product for which the purchase is to be canceled from the product list, and finally determine the product to be purchased. The sales support system 10 can produce the same effect as the stock information is updated in response to the cancellation of the product and the product is physically returned from the cart.

  If shopping is completed, the process proceeds to step S700 (see FIG. 2). In step S700, a product delivery process is executed.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the contents of the product delivery process in the sales support system 10 according to an embodiment. In step S710, the customer selects a payment method. If a card is selected, online payment is executed (step S720). If cash is selected, payment can be made by depositing into the automatic change machine 21 of the POS system 20 (step S730). The automatic change machine 21 is installed adjacent to the sales support apparatus 100.

Settlement by depositing into the automatic change machine 21 is performed as follows.
(1) The sales support apparatus 100 displays the position of the automatic change machine 21 on the operation display unit 230 of the smartphone 200 according to, for example, selection of cash settlement.
(2) Upon arrival at the automatic change machine 21, the smartphone 200 receives a beacon from the beacon transmitter 302 arranged in the sales support device 100 installed adjacent to the automatic change machine 21, and The sales support apparatus 100 is requested to access using the UUID and Major value included in the ID.
(3) The sales support apparatus 100 displays a charge on the automatic change machine 21 according to the product in the customer's virtual cart.
(4) The customer pays a fee and receives change. The automatic change machine 21 transmits to the sales support apparatus 100 that the fee has been paid.

  In step S740, the control unit 110 of the sales support apparatus 100 executes a receipt issue process. In the receipt issuing process, the customer can receive the input by inputting the password displayed on the smartphone 200 in the operation display unit 130 of the sales support apparatus 100. The receipt is also called a purchase certificate, and is printed with a QR code (registered trademark) including information on the product name (including the number to be taken back) and the purchased product. The reason why the password is required is to prevent others from receiving the receipt by mistake. In this way, the control unit 110 functions as a purchase certificate issuing unit.

  In step S750, the customer moves to the service counter and receives inspection and packaging services. Upon arrival at the service counter, the smartphone 200 receives a beacon from a beacon transmitter 303 embedded in a floor (not shown) in the vicinity of the service counter, and calculates the UUID and Major value included in the beacon. Use to request access to the sales support device 100.

  The inspection is performed by using the image reading unit 121 of the image forming unit 120 and scanning the QR code (registered trademark) of the receipt and the barcode of the product by the store clerk. The store clerk wraps the inspected product, delivers it to the customer, and alerts the customer if there is a discrepancy between the product and the number. Furthermore, the sales support apparatus 100 can confirm the coincidence of the product and the number based on the data acquired by scanning and the data acquired from the smartphone 200, and can notify the store clerk. Thereby, it is possible to prevent mistakes in the purchased product, mistakes in the number of pieces, and shoplifting.

  In the service counter, a paid customer can receive a simple service such as inspection and packaging, so that it can be processed quickly. On the other hand, since the payment of the fee is mechanized, it is possible to reduce the human burden on the store side.

  In step S800, the smartphone 200 executes an automatic logout process. The automatic logout process displays an operation display screen (not shown) similar to the operation display screen 231 in FIG. 3 in response to reception of a beacon signal from the beacon transmitter 301 installed at the store entrance and exit. Automatically done with permission.

  As described above, according to the sales support apparatus 100 according to the embodiment, it is possible to improve the convenience of purchase in the store by effectively using the resources of the store, and it is also possible to reduce the burden on the store side. . On the other hand, the purchaser can confirm the actual product, but the disadvantage of holding the product and placing it in the cash register is also eliminated.

C. Variations:
The present invention can be implemented not only in the above embodiments but also in the following modifications.

  Modification 1: In the above embodiment, the inspection process is performed only by a human at the service counter. However, the inspection process is automatically performed at the entrance / exit using the IC tag attached to the product in the sales support apparatus 100. You may do it. However, a receipt is also issued at this time.

  Modification 2: In the above embodiment, a smartphone is used. However, the present invention can be applied to a portable terminal such as a notebook PC or a tablet as long as wireless communication is possible. Note that wireless communication includes communication using infrared rays or the like.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Sales support system 100 Sales support apparatus 110 Control part 120 Image formation part 130 Operation display part 140 Storage part 150,250 Communication interface part 160 Automatic document feeder (ADF)
200 Smartphone 210 Control Unit 230 Operation Display Unit 240 Storage Units 301 to 303 Beacon Transmitter

Claims (4)

A sales support device connected to a sales management system for supporting the sale of products in a store using a mobile terminal,
A receiver that receives data including information captured by the mobile terminal and represented by a code associated with the product;
A virtual cart providing unit for providing a virtual cart for storing products linked to the code;
An inventory management unit that deletes the product from the inventory information of the product that the sales management system has in accordance with storage of the product in the virtual cart;
A purchase certificate issuing unit that certifies the purchase of the product according to the payment processing of the product, and issues a purchase certificate that displays the purchased product and the payment completed with a predetermined code;
A sales support device comprising: The sales support device according to claim 1,
A sales support apparatus comprising: an inspection unit that reads and collates the predetermined code displayed on the purchase certificate and a code manually displayed by being associated with the purchased product. A sales support system connected to a sales management system for supporting the sale of products in a store,
The sales support device according to claim 1 or 2,
The mobile terminal;
With
The portable terminal is
A transmitter that images a code associated with the product and transmits data including information represented by the code to the sales support device;
An operation display unit for displaying an operation display screen for putting the product into the virtual cart;
A sales support system. A sales support method for supporting sales of products in a store using a sales management system and a mobile terminal,
A receiving step of receiving data including information captured by the mobile terminal and represented by a code associated with the product;
A virtual cart providing step of providing a virtual cart for storing products linked to the code;
An inventory management step of deleting the product from the inventory information of the product that the sales management system has in response to storing the product in the virtual cart;
A purchase certificate issuing step for certifying the purchase of the product in accordance with the settlement of the product, and issuing a purchase certificate that displays a settlement with the purchased product as a predetermined code;
A sales support method comprising: