JP2022138214A - Information processing device, information processing method, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

To reduce load of product replenishment work of vending machines, which is required in conventional information processing equipment.SOLUTION: A load on the product replenishment work of the vending machine can be reduced by an information processing device 100 which is provided with: an inventory information storage unit 113 that stores inventory information corresponding to the inventory quantity of products accommodated in each of two or more columns of the vending machine; a capacity information storage unit 115 that stores the maximum number of products that can be accommodated in each of the two or more columns; a unit number storage unit 117 that stores the number of units of products to be placed in two or more columns; a replenishment number acquisition unit 151 that acquires replenishment number information that specifies a number that is a multiple of the number of units and that is equal to or less than the difference between the maximum number of products and the inventory quantity in terms of each of the two or more columns; and a replenishment number output unit 153 that outputs replenishment number information.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to an information processing device, an information processing method, and a program for supporting work on a vending machine.

A vending machine management system is used to efficiently manage a large number of installed vending machines. Such a vending machine management system, for example, collects product sales information in a plurality of vending machines, creates a list of products to be replenished in each vending machine, and installs each vending machine according to the list. By referring to a vending machine position database storing positions and selecting a plurality of vending machines that can be replenished with commodities by one delivery vehicle, the work of replenishing vending machines with commodities is efficiently supported. known (see, for example, Patent Document 1 below).

Further, Patent Document 2 below describes a method of predicting the sold-out of vending machines and determining the number of products to replenish the vending machines based on the prediction. It also describes determining the replenishment quantity of other products so that the other products will be sold out on the day when the specific product replenished to the maximum stock quantity is expected to be sold out.

JP-A-2002-74479 JP 2014-164530 A

By the way, conventionally, there has been a problem that a heavy load is imposed on the worker when performing the product replenishment work of replenishing the vending machine with products. For example, conventionally, for a vending machine having a plurality of columns, it was difficult for the operator to easily grasp the number of products to be replenished for each column.

For example, in the configuration described in Patent Document 2, the number of replenishments for each product is determined so that it will be sold out on the day when the specific product is expected to be sold out. can be presented. As a result, the workload of confirming and storing the number of replenishments for each product each time becomes heavy for the worker.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and provides an information processing apparatus, an information processing method, and a program that can reduce the load of product replenishment work of a vending machine. With the goal.

An information processing apparatus according to a first aspect of the present invention comprises an inventory information storage unit for storing inventory information corresponding to the inventory quantity of commodities accommodated in each of two or more columns of a vending machine; A capacity information storage section that stores the maximum number of products that can be accommodated in each, a unit number storage section that stores the number of units of products that can be stored in two or more columns, and two or more columns For each of the above, a replenishment quantity acquisition unit that acquires replenishment quantity information specifying a number that is equal to or smaller than the difference between the maximum number of products and the stock quantity and that is a multiple of the number of units, and outputs the replenishment quantity information and a replenishment number output unit.

With such a configuration, it is possible to reduce the load on the product replenishment work of the vending machine. be able to.

Further, the information processing apparatus of the second aspect of the present invention, in addition to the first aspect, further includes a sell-out time information storage section for storing sell-out time information relating to the period until the products in the two or more columns are sold out. In addition, the replenishment quantity acquisition unit is an information processing device that acquires replenishment quantity information using the sell-out time information for each of the two or more columns.

With such a configuration, it is possible to reduce the burden on workers by replenishing an appropriate amount and appropriately manage product quality.

In addition, in the information processing apparatus of the third invention, in contrast to the second invention, the replenishment number acquisition unit determines whether the sold-out time information is a multiple of the number of units when the sold-out time information satisfies a predetermined condition. An information processing device that acquires replenishment quantity information that specifies the same number as the difference between the maximum number of products and the number of stocks regardless of whether the number of products is the same.

With such a configuration, it is possible to lengthen the period until the commodity replenishment work becomes necessary.

Further, the information processing apparatus of the fourth invention is a product information storage that stores product information including the number of items per case of each of two or more products for any one of the first to third inventions. The replenishment number acquisition unit is an information processing device that acquires, as a unit number, a number that is an integer of 4 or more and is a divisor of the number of items included, using the product information.

With such a configuration, the number of replenishments can be a multiple of the number corresponding to the number of items in one case for each product, and the product replenishment work can be easily performed.

Further, in the information processing device of the fifth invention, for any one of the first to fourth inventions, the number of units is selected from the group consisting of 4, 5, and 6 preset for each product. The replenishment number acquisition unit acquires the number of units corresponding to the products contained in each of the two or more columns from the unit number storage unit, and uses the acquired number of units for the column An information processing device that acquires replenishment number information.

With this configuration, the number of replenishments can be a multiple of the number that can be easily grasped by the worker for each product, and the product replenishment work can be easily performed.

According to the information processing apparatus according to the present invention, it is possible to reduce the load on the product replenishment work of the vending machine.

1 is a diagram showing an overview of a vending machine management system according to one embodiment of the present invention; FIG. Block diagram of the vending machine management system Block diagram of the same information processing device Flowchart showing an example of the operation of the information processing apparatus 3 is a flowchart showing an example of replenishment number specifying processing of the same information processing device; A diagram showing an example of product information and the number of units used in the information processing apparatus A diagram showing an example of vending machine information used in the same information processing device. A diagram showing an example of a replenishment number display screen displayed on the same terminal device

Hereinafter, embodiments of an information processing apparatus and the like will be described with reference to the drawings. It should be noted that, since components denoted by the same reference numerals in the embodiments perform similar operations, repetitive description may be omitted.

The terms used below are generally defined as follows. It should be noted that the meanings of these terms should not always be interpreted as shown here, and for example, if they are individually explained below, they should be interpreted in light of that explanation as well.

A commodity is something that has value. In the following embodiments, products include, but are not limited to, canned beverages and bottled beverages that can be sold by vending machines. Merchandise sold in vending machines may be foods and beverages such as food and beverages, or other tangible objects themselves, or may be items that are treated as having the same value as predetermined foods and beverages or other tangible objects. Products sold in vending machines include services for users, electronic contents (for example, information that enables users to appreciate music, images, books, etc., but are not limited to these), It may be an object treated as equivalent to an intangible object, such as data indicating points having monetary value. It should be noted that the sale of products is not limited to the case of selling for a fee, and may be interpreted as including the distribution of products free of charge.

An identifier for a certain item is a character, a code, or the like that uniquely indicates the item. The identifier is, for example, an ID, but any type of information can be used as long as it can identify the corresponding item. That is, an identifier may be the exact name of what it designates, or it may be a uniquely corresponding combination of codes.

Acquisition may include acquisition of items input by a user or the like, or information stored in the own device or another device (it may be pre-stored information, or information stored in the device). may be information generated by performing information processing in ). Acquiring information stored in another device may include acquiring information stored in another device via an API or the like, or obtaining a document file provided by another device. It may include obtaining the content (including the content of a web page) by scraping or the like. It may also involve obtaining information in a different format based on the original information, such as obtaining the information by performing optical character reading on the image file.

Outputting information means display on a display, projection using a projector, printing on a printer, sound output, transmission to an external device, storage on a recording medium, processing by another processing device or other program, etc. This is a concept that includes delivery of results. Specifically, it includes, for example, enabling display of information on a web page, transmitting as e-mail or the like, and outputting information for printing.

Acceptance of information means acceptance of information input from input devices such as keyboards, mice, and touch panels, reception of information sent from other devices via wired or wireless communication lines, optical discs, magnetic discs, semiconductors, etc. This concept includes acceptance of information read from a recording medium such as memory.

For various types of information stored in information processing equipment, updating means changing the stored information, adding new information to the stored information, or updating the stored information. It is a concept including erasing a part or all of it.

(Embodiment)

In this embodiment, the information processing device is a device that constitutes a vending machine management system that manages vending machines. The information processing device uses the inventory information in each column of the vending machine to acquire and output replenishment quantity information of the number rounded by a predetermined method for each product. When acquiring replenishment quantity information, it is preferable to use the sell-out time information and inventory information of each product. Moreover, for products whose sell-out time information satisfies a predetermined condition, it is preferable to obtain replenishment quantity information by a different method, without being limited to the rounded number. The vending machine management system 1 using the information processing device configured as described above will be described below.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an overview of a vending machine management system 1 according to one embodiment of the present invention.

In the present embodiment, the vending machine management system 1 is an information processing system that includes an information processing device 100, a plurality of vending machines 700, and a terminal device 600 owned by a user. It should be noted that the vending machine management system 1 may be interpreted as being composed of the information processing device 100 and the vending machine 700 .

Here, the user is an operator who uses the vending machine management system 1 to replenish the vending machine 700 with products. Note that the worker is not limited to a person who directly puts products into the vending machine 700 in order to replenish the product. It may include a person who performs a wide range of tasks related to replenishment work, such as a person who manages the vending machine management system 1 .

In this embodiment, each of the plurality of vending machines 700 is installed at a predetermined location and used. Here, location can mean a concept such as place, store, facility, or organization, but is not limited to these. One vending machine 700 may be installed for each location, or a plurality of vending machines 700 may be installed. In managing these vending machines 700, each vending machine 700 is assigned a unique vending machine identifier, but is not limited to this. For example, when a plurality of vending machines 700 are installed for one location, a unique vending machine identifier is assigned to each vending body including these vending machines 700, and a plurality of vending machines constituting vending bodies are assigned. vending machine 700 may be regarded as one vending machine 700 and managed. That is, the vending machine identifier may be an identifier that can identify each vending machine 700, or an identifier that can identify the location where the vending machine 700 is installed. , when a plurality of vending machines 700 are grouped, it may be an identifier that can identify the group to which the vending machine 700 belongs.

In the present embodiment, each vending machine 700 is a vending machine having a well-known configuration that sells products such as beverages. The vending machine 700 is configured so that two or more columns (columns) can store sellable commodities. Merchandise is stored corresponding to each of the plurality of columns. Selecting a product in vending machine 700 can be said to select a column corresponding to the product to be selected.

A column is a part of the vending machine 700 in which products are stored, and is also called a column. It can also be said to be a product shelf in the vending machine 700 . A column may be thought of as a part for containing or holding goods. A plurality of commodities can be stored corresponding to one column. Each column has a commodity slot for throwing in commodities. The product slot of each column is provided, for example, on the front side of the vending machine. For example, when the front door of the vending machine is opened, each product slot appears in front of the vending machine, and products can be put into the vending machine. However, the position at which the product slot is provided is not limited to the above. Generally, a vending machine has a plurality of columns of product inlets arranged in at least one of the vertical direction and the horizontal direction. For example, multiple columns of product inlets are arranged in a matrix.

Each column can accommodate up to a predetermined maximum number of products. Here, the maximum number of products in a column means the maximum number of products that can be accommodated in the column. The maximum number of products may also be referred to as maximum capacity (or simply capacity). The capacity of each column may vary from column to column or may be uniform. Also, one column (which may be called a logical column) corresponding to one product may be composed of a plurality of physical columns that physically form a series. In other words, the product shelf is an expression that does not matter whether it is actually provided in the vending machine 700 or virtually provided. Settings relating to the correspondence between physical columns and logical columns may be changed as appropriate in the vending machine 700 . Note that the maximum number of products in one logical column is, for example, the sum of the maximum number of products in each of one or more physical columns that constitute the logical column, but is not limited to this.

The vending machine 700 can sell one product selected by the user from among two or more products to the user when a predetermined sales condition is satisfied. Predetermined sales conditions are, for example, that the user selects a product, that the product can be sold, and that the price for the product has been paid, but is not limited to this. . Note that the vending machine 700 may be configured to sell only one specific product to the user. For example, the vending machine 700 accepts a product selection operation by a purchaser or the like or information transmitted from another device, and dispenses products accordingly. The product selection operation is performed using product selection buttons set to correspond to one or more columns, respectively, but is not limited to this. A column selection operation using a cursor key, a selection confirmation key, or the like may be accepted as a product selection operation.

Note that the vending machine 700 is configured to be able to acquire the number of products (inventory quantity) contained in each column. The number of items in stock may be obtained by detecting the number of items currently stored, or the number confirmed by the user at a predetermined timing or the number automatically confirmed and the number replenished after that. and the balance of the number paid out. Inventory information corresponding to the acquired inventory quantity is configured to be transmittable to the information processing device 1 . The number of commodities replenished to the vending machine 700, the number of commodities dispensed, etc. may be transmitted to the information processing apparatus 1, and the information processing apparatus 1 may acquire the stock quantity for each column. The number of products replenished to the vending machine 700 may be automatically obtained by the vending machine 700, or may be obtained based on an input operation by the user or the like.

The information processing device 100 and the terminal device 600 can communicate with each other via a network such as a local area network or the Internet. In the present embodiment, vending machine 700 is not connected to information processing apparatus 100 . As will be described later, information about each of the vending machines 700, for example, information about the inventory and product lineup of products in the vending machine 700 at a certain point in time is managed by the information processing device 100. For example, the operator may input the information of the vending machine 700 to the information processing device 100, or the like. The configuration of the vending machine management system 1 is not limited to this. The number of each device included in the vending machine management system 1 does not matter, and other devices may be included in the vending machine management system 1 .

Note that vending machine 700 may be able to communicate with information processing apparatus 100 by being connected to the same network as information processing apparatus 100, terminal apparatus 600, or the like, or may communicate with information processing apparatus 100 through a network different from the network. may be communicably connected to the information processing apparatus 100 via. In this case, information on the vending machine 700 may be transmitted to the information processing apparatus 100 so that the information is managed by the information processing apparatus 100 . Further, in this case, the information processing apparatus 100 may be configured to be capable of implementing point-of-sale information management (POS) in a sales system including each vending machine 700 . The information processing device 100 configured to be able to implement point-of-sale information management is communicatively connected to each vending machine 700 . For example, vending machines 700 that are arranged at locations such as a plurality of shops and are configured to be able to implement point-of-sale information management transmit information on sales, information on product inventory, etc. to the information processing apparatus 100 . Specifically, for example, inventory information or the like corresponding to the inventory quantity as described above is transmitted to the information processing apparatus 100 . The information processing apparatus 100 can perform various processes such as tabulation, analysis, ordering, etc. based on these pieces of information. Such things can be realized using well-known configurations.

Note that although FIG. 1 shows a mobile information terminal device such as a so-called smart phone as the terminal device 600, the terminal device 600 is not limited to this. For example, it may be a tablet-type information terminal device, a personal computer (PC) such as a laptop computer, or a device other than these. A user of the vending machine management system 1 can use the vending machine management system 1 using the terminal device 600 . In the following example, it is assumed that a mobile information terminal device such as a smart phone is used as the terminal device 600, but the terminal device 600 is not limited to this.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the vending machine management system 1. As shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the information processing apparatus 100. As shown in FIG.

First, the configuration of the terminal device 600 will be described. As shown in FIG. 2 , the terminal device 600 includes a terminal storage section 610 , a terminal reception section 620 , a terminal reception section 630 , a terminal processing section 640 , a terminal output section 660 and a terminal transmission section 670 .

Various information used in the terminal device 600 is stored in the terminal storage unit 610 . For example, a user identifier that can identify the terminal device 600 is stored. A user identifier is information that can identify a user who uses the terminal device 600 .

The terminal reception unit 620 receives information transmitted from the information processing device 100 and other devices via the network. The terminal reception unit 620 accumulates the received information in, for example, the terminal storage unit 610 so that the terminal processing unit 640 and the like can acquire the information.

Terminal reception unit 630 receives various input operations to terminal device 600 by the user using terminal device 600 . The operation is performed using, for example, an input device (not shown), but is not limited to this. The terminal reception unit 630 may, for example, receive an input operation by voice input through a microphone.

The terminal processing unit 640 uses each unit of the terminal device 600 to perform various information processing operations.

The terminal output unit 660 outputs information by, for example, displaying it on a display device. Note that the information output method is not limited to this, and may be performed by outputting voice or the like from a speaker or the like.

The terminal transmission unit 670 transmits, for example, information acquired by the terminal processing unit 640 or the like via the network.

Next, the configuration of the information processing device 100 will be described.

As shown in FIG. 3 , the information processing apparatus 100 includes a storage unit 110 , a reception unit 120 , a reception unit 130 , a processing unit 140 and a transmission unit 170 . The information processing device 100 is, for example, a server device.

The storage unit 110 has a product information storage unit 111 , an inventory information storage unit 113 , a capacity information storage unit 115 , a unit number storage unit 117 , and a sold-out time information storage unit 119 .

Storage unit 110 stores a vending machine identifier and vending machine information related to vending machine 700 corresponding to the vending machine identifier in association with each other. A vending machine identifier and vending machine information of a group of vending machines 700 included in a vending entity corresponding to the vending machine identifier may be stored in association with each other.

Information stored in each of the inventory information storage unit 113, the capacity information storage unit 115, the unit number storage unit 117, and the sell-out time information storage unit 119 described below is interpreted as being included in the vending machine information. may or may not be interpreted as such. Vending machine information may include, for example, various types of information about the vending machine 700 . In the present embodiment, the vending machine information includes, for example, installation information related to the organization in which the vending machine 700 is installed, the area in which the vending machine 700 is installed, information related to the model of the vending machine 700, etc. , information about the sales of the vending machine 700, and the like. The vending machine information may be interpreted as including a vending machine identifier. That is, it can be said that the vending machine information is information in which a vending machine identifier and vending machine information other than the vending machine identifier are associated with each other.

In the present embodiment, the vending machine information is information that can specify the products contained in each column in each vending machine 700 . For example, the vending machine information is information that indicates the correspondence relationship between product information on products contained in each vending machine 700 and information specifying a column (referred to as a column identifier in this embodiment). That is, based on the vending machine information, it is possible to acquire the product information related to the purchased product, etc., based on the information specifying the column, ie, the column identifier capable of identifying the product corresponding to the column, and the vending machine identifier. ing. In other words, a combination of a vending machine identifier and a column identifier is associated with an identifier that can identify one product, and a combination of the vending machine identifier and an identifier that can identify a product corresponds to one or more column identifiers. may be attached.

The product information storage unit 111 stores product information for each of two or more products. Product information includes various attribute values related to one product, such as an identifier that can identify one product (it can be called a product identifier), the product name of the product, and information on the price of the product. be.

The inventory information storage unit 113 stores inventory information corresponding to the inventory numbers of the products contained in each of the two or more columns of the vending machine. Inventory information is typically associated with vending machine identifiers and column identifiers. For example, based on the information stored in the inventory information storage unit 113, it is possible to acquire inventory information corresponding to the inventory quantity of the products contained in one column of one vending machine 700. FIG. As inventory information, information indicating the inventory quantity itself, information expressing the inventory quantity in a predetermined unit, information indicating the number of items sold in a period after a predetermined timing, and the like can be appropriately used.

The capacity information storage unit 115 stores the maximum number of products that can be accommodated in each of two or more columns. The maximum number of products may be a different value for each vending machine 700, or may be different for each column. The maximum number of products is usually associated with a vending machine identifier and a column identifier.

The number-of-units storage unit 117 stores the number of units of products to be placed in two or more columns. A different number of units may be set for each vending machine 700, or a different number of units may be set for each column. In this case, the number of units may be associated with the vending machine identifier, or may be associated with the vending machine identifier and the column identifier. Also, the number of units may be associated with the product identifier of each product. Since a product identifier is associated with each column identifier corresponding to one vending machine identifier, the fact that the number of units is associated with the product identifier means that each column identifier corresponding to one vending machine identifier has a unit. It can be regarded as being associated with numbers.

The number of units is an integer of 2 or more. The number of units is preferably an integer of 3 or more and 10 or less. If the product is a beverage that is often sold in vending machines, the number of units is more preferably an integer of 4 or more in view of the adoption of packaging styles for each product. In this embodiment, the number of units is preferably one number selected from the group consisting of 4, 5, and 6 preset for each product, that is, for each column. Instead of the number of units, information that can specify the number of units may be stored in the number-of-units storage unit 117 .

In the present embodiment, the number of units corresponding to each product is a number preset by the user. The number of units is set according to the number of products per case. Note that the case may be a concept including a container called a returnable box. For example, for beverage products that are packaged in a cardboard carton (an example of a case) and handled before replenishment, the number of products contained in one cardboard carton case is used as the quantity. In general, when products housed in a case are arranged in rows and columns, either the number of rows or the number of columns in the matrix can be used as the number of units. Specifically, for example, if there are 24 products in one case with 6 products arranged vertically and 4 products horizontally, "4" or "6" should be set as the number of units. can be done. Also, for example, when 30 products are put in one case with 6 products arranged vertically and 5 products horizontally, "5" or "6" can be set as the number of units.

For products handled in a case such as a cardboard carton before being replenished to the vending machine 700, the singular setting method for each product may be changed according to the method of opening the case. . For example, when opening the case from the side of a rectangular parallelepiped cardboard carton with the smallest area to take out the product, it is more preferable to use the smaller number of rows and columns as the number of units. . For example, for approximately cylindrical products such as canned beverages, the number of units is set to "4" for the above-mentioned case of 24 items, and the number of units is set to "5" for the case of 30 items. " is preferred.

The sell-out time information storage unit 119 stores sell-out time information relating to the time when each product in two or more columns is sold out. The sell-out time information is information for each product or column, and is usually associated with a vending machine identifier and a column identifier. The sell-out time information may be, for example, a number set in advance by the user, or may be information acquired by the processing unit 140 . In each vending machine 700, when two or more physical columns are used for one product (when one logical column is composed of two or more physical columns), each product (each logical column) However, the sell-out time information may be stored for each physical column.

In the present embodiment, the sold-out time information is a value indicating an expected sold-out arrival period, which is the period from when the product is replenished until it is sold out. Note that the sold-out time information may be information corresponding to a value indicating an expected sold-out arrival period, such as information indicating the length of the period, information corresponding to the result of comparison with a predetermined value, or the like. The expected sell-out arrival period is expressed, for example, as the time elapsed from the state in which the product is replenished and the product is in stock until the product becomes zero in stock. The expected time to reach sold-out may be a direct measurement of this time. Also, based on the time it takes to sell a certain number of products, the time it takes to sell one product (sales interval) is obtained, and the time is multiplied by the maximum capacity. The obtained time may be used as the expected sell-out arrival period. In other words, it can be said that the expected sell-out arrival period is an index corresponding to the frequency at which a product is sold and the maximum number of columns in which the product is stored. Also, the estimated time to reach the sold-out period may be a time obtained by multiplying the number of products stored in the column at the start of sales (for example, the number of products in stock after the previous replenishment) by the sales interval. That is, the starting point of the expected sell-out period may or may not be a state in which the column is full of products. The expected time to reach sold-out may be expressed as the time that elapses from when the inventory count equals the maximum capacity count, ie, when the column is full of items, to when the inventory reaches zero. Also, the sell-out time information may be a predicted value of when the product will be sold out, such as a date when the product is expected to be sold out.

The receiving unit 120 receives information transmitted from another device. The receiving unit 120 stores the received information in the storage unit 110, for example. When receiving such information from the terminal device 600, the receiving unit 120 can identify the user identifier of the user involved in the transmission based on the transmitted information.

The reception unit 130 receives information input using input means (not shown) connected to the information processing apparatus 100 . The reception unit 130 stores the received information in the storage unit 110, for example. The input means may be anything, such as a numeric keypad, a keyboard, a mouse, or a menu screen. Accepting unit 130 accepts information input by an input operation (including, for example, information read by the device) performed using a reading device (for example, code reader) connected to information processing device 100. good too.

Note that the reception unit 130 may receive the information received by the reception unit 120 as information input to the information processing apparatus 100 . That is, the input of information to the information processing apparatus 100 may be interpreted to mean that the information is indirectly input to the information processing apparatus 100 by the user via the terminal device 600 or the like. may be interpreted to mean that the information is directly input to the information processing apparatus 100 using the input means. In addition, the information processing apparatus 100 can be provided with information by the user, for example, by executing a program that automatically generates information or by giving various information to the program to make it function. It may be regarded as an input of information to 100 .

The processing unit 140 has a replenishment number acquisition unit 151 and a replenishment number output unit 153 . The processing unit 140 performs various types of processing. Various types of processing are, for example, processing performed by each unit of the processing unit 140 as follows.

The replenishment quantity acquisition unit 151 acquires replenishment quantity information regarding the replenishment quantity, which is the number of commodities to be replenished by the worker, for each of the two or more columns. The replenishment number information may be a value indicating the replenishment number, or may be information corresponding to the value indicating the replenishment number. The replenishment quantity information obtained by the replenishment quantity obtaining unit 151 for one vending machine 700 is stored in the storage unit 110 in association with the column identifier.

The replenishment number is at least equal to or smaller than the maximum number of products. The replenishment number acquisition unit 151 identifies a number equal to or smaller than the difference between the maximum number of products and the number of stocks as the replenishment number. In the present embodiment, the replenishment number acquisition unit 151 acquires the number of units corresponding to the column, that is, the product from the unit number storage unit 117, and A number is used to identify a number that is a multiple of that number of units as a replenishment number. In other words, the replenishment number acquiring unit 151 outputs the replenishment number rounded to a multiple of the unit number. The replenishment quantity acquiring unit 151 specifies the same number as the difference between the maximum number of products and the stock quantity as the replenishment quantity, regardless of whether or not it is a multiple of the number of units, in the case of a predetermined exception. Further, in the present embodiment, the replenishment quantity acquisition unit 151 acquires replenishment quantity information using the sell-out time information as follows. Note that the replenishment number acquiring unit 151 may be configured to always specify a number that is a multiple of the unit number as the replenishment number. Also, the sell-out time information may not be used.

When specifying a number that is a multiple of the number of units for one column as the number of replenishments, the replenishment number acquisition unit 151 acquires the number of stocks, the maximum number of products, and the number of units for the column as follows. and use the obtained number to specify the replenishment number. That is, the number corresponding to the multiple of the number of units within the difference between the maximum number of products and the number of stocks is specified as the replenishment number. If there are multiple numbers corresponding to multiples of the number of units within the difference between the maximum number of products and the number of stocks (hereinafter sometimes simply referred to as multiples), the maximum multiple is specified as the number of replenishments. If there are multiple multiples, the multiple selected based on the vending machine information may be specified as the replenishment number. For example, if there are multiple multiples, the sold-out time information may be used to specify the selected multiple as the number of restocks. For example, the method of selecting the multiple to be specified as the number of replenishments may be changed according to the relationship between the expected time to reach the sold-out period and the predetermined value. Specifically, if the estimated time to reach the sold-out period is smaller than a predetermined value (sold out in a short period of time), the maximum multiple may be used as the replenishment number, and if not, the smaller multiple may be used as the replenishment number. . Also, if the estimated sold-out time period is smaller than a predetermined value, the minimum multiple, that is, the number of units, may be used as the replenishment number. The predetermined value depends on, for example, whether or not the target vending machine 700 is at a predetermined location, the frequency with which the vending machine 700 is to be replenished, an index such as sales volume and importance. can be set.

Here, the case of falling under a predetermined exception is, for example, the case where it is determined that the vending machine 700 or its column from which the number of refills is to be acquired falls under the exception. For example, information (for example, a flag) indicating whether or not the object is specified by the user or the like as an exception in advance, or whether or not the sell-out time information or other vending machine information satisfies a predetermined condition. Judgment is made depending on whether

In the present embodiment, when the sell-out time information satisfies a predetermined condition, the replenishment quantity acquiring unit 151 determines whether the maximum number of products and the number of stocks are equal to each other, regardless of whether the number of units is a multiple of the number of units. Get replenishment number information that identifies the same number as the difference. For example, if the estimated sold-out arrival period is smaller than a predetermined value, the number of replenishments may be equal to the difference between the maximum number of products and the number of stocks. In addition, the same number as the difference between the maximum number of products and the number of stocks may be used as the number of replenishment for columns that fall within a predetermined rank in ascending order of expected time to reach sold-out in each column.

In addition to the following, the predetermined conditions include, for example, that the target vending machine 700 is located at a predetermined location, and that the frequency of replenishment of the vending machine 700, the amount of sales, and the degree of importance are indicators. Although it is mentioned that it is a predetermined degree etc., it is not restricted to this.

Note that if each vending machine 700 uses two or more physical columns for one product, the replenishment quantity acquisition unit 151 may acquire the replenishment quantity for each physical column, The replenishment number may be obtained for one logical column.

The replenishment number output unit 153 outputs the replenishment number information acquired by the replenishment number acquisition unit 151 . The replenishment number output unit 153 composes and outputs output information including replenishment number information by a predetermined method, using the transmission unit 170 or the like as necessary.

In the present embodiment, output information is information for displaying a web page or the like on terminal device 600 . The output information may be only part of the information used to display the web page. Further, the output information may be information for displaying predetermined contents on the display screen of software operating on the terminal device 600 or part of the information. In this case, the replenishment number output unit 153 uses the transmission unit 170 to transmit the output information to the terminal device 600 that has accessed the information processing device 100 . As a result, a web page using the output information, a software display screen, or the like is displayed on the terminal device 600 . Note that the output information may be information indicating the contents of an e-mail to be sent to the user who is the output destination, or information indicating the contents of other messages. In this case, the replenishment number output unit 153 may use the transmission unit 170 to transmit the output information using the user information of the user who is the output destination.

The transmission unit 170 transmits the information to other devices constituting the vending machine management system 1 via the network. The transmission unit 170, for example, transmits information to be output to the terminal device 600 and other devices.

It should be noted that although the storage unit 110 and the terminal storage unit 610 described above are preferably non-volatile recording media, they can also be implemented using volatile recording media. Information and the like acquired by each device are stored in these, respectively, but the process of storing information and the like is not limited to this. For example, information may be stored via a recording medium, information transmitted via a communication line may be stored, or input may be performed via an input device. The information received may be stored.

Moreover, the processing unit 140 and the terminal processing unit 640 described above can usually be realized by an MPU, a memory, or the like. The processing procedures of the processing unit 140 and the terminal processing unit 640 are usually realized by software, and the software is recorded in a recording medium such as a ROM. However, it may be realized by hardware (dedicated circuit).

Input means that can be used to input information that can be received by reception unit 130 or terminal reception unit 630 may be anything, such as an operation button, numeric keypad, keyboard, mouse, or menu screen. The reception unit 130 and the terminal reception unit 630 can be realized by device drivers for input means such as numeric keys and keyboards, control software for menu screens, and the like.

Further, the receiving unit 120 and the terminal receiving unit 620 are usually realized by wireless or wired communication means, but may be realized by means for receiving broadcast.

In addition, although the transmission unit 170 and the terminal transmission unit 670 are usually realized by wireless or wired communication means, they may be realized by broadcasting means.

Next, an example of the operation of the information processing device 100 will be described.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart showing an example of the operation of the information processing apparatus 100. As shown in FIG.

The following processing is periodically or repeatedly executed by the processing unit 140 or the like.

(Step S11) The processing section 140 determines whether or not it is time to output the number of replenishments. If it is time to output, the process proceeds to step S12, and if not, this process is performed again. The timing for outputting the replenishment number is, for example, the timing at which the user issues an instruction (including the timing at which an instruction to that effect is received from the terminal device 600), the arrival of a preset date and time, or the like. The timing, the timing when the user arrives at a predetermined point, the timing when the information of each vending machine 700 is read into the information processing device 100 or the terminal device 600, and the like may correspond.

(Step S12) The replenishment quantity acquisition unit 151 acquires the vending machine identifier of the vending machine 700 for which the replenishment quantity is to be acquired. For example, the vending machine identifier of the vending machine 700 designated by the user or the vending machine identifier acquired by the terminal device 600 may be acquired. Also, multiple vending machine identifiers may be obtained.

(Step S13) The replenishment quantity acquisition unit 151 acquires information used to acquire the replenishment quantity for each column corresponding to the vending machine identifier. For example, as described above, it acquires product information and the number of units, or acquires vending machine information including inventory information, maximum product quantity, sell-out time information, and the like.

(Step S14) Based on the sell-out time information, the replenishment number acquisition unit 151 flags columns that satisfy predetermined conditions among the columns. Here, the predetermined condition is a condition related to whether or not to output the replenishment number rounded to a multiple of the unit number as described above. For example, if a condition is determined in advance that the column has the smallest estimated time to reach sold-out, a flag is recorded in association with the corresponding column identifier. This process does not have to be performed, for example, when the predetermined condition does not relate to the sell-out time information of other columns. In this case, in step S16, a process of specifying the replenishment quantity using the sell-out time information may be performed.

(Step S15) The replenishment number acquisition unit 151 substitutes 1 for the counter N.

(Step S16) The replenishment number acquiring unit 151 specifies the number of replenishments for the N-th column to be processed, and stores the specified number of replenishments in the storage unit 110 (replenishment number specifying process). The flow of replenishment number specifying processing will be described later.

(Step S<b>17 ) The replenishment number acquisition unit 151 determines whether or not the counter N matches the total number of columns of the vending machine 700 . If N matches the total number of columns, that is, if the number of replenishments has been specified for all columns, the process proceeds to step S19. Otherwise, go to step S18.

(Step S18) The replenishment number acquisition unit 151 increments the counter N by one. Return to step S16.

(Step S19) The replenishment number output unit 153 configures output information including replenishment number information.

(Step S20) The replenishment number output unit 153 outputs output information. That is, it outputs replenishment number information. A series of processing ends.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of replenishment number specifying processing of the information processing apparatus 100. As shown in FIG.

(Step S21) The replenishment number acquisition unit 151 acquires the difference between the maximum number of products and the number of stocks for the N-th column to be processed.

(Step S22) The replenishment number acquisition unit 151 determines whether or not to output the rounded replenishment number for the column. That is, the replenishment number acquiring unit 151 determines whether or not a predetermined condition related to whether or not to output the replenishment number rounded to a multiple of the unit number as described above is satisfied. Here, as a result of the processing performed in step S14, it is determined whether or not the flag corresponding to the Nth column to be processed is set, but the present invention is not limited to this. If it is determined that the rounded replenishment number is to be output, the process proceeds to step S23; otherwise, the process proceeds to step S25.

(Step S23) The replenishment number acquisition unit 151 acquires the largest multiple of the multiples of the number of units corresponding to the column that are equal to or less than the difference between the maximum number of products and the number of stocks.

(Step S24) The replenishment number acquiring unit 151 identifies the acquired multiple as the replenishment number. After that, the process proceeds to step S26.

(Step S25) On the other hand, the replenishment quantity acquisition unit 151 identifies the difference between the maximum number of products and the stock quantity as the replenishment quantity. After that, the process proceeds to step S26.

(Step S26) The replenishment number acquisition unit 151 stores the replenishment number in the storage unit 110 in association with the column identifier. After that, the processing shown in FIG. 4 is returned to.

Next, an example of various information stored in the storage unit 110 in this embodiment will be described.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of product information and the number of units used in the information processing apparatus 100. As shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 6, for example, the product information stores various attribute values related to one product, such as the product name of the product, the reference price of the product, etc., in association with the product identifier. is. In the example shown here, the product information includes the quantity per case, but is not limited to this. Also, the number of units is stored in association with each product identifier. The number of units may be associated with the vending machine identifier and the column identifier as vending machine information. Each piece of information may not be recorded in the same table, and may be recorded in separate tables, for example.

In the example shown here, the number of units for each product is set on the assumption that the case is opened from the surface of the rectangular parallelepiped cardboard carton with the smallest area and the product is taken out. That is, for example, 4 is set as the number of units for a product with 24 units. In addition, 5 is set as the number of units for products with 30 units.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of vending machine information used in the information processing apparatus 100. As shown in FIG.

In the example shown here, the vending machine information includes, for example, a product identifier that can identify one product and attribute values such as the price of the product. That is, the vending machine information is information indicating which product is stored in which column and at what price in which vending machine 700 . The vending machine information also includes inventory information, maximum number of products, and sell-out time information. In the example shown here, the inventory information is represented as the number of items in stock, and the sell-out time information is represented as the expected period for reaching the sell-out. These pieces of information are associated with one vending machine identifier and the column number of the contained column (column identifier). In addition to the above, information related to each vending machine 700 such as the location where the vending machine 700 is installed, the model, the date of last replenishment, the owner, etc. is included in association with the vending machine identifier. may Note that this figure is an example for explaining the correspondence relationship of each piece of information, and each piece of information corresponding to the vending machine identifier and the column identifier may not be recorded in the same table, for example, separate tables. may be recorded in

In a state in which various information is stored as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the processing unit 140 specifies the number of supplements, for example, as follows. 5 also shows an example of the number of supplements obtained by the processing unit 140. As shown in FIG.

For example, assume that the number of replenishments for columns with column numbers "2", "3", "4", and "5" is specified for the vending machine 700 with the vending machine identifier "234569". As shown in FIG. 4, the number of units of each column is "4". Also, these expected sold-out arrival times are as shown in FIG. be the smallest. In the example shown here, the replenishment number acquiring unit 151 sets the number of replenishments equal to the difference between the maximum number of products and the number of stocks for the column with the smallest value of the estimated time to reach sold-out among the columns. shall be configured to

In the column with the column number "2", the maximum product number is "20" and the inventory number is "13". This column does not satisfy the condition that the sold-out time information is predetermined (does not satisfy the condition that it is the column with the smallest value of the estimated sold-out arrival period). Then, the replenishment quantity acquisition unit 151 determines the replenishment quantity to be the largest multiple of the unit number “4” and the difference between the maximum number of products and the inventory quantity “7” or less.

In the column with the column number "3", the maximum product number is "20" and the inventory number is "5". This column does not satisfy the condition that the sell-out time information is predetermined. Then, the replenishment quantity acquisition unit 151 determines the replenishment quantity to be the largest multiple of “4” which is a multiple of the number of units “4” and which is equal to or less than the difference “15” between the maximum number of products and the number of stocks.

The column with the column number "4" has a maximum product number of "20" and an inventory number of "8". This column does not satisfy the condition that the sell-out time information is predetermined. Then, the replenishment quantity acquisition unit 151 determines the replenishment quantity to be “12”, which is the largest multiple of the number of units “4” and is equal to or less than the difference “12” between the maximum number of products and the number of stocks.

The column with the column number “5” has the maximum number of products “18” and the number of stocks “3”. This column satisfies a predetermined condition for the sold-out time information (the column satisfies the condition that the value of the estimated sold-out arrival period is the smallest). Then, the replenishment quantity acquisition unit 151 sets the difference “15” between the maximum product quantity and the stock quantity as the replenishment quantity even if it is not a multiple of the unit quantity “4”.

When the number of fills for each column is specified in this way, the number of fills information can be output, for example, as follows. Here, an example will be described in which the output information is transmitted from the information processing apparatus 100 to the terminal device 600 used by the user, and the terminal output unit 660 of the terminal device 600 displays a screen using the output information on the display. Note that the output information may be printed on paper and output, or may be output to a display connected to the information processing apparatus 100 .

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a replenishment number display screen 1010 displayed on the terminal device 600. As shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 8, the replenishment number display screen 1010 is a screen that displays, for each vending machine 700 to be worked on by the user, each column of the vending machine 700 in association with the specified replenishment number. is. That is, on the replenishment number display screen 1010, for each column of the vending machine 700, status information 1011 such as the product corresponding to the column and the number of stocks, sold-out time information 1012, and the replenishment number 1013 are displayed in association with each other. be done. For each column, the user can check the product and the number of replenishments, take out the replenishment number of products from each product case, and perform the replenishment work of putting them into the column.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, by outputting replenishment quantity information, the user can replenish the product to be replenished in each column of vending machine 700, rounded to a multiple of the number of units. You can check the number. Therefore, it is possible to easily recognize the number of replenishments for each column, as compared with the case where different numbers of replenishments are output for each of a plurality of columns. Since the product corresponding to each column can be easily picked up from the place where the product for replenishment is secured, the pick-up work can be efficiently performed. Also, when putting the picked-up products into each column of the vending machine 700, the number of products to be put in can be easily grasped, so the putting work can be efficiently performed. Therefore, the product replenishment work can be effectively performed, and the burden on the user, who is the operator, can be reduced.

The number of units can be set for each case such as a corrugated cardboard carton of a product, such as a number corresponding to the number of items per case. For commodities, etc. that are packed in a case-by-case manner, the number of units is set to the number of commodities for one row (one stage) of the case, so that pick-up work can be performed more easily. In other words, since the replenishment quantity is a multiple of the number of units, the number of remaining products on the frontmost tier as seen from the case take-out port will be the same before picking up and after picking up. Become. Therefore, the user can intuitively check whether or not the replenishment number of products has been picked up by checking the number of remaining products on the frontmost stage when viewed from the take-out port of the case. can.

In the present embodiment, it is possible to output the number of replenishments sufficient to fill the column for products with a short estimated time to reach the sold-out date. Therefore, the vending machine 700 can be properly managed effectively by replenishing a large number of commodities that are sold in large numbers to prevent them from being sold out, and by efficiently replenishing the other commodities. be able to. For products with a relatively long estimated period of reaching sold-out, it is possible to prevent replenishment until the difference between the maximum number of products and the number of stock reaches the number of units, so the products are stored in the vending machine 700. The time can be relatively short, and the quality of the goods can be maintained more reliably.

Note that the processing in this embodiment may be realized by software. Then, this software may be distributed by software download or the like. Also, this software may be recorded on a recording medium such as a CD-ROM and distributed. The software that implements the information processing device of the vending machine management system 1 in this embodiment is the following program. In other words, this program is a program executed by a computer that can access the inventory information storage unit 113, the capacity information storage unit 115, and the unit number storage unit 117. , a replenishment quantity acquisition unit that acquires replenishment quantity information specifying a number that is equal to or smaller than the difference between the maximum number of products and the inventory quantity and is a multiple of the number of units, and a replenishment quantity that outputs the replenishment quantity information It is a program for functioning as a number output unit.

(Explanation of modification)

In the above-described embodiment, the product information contained in the product information storage unit 111 includes the quantity of each product per case and a value that can identify the quantity as an attribute value indicating information on the quantity. may be For example, for beverage products that are handled in a cardboard carton (an example of a case), the number of products contained in one cardboard carton case may be used as the quantity. In general, there are products with 24 pieces or 30 pieces. should be included as an attribute value.

When the product information includes an attribute value indicating information about the quantity included in this way, the replenishment quantity acquisition unit 151 uses the product information for each product, and uses the number that is the divisor of the quantity included as the unit number. It may be acquired. More preferably, a number that is an integer of 4 or more and that is a divisor of the input number may be obtained as the unit number. The acquired number of units can be used to acquire replenishment number information by storing it in the unit number storage unit 117 in association with the product identifier or the column identifier.

For example, for a product containing 24 pieces, the number of units can be set to "4", and for a product containing 30 pieces, the number of units can be set to "5". The number of units may be "6" for a product containing 24 pieces, or "6" for a product containing 30 pieces. For the same purpose as the above embodiment, the method of obtaining the number of units for each product may be changed according to the method of opening the corrugated cardboard carton.

In this way, the replenishment number acquisition unit 151 determines the packing style (for example, the number of cases in which the product is transported to the vending machine 700) or a smaller packaging unit (for example, a “6 pack”). Even when the number of units is automatically acquired according to the number in ), the same effect as the above-described embodiment can be obtained.

(others)

In the above program, in the transmission step for transmitting information and the reception step for receiving information, processing performed by hardware, for example, processing performed by modems and interface cards in the transmission step (only hardware processing) are not included.

In the above embodiments, two or more components present in one device may be physically realized in one medium.

In each of the above embodiments, each process (each function) may be implemented by centralized processing by a single device (system), or may be implemented by distributed processing by a plurality of devices. (In this case, it is possible to grasp the entire system composed of a plurality of devices that perform distributed processing as one "device").

In the above-described embodiment, the delivery of information between the components is, for example, when the two components that perform the delivery of the information are physically different, the information by one of the components output and reception of information by the other component, or to one component if the two components that pass that information are physically the same by moving from the phase of processing corresponding to the other component to the phase of processing corresponding to the other component.

In the above embodiments, information related to processing executed by each component, for example, information received, acquired, selected, generated, transmitted, or received by each component, Information such as thresholds, formulas, and addresses used by each component in processing may be stored temporarily or for a long period of time in a recording medium (not shown), even if not specified in the above description. Further, each component or an accumulation section (not shown) may accumulate information in the recording medium (not shown). Further, each component or a reading unit (not shown) may read information from the recording medium (not shown).

In the above embodiment, if information used in each component etc., for example, information such as thresholds, addresses, and various set values used in processing by each component may be changed by the user, the above description may be used. Even if not explicitly stated, the user may or may not be able to change such information as appropriate. If the information can be changed by the user, the change is realized by, for example, a reception unit (not shown) that receives a change instruction from the user and a change unit (not shown) that changes the information according to the change instruction. may The reception of the change instruction by the reception unit (not shown) may be, for example, reception from an input device, reception of information transmitted via a communication line, or reception of information read from a predetermined recording medium. .

In the above embodiments, each component may be configured by dedicated hardware, or components that can be implemented by software may be implemented by executing a program. For example, each component can be realized by reading and executing a software program recorded in a recording medium such as a hard disk or a semiconductor memory by a program execution unit such as a CPU. During the execution, the program execution unit may execute the program while accessing the storage unit or recording medium. Further, the program may be executed by being downloaded from a server or the like, or may be executed by reading a program recorded on a predetermined recording medium (for example, an optical disk, a magnetic disk, a semiconductor memory, etc.). good. Also, this program may be used as a program constituting a program product. Also, the number of computers that execute the program may be singular or plural. That is, centralized processing may be performed, or distributed processing may be performed.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and various modifications are possible and are also included within the scope of the present invention.

In the above-described embodiments, the function performed by the information processing device may be performed by the vending machine or the terminal device. For example, the vending machine information may be managed in the vending machine, the vending machine information may be acquired by the terminal device, and the replenishment quantity information may be acquired and output by the terminal device. In this case, the terminal device and the vending machine may communicate through a network, or may communicate directly using wireless or wired communication means.

The replenishment number obtaining unit may be configured to identify a larger replenishment number for each column as the expected period of reaching sold-out is shorter. In other words, for each column, the longer the expected time to reach sold-out, the smaller the number of replenishments may be specified. With such a configuration, it is possible to reduce variation in the period during which the products are stored in the vending machine while preventing the products from being sold out.

It is not limited to the configuration of the above-described embodiment itself, and each component of the above-described embodiment may be appropriately replaced with another component or combined with another component. Also, some components and functions may be omitted from the above-described embodiments.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY As described above, the information processing apparatus according to the present invention has the effect of being able to reduce the load of replenishment work of vending machines, and is useful as an information processing apparatus or the like.

1 vending machine management system 100 information processing device 110 storage unit 111 product information storage unit 113 inventory information storage unit 115 capacity information storage unit 117 unit number storage unit 119 sold out time information storage unit 120 reception unit 130 reception unit 140 processing unit 151 Replenishment number acquisition unit 153 Replenishment number output unit 170 Transmission unit 600 Terminal device 610 Terminal storage unit 620 Terminal reception unit 630 Terminal reception unit 640 Terminal processing unit 660 Terminal output unit 670 Terminal transmission unit 700 Vending machine

Claims (7)

an inventory information storage unit that stores inventory information corresponding to the inventory numbers of products contained in each of the two or more columns of the vending machine;
a capacity information storage unit for storing a maximum number of products, which is the maximum number of products that can be accommodated in each of the two or more columns;
a unit number storage unit that stores the number of units of products to be put into the two or more columns;
Replenishment quantity acquisition for acquiring replenishment quantity information specifying a number that is equal to or smaller than the difference between the maximum product quantity and the inventory quantity and that is a multiple of the unit number for each of the two or more columns Department and
An information processing apparatus comprising: a replenishment number output unit that outputs the replenishment number information. further comprising a sell-out time information storage unit that stores sell-out time information relating to when each product in the two or more columns sells out;
2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said replenishment quantity acquisition unit acquires said replenishment quantity information using said sold-out time information for each of said two or more columns. The replenishment quantity obtaining unit, when the sell-out time information satisfies a predetermined condition, is equal to the difference between the maximum product quantity and the stock quantity regardless of whether or not it is a multiple of the unit number. 3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2, which acquires replenishment number information specifying the number. further comprising a product information storage unit that stores product information including the number of items per case for each of the two or more products,
4. The information according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the replenishment number acquiring unit acquires, as the unit number, a number that is an integer of 4 or more and is a divisor of the number of units, using the product information. processing equipment. The number of units is one number selected from the group consisting of 4, 5, and 6 preset for each product,
The replenishment number acquisition unit acquires the number of units corresponding to the products contained in each of the two or more columns from the unit number storage unit, and uses the acquired number of units to obtain replenishment number information for the column. 5. The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, which acquires. An inventory information storage unit for storing inventory information corresponding to the inventory numbers of commodities accommodated in each of two or more columns of a vending machine, and a maximum number of commodities that can be accommodated in each of the two or more columns. a capacity information storage unit for storing the maximum number of products as a value; a unit number storage unit for storing the number of units of products to be placed in the two or more columns; a replenishment number acquisition unit; and a replenishment number output unit An information processing method performed using
The replenishment number acquisition unit specifies, for each of the two or more columns, a number that is equal to or smaller than the difference between the maximum number of products and the number of stocks and that is a multiple of the number of units. a replenishment number obtaining step for obtaining information;
and a replenishment number output step in which the replenishment number output unit outputs the replenishment number information. an inventory information storage unit that stores inventory information corresponding to the inventory numbers of products contained in each of the two or more columns of the vending machine;
a capacity information storage unit for storing a maximum number of products, which is the maximum number of products that can be accommodated in each of the two or more columns;
a computer that can access a unit number storage unit that stores the number of units of products to be put into the two or more columns,
Replenishment quantity acquisition for acquiring replenishment quantity information specifying a number that is equal to or smaller than the difference between the maximum product quantity and the inventory quantity and that is a multiple of the unit number for each of the two or more columns Department and
A program for functioning as a replenishment number output unit that outputs the replenishment number information.

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