JP2520837B2 - Vending machine management system - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vending machine management system, and more particularly to a technique capable of determining the necessity of delivery in order to improve the efficiency of delivery of goods.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In an automatic vending machine, a worker called a rootman delivers and replenishes products so that the products are not sold out.

Recently, a system has been provided in which the center side can grasp the stock status of a large number of vending machines arranged apart from each other by using the wireless telemeter technology and reduce the delivery cost by the route man. ing.

[0004]

By the way, conventionally, there has been a method of automatically identifying a vending machine that needs to deliver a product from data such as the number of sales and the number of stocks obtained from each vending machine. Instead, the actual delivery was scheduled by methods such as simply shortening the delivery cycle for vending machines with a large number of sales, or targeting vending machines with products with a certain lower limit value. .

That is, in the vending machine, the number of stored products differs depending on the model. Items that can be sold are sold in multiple columns. The limit value of the stock for not being sold out varies depending on the number of sales per day. The number of sales varies greatly depending on the season (in Japan, it is about 1.5 times that in winter). However, in the past, the necessity of delivery was not sufficiently determined in consideration of these factors, and there was a drawback that sufficient efficiency could not be achieved.

The present invention has been proposed in view of the above points, and it is an object of the present invention to reduce the number of deliveries without causing the vending machine to be sold out. It is to provide a vending machine management system capable of supplying more products) and improving delivery efficiency.

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION To achieve the above object, the present invention provides a maximum physical storage of all merchandise in a vending machine.
A means for calculating the maximum inventory number a, which is the sum of the numbers, a means for calculating the average value μ of the total sales number of the vending machine for the latest fixed period, and a vending machine for the latest fixed period.
Means for calculating the standard deviation value σ of the total number of products sold at regular time intervals, and the physical maximum rating for each product in the vending machine.
Means for obtaining the physical maximum inventory quantity a _A and the current inventory quantity b _A for the product having the smallest ratio of the current inventory quantity to the delivered quantity , and b _A / a _A and 2 (μ + σ) / a
And b _A / a _A ≦ 2 (μ + σ) / a, a means for determining that the vending machine requires delivery of a product is provided.

Further, accuracy can be improved by not including holidays or days when the number of sales is 0 in the latest fixed period.

[0009]

In the vending machine management system of the present invention,
Maximum physical storage of all products per given vending machine
The maximum inventory a is the sum calculated in, the most recent predetermined period equivalent
When the average value μ of the total number of sales of the vending machine is calculated every certain time , and when the total number of sales of the vending machine in the latest certain period is constant
Calculate the standard deviation value σ for each period and place it in the vending machine.
Inventory quantity for the maximum physical storage quantity for each product
By the ratio of obtains the maximum physical inventory _{a A} and inventory _{b A} of current for the smallest _item, compares the b A / _{a A} and 2 (μ + σ) / a , b A / a _A
When ≦ 2 (μ + σ) / a, it is determined that the vending machine requires delivery of products.

[0010]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a network block diagram showing an embodiment of the vending machine management system of the present invention.

In FIG. 1, the vending machines 11 to 1n have a wireless transmission / reception function, so that predetermined data such as the number of sales can be returned by polling from the calculation center 5 via the wireless base station 3. Has become. In addition, vending machine 2
1 to 2 m are configured to return predetermined data by polling from the calculation center 5 via the wired network 4. A wired data collection path is provided because it is not possible to wirelessly collect data from vending machines located in underground facilities or in buildings.

FIG. 2 shows each vending machine 11-1n, 21-2.
7 is a flowchart showing a process of determining whether or not delivery is necessary for m. It should be noted that these processes may be performed in the calculation center 5 based on necessary collection data, or may be performed in each vending machine. When determining whether or not delivery is required in each vending machine, as shown in FIG. 3, the maximum stock number, the stock number, the sales number obtained from various sensors, and the product number obtained from an input device such as a bar code reader. From this, the microprocessor 6 performs information processing and determines the necessity of delivery. In this case, there is an advantage that the load on the calculation center 5 side can be reduced.

FIG. 4 shows a configuration example for obtaining the maximum inventory quantity, inventory quantity, and sales quantity in the vending machine. That is, the upper sensor 8 is provided for each column 7 that stores the product 10.
And the lower sensor 9 is provided, and the number of passage detections of the upper sensor 8 when the column 7 is emptied and reset and the product is fully loaded is the maximum inventory number, and the number of passage detections of the lower sensor 9 thereafter is the sales number. The maximum inventory quantity minus the sales quantity is the inventory quantity.

The process of determining delivery necessity will be described below with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

First, for a certain vending machine, the maximum inventory number a in the vending machine is calculated (step S1).
FIG. 5 shows an example of the state of each column in the vending machine, and the maximum inventory number a can be obtained by summing the maximum inventory number a _i of each column. In addition, the maximum number of inventory of adjacent columns is stepwise because the product inlet is provided on the front of the vending machine and the front side is provided due to the space of the route connecting the inlet and each column. This is because the height of the arranged columns is limited.

Next, referring to FIG. 2, the average value μ of the sales numbers in the latest fixed period is calculated (step S2). For example,
Μ is obtained by taking the average of the sales numbers c (= Σc _i ) on each day of the past 30 days. In the case of vending machines installed in offices, etc., the number of sales is 0 on holidays such as Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays. If these are not taken into consideration, the average value will decrease and the standard deviation value described later will increase. It is advisable to exclude them from the calculation as they will not be accurate. As a specific method, holidays may be excluded based on the calendar information, but days where the number of sales is 0 may be simply excluded.

Then, the standard deviation value σ of the number of sales in the latest fixed period is calculated (step S3). For example, σ is obtained by subtracting the square of the average value μ from the sum of the squares of the sales number c on the same 30 days as the average and taking the square root.

Next, the product with the lowest inventory rate (the best-selling
Products), that is, for each product in the vending machine
The ratio of the current inventory quantity to the maximum physical storage quantity is the highest.
Maximum inventory quantity a _A and inventory quantity b for small products
_A is acquired (step S4).

Then, b _A / a _A is compared with 2 (μ + σ) / a (step S5). Here, the right side shows the proportion of products that are expected to sell within two days from the present time, and the left side shows the proportion of products with the least remaining stock. That is, it is clear from the principle of statistical mathematics that the number of sales on the next day of the final data (the day of calculation) is 95% less than μ + σ, as shown in FIG. Dividing by the maximum inventory number a of the vending machine is the ratio of products that can be sold on the day. It should be noted that “2” is multiplied by the estimated number of sales for one day (μ + σ) / a alone, which is likely to cause the product to be sold out from the present time to the next measurement time on the next day. This is because the sold-out will not occur.

Then, as a result of the above judgment, b _A / a _A ≤
In the case of 2 (μ + σ) / a (right side of step S5),
It is determined that the vending machine requires the delivery of products (step S6). That is, the inventory of the product with the lowest inventory is less than the number of items that can be sold within two days with a probability of 95%.

On the other hand, if b _A / a _A > 2 (μ + σ) / a (left side of step S5), it is concluded that the product is not required to be delivered (step S7), and then, how many days later it is delivered. It is calculated whether a need arises (step S8). For example, when b _A / a _A exceeds 3 (μ + σ) / a, 2
If it exceeds 4 (μ + σ) / a, it will be 3 days later.

In this way, after the necessity of delivery for all vending machines is acquired, the vending machines that need to be delivered are incorporated in the delivery schedule by Routeman.
Note that the route man often has holidays on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays, so if the scheduled delivery date is a holiday, it is necessary to deliver it before that. On the other hand, in the scheduling of delivery, geographical arrangement is also taken into consideration so that the delivery route becomes the shortest.

Next, FIG. 7 shows an example of a method for easily obtaining the above-mentioned average value μ and standard deviation value σ. It should be noted that this is an example of obtaining the average value μ and the standard deviation value σ in the past 30 days, and x is the total number of sales on each day.

In FIG. 7, in the state already calculated for x _{1 to} x ₃₀ (step S11), x _{31 is} newly added.
When data of 1 is added and x ₁ is deleted, a simple calculation using x _{1 and} x ₃₁ is performed on the values of A and B at that time (steps S12 and S13) to facilitate the calculation. It can be carried out. That is, by holding the values of A and B until the next calculation, it is possible to easily calculate μ and σ.

[0026]

As described above, the vending machine management system of the present invention has the following effects. Since the statistical principle is used in part, accurate forecast calculation can be performed, and the minimum number of deliveries can be achieved within the range where sellout is not generated. Therefore, the delivery cost can be minimized. Since the number of products is grasped by the ratio, even if the model of the vending machine is different or one product is sold in multiple columns, the necessity of delivery can be decided based on the same standard. it can. Because the limit stock quantity is calculated from the actual sales quantity,
Appropriate delivery can be performed regardless of the number of sales. Since the average value and standard deviation value for an appropriate period are used, it is possible to handle changes in the number of sales due to the season.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a network configuration diagram showing an embodiment of a vending machine management system of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a process of determining whether delivery is necessary.

FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram when the necessity of delivery is determined on the vending machine side.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of a sensor provided in the vending machine.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of inventory of each column in the vending machine.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing the principle of statistically predicting the number of daily sales.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing a method for simply calculating an average value and a standard deviation value.

[Explanation of symbols]

 11-1n ... Vending machine (with wireless function) 21-2m ... Vending machine (without wireless function) 3 ……………… Wireless base station 4 ……………… Wired network 5 ……………… Calculation center 6 ……… Microprocessor 7 ……………… Column 8 ……………… Upper sensor 9 ……………… Lower sensor 10 ………… Products

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A physical maximum rating for all products in a vending machine.
Means for calculating a maximum stock quantity a is the sum of the paid number, the most recent fixed period of the vending machine total sales for a predetermined time every
Means for calculating a mean value μ of a predetermined time interval the total sales of the vending machines in the most recent predetermined period
Means for calculating the standard deviation value σ of, and the maximum physical storage number for each product in the vending machine
The maximum physical inventory quantity a _A and the current inventory quantity b _A for the product with the smallest ratio of the current inventory quantity to
To obtain b _A / a _A and 2 (μ + σ) / a, and obtain b _A / a _A
An automatic vending machine management system comprising: means for determining that the vending machine requires delivery of a product when ≦ 2 (μ + σ) / a. 2. The vending machine management system according to claim 1, wherein holidays or days when the number of sales is 0 are not included in the latest fixed period.