JP3317249B2 - Label printer - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a label printer which is used for in-store marking in backyards of supermarkets, food retail stores, and the like, and prints and issues a barcode label recording the price of a product.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In the above-mentioned retail stores, for example, one fish,
There are cases where products are packed in stores so as to meet various demands of customers by packing them with different contents such as two or three. If a product code is provided for each different number of fish to be packed as a method of using the label printer at this time, the number of products in the product file increases, and the work of searching for and retrieving target product data is troublesome. And the amount of storage also increases, which is not desirable.

[0005] Therefore, in a product file, product data including a product code, a product name, a price per unit, and the like are stored for each product type, and when called up, the quantity is set using a numeric keypad, and the number per unit is set. There is a method in which a barcode recording the price can be printed by multiplying the price and the quantity to calculate a price suitable for the packed product.

[0004]

However, in the above, there are the following problems a to d. a. Since the amount per unit does not change even if the quantity increases, establish a sales strategy to increase the quantity and reduce the amount per unit so that customers can buy larger quantities and increase sales. Can not.

B. As a measure for improving the above a, it is conceivable to increase the discount rate in accordance with the quantity data to be placed. However, in this case, the amount becomes rough, and the balance between the increase in sales and the securing of profit cannot be balanced. .

C. It is not possible to extract sales results for each content, such as the quantity of packed items sold in large quantities. For this reason, there is no data for determining what to do with the next pack, and it depends on intuition.

D. Since the number is set for each printing operation, the frequency of input errors increases when the number of digits is large or there is a fraction. Further, if the number of digits is large at the time of price calculation, an error due to the rounding process also occurs. For this reason, this input method is not preferable in the case where the content of fixed-price products is displayed as a label in grams.

As another method, a measuring section is provided,
There is also a method of calculating the price by multiplying the weight value and the unit price of gram, but this also has the same problems as the above a and b, but also the tare changes because the tray is changed according to the quantity. However, there is also a problem that the tare data must be reset each time.

The present invention has been made under such a background, and an object of the present invention is to provide a label printer capable of printing an appropriate price for each product even if the same type of product has a different sales form. Main purpose. Another object of the present invention is to provide a label printer that can appropriately process content print data and tare data that vary depending on the amount of the above-mentioned products by a simple operation.

[0010]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a label printer which reads out product data from a product file and issues a product label printed with a barcode including at least price data and a product code. The product file contains multiple price data and tray numbers for each product
A plurality of selling price areas to enable setting of issue data ,
Price data for each price area when product data is read
Operating means for displaying the tray number data and specifying one of the plurality of selling price areas; and controlling means for determining price data based on the selling price data of the selling price area specified by the operating means. And a label printer characterized in that a selling price classification code for specifying one of a plurality of selling price areas is provided in the barcode.

According to a second aspect of the invention, when one of a plurality of selling areas is designated by the operating means,
2. The label printer according to claim 1, wherein the selling price classification code is determined based on this operation.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a label printer which reads out product data from a product file and issues a product label on which a bar code including at least price data and a product code is printed. Display multiple price data and content data to enable setting of multiple price data and content data, and display price data and content data for each sales price area when product data is read out
And an operating means for designating one of said plurality of retail areas, said control means provides a label printer, which comprises printing the content amount data of the designated retail area on the label.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a label printer which reads out product data from a product file and issues a product label printed with a bar code including at least price data and a product code. Multiple gram unit price data, tare data and tray number
And multiple price areas to enable setting of price data, and unit price data for each price area when product data is read.
Operating means for displaying data, tare data, and tray number data to designate one of the plurality of selling price areas;
Control means for determining price data based on the gram unit price data and tare data of the selling price area designated by the operating means, and a weighing unit, wherein the control means includes a gram unit price and tare data of the designated selling price area; Provided is a label printer that calculates a price based on weighing data.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the label printer according to the fourth aspect, wherein each selling price area is provided with a weighing flag for determining whether or not the price calculation is based on the weighing data. I do.

[0015]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an appearance of a label printer according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the label printer. In these figures, the inside of the main body 1 includes:
The control unit shown in FIG. 2 is provided, and the scale 2 is connected to the control unit. On the front surface of the main body 1, a first label printing mechanism 3a and a second label printing mechanism 3b are provided, and an operation unit 4 is provided. The first label printing mechanism 3a and the second label printing mechanism 3b
Prints arbitrary characters, numbers, and images in predetermined dot units.

The operation unit 4 includes a numeric keypad 5, a product number key 6, an operation / display unit 8, and the like. The item number key 6 is used in conjunction with the numeric keypad 5 and is used when inputting a product number. The operation / display unit 8 has a structure in which a touch panel 8b (see FIG. 2) is stacked on the upper surface of a liquid crystal display 8a (see FIG. 2). An image scanner 10 is connected to the operation unit 4 via a connector 9. The image scanner 10 reads a figure and can print the figure thus read on a label sheet. In addition, this image scanner 10
Is also used to read image data to be printed on a label to appeal to customers.

Reference numeral 20 shown in FIG. 2 denotes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) that controls each unit of the apparatus and performs processing. Specifically, C
The PU 20 performs input processing for processing input data input from the operation unit 4, image data read by the image scanner 20, and various input data such as weight data input from the scale 2, a first label printing mechanism unit 3a. ,
A printing process for controlling the printing operation of the second label printing mechanism 3b, a display process for outputting various information to the liquid crystal display 8a,
A setting process for setting contents of various files described later, a print data creation process for creating print data, and the like are performed.
In addition, the CPU 20 sets the operation mode of the main body 1 to a pricing mode for printing a label and issuing a price label, a setting mode for setting various files described later, a report mode for reporting a label issuance result, and the like. Switch to maintenance mode.

The scale 2, the first label printing mechanism 3a, the second label printing mechanism 3b, the image scanner 10, the liquid crystal display 8a, various keys and switches, and the touch panel 8b are, as shown in FIG. Control unit 21,
Print control unit 22, scanner control unit 23, display control unit 2
5 and the CPU 2 via the operation control unit 24, respectively.
When the product is placed on the scale 2, the weight of the product is output to the CPU 20 as weighing data via the load cell control unit 21.

Reference numeral 40 denotes a ROM (Read Only Memory), which is a program for controlling the processing of the CPU 20, such as an input processing program, a print processing program, a display processing program, a setting processing program, and a print data creation processing program. Is stored. Reference numeral 35 denotes a character generator ROM that stores a plurality of types of font data of characters such as numbers, alphabets, kana, kanji, commas, and symbols.

Reference numeral 30 denotes a RAM (Random Access Memo).
ry), a working area 3 in which flags, registers, and the like used when the CPU 20 performs various processes are set.
0a, font file 30b, print format file 30c, special sale file 30d, and product file 3
A storage area such as 0e is provided.

The product file 30e is stored in the RAM 40
The product data can be set for each product. The details of the product data are shown in FIG. 3 as an example of an item code, a product name, a selling price area 1 to a selling price area 5 (measurement is performed for each selling price area). A weighing flag that determines power, a unit price and tare per 100 g that is valid only when this weighing flag is 1, a price of a product that is valid only when the weighing flag is 0, and a unit character of the content and the content. And tray number), and other fields (expiration date, section code, material additive, barcode flag for determining barcode format, etc.).

For example, in the case of a handmade croquette, the item code is "10", the selling price is "0", the price is "100", the content is "1", the unit character is "sheet", and the tray number is "15". The selling price 2 is set to the weighing flag “0”, the price “195”, the capacity “2”, the unit character “sheet”, and the tray number “16”. It shows that if you buy it, it will be 195 yen. Further, the selling price 5 is set with a weighing flag “1”, a unit price of “110” yen per 100 grams, a tare of “15” grams, and a tray number of “19”, and shows an example of selling by weight.

The bar code format (bar code system) shown in FIG. 4 is as follows. A bar code of NONPLU (a barcode that does not require reading the price from the PLU file when the barcode is read by the ECR) with 13 digits of JAN. The portion indicated by “FF” in the two digits from the left is a barcode flag for determining a format. -The part indicated by "IIIII" from the third digit to the seventh digit from the left is an item code for specifying the type of product. The part indicated by the “ku” in the eighth digit from the left is the selling price classification code, which is data that specifies which of the selling price areas 1 to 5 takes the value 1 to 5. -The part indicated by "PPPP" from the 9th digit to the 12th digit from the left is the price of the product.・ The rightmost digit is a check digit. If the value of the barcode flag in the read product data specifies the above-described barcode format, the label printer prints a barcode on the label in this format. This is because the label printer has a table including barcode format data for each barcode flag.

Next, the operation of the label printer according to this embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. This flow is an outline of the operation, and is started when the operator operates the touch panel to set the price mode, and operates the numeric keypad and the product number key to input the item code of the product to be priced. In step 1 (hereinafter abbreviated as S1), the corresponding product data is read using the item code input from the product file as a key, and in S2, the read product data is read as shown in the pricing screen diagram shown in FIG. Display on LCD touch panel.

In the screen shown in FIG. 6, the portion corresponding to the selling price areas 1 to 5 is divided into five keys as shown at K1 to K5 in the lower part of the center of the screen. , K2 selling price area 2 is Nakagami, K
3 selling price area 3 is the upper right, K4 selling price area 4 is the lower left,
The selling price area 5 of K5 corresponds to the lower middle section, and displays each item name and setting data.

The selling price area 1 is selected by default, and the key portion is highlighted. When the default is selected, the weighing flag of the selected selling price area is "0".
The "unit character" is displayed, and below it, the respective set data "1" and "sheet" are displayed. If the selling price area 5 is selected and the weighing flag is “1”, each data such as “tare”, “weight”, and “unit price per 100 g” is displayed instead. (Not shown)

Next, in S3, it is determined whether any key in each selling area has been touched. If there is a key touch and the determination result is "YES", the data of the selling price area corresponding to the product data is displayed, and the process proceeds to S4 to change the data, and then printing is performed in S5. If there is no key touch in S3 and the determination result is "NO", the process directly proceeds to S5 and printing is performed. The above printing is performed in S1
Based on the data read in step S1, the data in the selling price area selected in step S1 or S3, and the label printing format determined in advance, the label is printed on the label paper and the label is issued below the printing unit.

The label diagram shown in FIG. 7 is an example of printing when the selling price area 1 is selected, and the bar code is printed according to the bar code format based on the bar code flag of the product data. In this case, "1 content" is printed, and the printing and issuing operations of the label printer are terminated.
The operator picks up the label issued as described above, attaches it to the product, and arranges it at the store.

The merchandise purchased by the customer is settled at a cash register (not shown). At the cash register, the barcode is compared with the above-described barcode format stored by a barcode scanner, and an item code,
The sales price classification code and the price data are obtained, and the registration and settlement of the product, and the sales results of the number and the amount of the same item for each sales price classification are totaled.

The operation of one embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to this embodiment, and a design change or the like within a range not departing from the gist of the present invention. However, the present invention is included in the present invention, and the following variations a to e are given as variations. a. If the weighing flag of the selected selling price area is “1”, the tare data of the selling price area is set as the tare. Then, when the object to be weighed is placed on the weighing unit,
The tare data is subtracted from the weighing data to obtain the actual weight, and the price is determined from the unit price. Thus, the CPU determines the weighing flag and determines whether to calculate the price based on the weighing data.

B. Not only NONPLLU barcode, P
An LU barcode or a selling price classification code may be provided.

C. In the present embodiment, the classification can be performed based on the difference in the amount of packed contents. However, the classification may be performed based on the difference in the quality of the product.

D. The present invention is not limited to the label printer alone, and may be combined with an automatic label sticking apparatus or an automatic packaging machine.

E. For example, when packing (pricing) about 10 items that cannot be counted instantaneously, the weighing flag is set to "1", and the weighing flag is set to "0" for the capacity smaller than that, so that the work is performed. Performance can be improved.

[0035]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, even if a plurality of prices are set for the same product, the selling price classification is recorded on the bar code of the product label. By reading the code, the sales results can be totaled for each selling price category, which can be used as a reference for the optimal product lineup.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, when the selling price area is designated, the selling price classification code is determined, so that it is not necessary to input the corresponding selling price classification code by key when printing the barcode.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, in the case of a product having a different price and content, the content data can be reliably printed on the label by a simple operation.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, in the case of a weighed product having a different unit price according to the quantity, if tare data is set according to the quantity, the weighing tare processing of the weighing can be performed with a simple operation. To calculate the exact price.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, since the weighing flag is provided in each selling price area, the necessity of weighing can be made different depending on the quantity. For example, in the case of a quantity that cannot be instantaneously counted, the pricing operation can be efficiently performed by switching to a weighing product.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a label printer according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an electric circuit of the label printer according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a product file of the label printer according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a barcode format of the label printer according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the label printer according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a screen with a price of a label printer according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of a label printed by a label printer according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Label printer 2 Scale 2a Load cell 3a 1st label printing mechanism 3b 2nd label printing mechanism 4 Operation part 5 Numeric keypad 6 Part number key 8 Operation / display part 8a Liquid crystal display 8b Touch panel 9 Connector 10 Image scanner 20 CPU 21 Load cell control Unit 22 print control unit 23 scanner control unit 24 operation control unit 25 display control unit 30 RAM 35 character generator ROM 37 clock unit 40 ROM

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-4-19168 (JP, A) JP-A-2-108571 (JP, A) JP-A-9-290813 (JP, A) JP-A 57- 37537 (JP, A) JP-A-59-180657 (JP, A) JP-A-1-281964 (JP, A) JP-A-61-188166 (JP, A) JP-A-10-181733 (JP, A) JP-A-11-296081 (JP, A) JP-A-11-70537 (JP, U) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B41J 5/30 B41J 3/01 B65C 9/46 G07G 1/12 311 G07G 1/12 341

Claims (5)

(57) [Claims] 1. A label printer for reading product data from a product file and issuing a product label printed with a bar code including at least price data and a product code, wherein the product file includes a plurality of sales price data and
B) A plurality of selling price areas for setting number data , and selling price data for each selling price area when product data is read
And operating means for displaying tray number data and specifying one of the plurality of selling price areas, and controlling means for determining price data based on selling price data of the selling price area specified by the operating means. A label printer, wherein a selling price classification code for specifying one of a plurality of selling price areas is provided in the barcode. 2. When one of a plurality of selling price areas is designated by the operating means, the selling price classification code is determined based on the operation.
Label printer. 3. A label printer for reading product data from a product file and issuing a product label printed with a barcode including at least price data and a product code, wherein the product file includes a plurality of price data and contents for each product. A plurality of price areas for setting quantity data and price data for each price area when product data is read
Operating means for displaying the contents data and specifying one of the plurality of selling price areas, wherein the control means prints the contents data of the specified selling price area on a label. Label printer. 4. A label printer for reading product data from a product file and issuing a product label printed with a barcode including at least price data and a product code, wherein the product file includes a plurality of gram unit price data for each product. Multiple price areas for setting tare data and tray number data, and unit price data for each price area when product data is read
Operating means for displaying one of the plurality of selling price areas by displaying the price data, the tare data and the tray number data; and price data based on the gram unit price data and the tare data of the selling price area designated by the operating means. And a weighing unit, wherein the control means calculates the price based on the gram unit price, the tare data and the weighing data of the designated selling price area. 5. The label printer according to claim 4, wherein a weighing flag for determining whether or not the price calculation is based on weighing data is provided in each selling price area.