JP4745760B2 - Order input device - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

  The present invention relates to an order input device used for managing a product ordered by a customer and information associated therewith at a restaurant such as a restaurant or a hotel.

  Conventionally, order data management devices are used in restaurants, pubs, hotels, and the like. (For example, refer nonpatent literature 1).

  An example of the order data management apparatus will be described in brief. When a customer service representative receives a food order from a customer, each ordered menu is input to a portable order input apparatus together with a table number and the like. The inputted order information is transmitted from the order input device by wireless transmission means. The transmitted order information is received by a communication control device installed at each corner or the like in the store, and is output to a data management device that performs various data processing, centralized management, and the like. In the data management device, information such as the order information, a time when the order information is received, and a number for identifying a customer service representative are stored in a storage device.

  Then, a voucher for cooking instructions is printed out from a restaurant printer installed in the kitchen, and a cooking instruction is sent to the person in charge of cooking. An accounting slip is printed out from the restaurant printer and handed over to the customer by the customer service representative.

  The person in charge of cooking starts cooking according to the cooking instruction slip, and notifies the customer service representative when cooking is completed. Thereby, the customer service representative carries the cooking to the customer who has received the order and distributes it.

By the way, in this type of order data management device, the order input device is a device that has a display unit and a key input unit, and is shaped like a so-called calculator. It is common to enter customer orders by holding and using the right finger to enter keys. One or more menus are associated with one key, and a paper or the like with a menu name printed on the keyboard can be identified so that it can be determined which key is pressed to enter the menu to be input. Deploy. In this way, when the menu is revised, it can be easily handled by replacing the paper on which the menu name is printed.
Aida Kunihiro / Asakawa Akira "Order system changes the restaurant industry" Izumibundo Co., Ltd., February 20, 1999 1st printing, P65-77

  The customer service representative needs to search for the menu ordered by the customer from the key each time an order is placed, but if the customer service representative is not familiar with the operation of the order entry device, the menu ordered by the customer is required. It may take time to search from the key. For example, assume that an unskilled customer service representative enters orders for customers who come to a store in a group. Multiple customers are ordering from one to the next, looking for the menu for the first order. In the meantime, the customer's order may end, and the customer may fall into a situation where the order is asked again. In order to avoid this situation, the customer service representative should fully practice order entry, and only when the order has been judged to have reached a level where the key can be found and entered immediately. There is the present situation that is left to work.

  One of the purposes of using the order data management device is to shorten the training period for customer service representatives, but the training period is shortened compared to the method of handwriting customer orders on a slip with a pen. There is no problem.

  In addition, when an unskilled customer service representative is forced to enter a customer's order, the customer's order is reconsidered or mistyped, causing the customer to feel uncomfortable, which is crucial for store management. There is a problem that it may give a serious obstacle.

  In addition, if a customer complains that a dish that is different from the ordered dish is provided, it is impossible to determine whether an incorrect input has occurred or the customer has made an incorrect order. There is also the problem of having to recreate the dishes on the street.

  Recently, there are stores that employ a system in which customers themselves enter their orders using an order input device. Also in this case, naturally, the customer is unfamiliar with the operation of the apparatus, so there is a risk of erroneous input.

  Therefore, according to the present invention, even a person such as a customer service person who is not skilled in operation of the order input device can input the customer's order, and can check the customer's order contents as necessary. An order entry device is provided.

  The present invention is an order input device that receives order information received from a customer, creates order information, and transmits the order information to an external data control device. Input means for inputting identification information for identification, order information creating means for creating order information using information inputted from the input means, and handwritten memo data for inputting handwritten memo data Created by input means, handwritten memo data creation means for creating handwritten memo data using data input from handwritten memo data input means, order information created by order information creation means, and handwritten memo data creation means An order having storage means for storing the handwritten memo data in association with each other and handwritten memo data display means for displaying the handwritten memo data stored in the storage means To provide a force apparatus.

  As a result, even a person such as a customer service person who is not skilled in the operation of the order input device can input the order later with reference to the display of the handwritten memo data display means. It is possible to input without giving an uncomfortable feeling to the customer because no input or the like is required.

  Further, the input means of the order input device of the present invention has a function of inputting a display command for handwritten memo data stored in the storage means, and the handwritten memo data display means is for handwritten memo data input from the input means. In response to the display command, the handwritten memo data stored in the storage means is read and displayed.

  As a result, the customer service representative can refer to the handwritten memo data at his / her desired time.

  Further, the input means of the order input device of the present invention has a function of inputting customer identification information, and the handwritten memo data display means receives the identification information input from the input means, and includes order information including the identification information. The handwritten memo data stored in association with each other is read from the storage means and displayed.

  As a result, the customer service representative can refer to the handwritten memo data only for the desired order item.

  Further, the handwritten memo data display means of the order input device of the present invention changes the display size of the handwritten memo data according to the size of the display screen of the handwritten memo data display means and displays it.

  Thereby, even if input is performed with small characters at the time of handwriting input, it becomes possible to realize a display that is very easy to see at the time of display.

  Further, the handwritten memo data display means of the order input device of the present invention displays the handwritten memo data by changing the display size so that the power consumption of the handwritten memo data display means is equal to or less than a predetermined power consumption amount. To do.

  In general, the order input device is a portable and battery-powered device, and therefore it is desired to save power. Therefore, according to the present invention, it is possible to further save power.

  Further, the handwritten memo data display means of the order input device of the present invention is to display a predetermined number collectively by changing the display size of each handwritten memo data when there are a plurality of handwritten memo data in the storage means.

  As a result, the number of times the display screen is switched to display all of the plurality of handwritten memo data is reduced, power saving can be achieved, and handwritten memo data can be comprehensively confirmed with a small number of screens. Become.

  The handwritten memo data input means of the order input device of the present invention is a pointing device, and further includes an input range specifying means for specifying an input range to be input as handwritten memo data in an input area of the pointing device.

  As a result, the amount of information to be stored can be minimized, and a large amount of handwritten memo data can be stored.

  The handwritten memo data input means of the order input device of the present invention receives handwritten memo data input independently of the order information input from the input means, and the storage means receives input from the handwritten memo data input means. The handwritten memo data is stored separately from the order information.

  As a result, handwritten memo data can be used not only for information related to order information but also for transmitting communication items between employees in the store.

  Moreover, the order input device of this invention shall have a transmission means which transmits the information containing handwritten memo data to a data control apparatus.

  Thereby, handwritten memo data can be used for various purposes in the determination of the data control device. For example, when an output device such as a printer or a display device is connected to the data control device, handwritten memo data can be transferred to the output device for output.

  The transmission means of the order input device of the present invention transmits handwritten memo data and order information in association with each other.

  As a result, the data control device can manage the order information and the handwritten memo data in association with each other.

  The present invention is also a data control device for receiving order information created by receiving information related to customer orders and handwritten input data created by receiving handwritten input from the order input device. Receiving means for receiving order information and handwritten memo data from the order input device; control device storing means for storing the order information received by the receiving means in association with the handwritten memo data; and orders stored in the control device storing means A data control device having a control device transmitting means for transmitting information and handwritten memo data in association with an external output device is provided.

  Moreover, the customer can directly use the order input device of the present invention. Also in this case, since there is a handwritten memo data input means, requests and questions from customers are transferred to the output device via the data control device, so it is possible for the customer service representative to deal with it promptly. .

  According to the present invention, a customer's order is input to the order input device as a handwritten memo, and the handwritten memo input at a place where the customer cannot touch is displayed, such as an office, and the order is confirmed while checking one by one. Since information can be input to the order input device, even an unskilled customer service representative can entrust the so-called order-taking work of listening to customer orders.

  An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In this embodiment, an example of a wireless order data management apparatus used in a restaurant is shown, but the communication method is not necessarily wireless.

  First, the overall system configuration is shown in FIG. A plurality of order input devices 101 that are always carried by a customer service representative are provided, a plurality of wireless control devices 103 installed on the wall or ceiling of a store, a plurality of restaurant printers 104 installed in a kitchen, etc., a kitchen, etc. It has a structure in which a plurality of installed display devices 105 and a data control device 102 that retains order information and manages a system are combined. The data control device 102 and the wireless control device 103 include a connector 108, a transmission cable 107, Connected by a connector 106.

  Next, the appearance of the order input device 101 is shown in FIG. The order input device 101 is provided with a display unit 201 and a keyboard unit 202. Further, in the keyboard unit 202, a handwriting start key 203 that is pressed when starting to input a handwritten memo, a data storage key 204 that is pressed when starting storing a handwritten memo, and a data display key that is pressed when referring to the handwritten memo 205 is provided. Here, the handwriting start key 203, the data storage key 204, and the data display key 205 are provided for easy understanding of the embodiment, and are displayed as virtual keys on the display unit 201 or as a function of software processing. It may be realized.

  Next, the internal configuration of the order input device 101 is shown in FIG. First, a CPU 301 that centrally controls each unit is provided. The CPU 301 includes a ROM 302 that stores fixed data such as operation programs and a RAM 303 that stores variable data including customer order information 309 and handwritten memo data 310. It is connected. The CPU 301 is connected to a fixed key input unit 304 for inputting customer order information. The fixed key input unit 304 corresponds to the keyboard unit 202 in FIG. Further, a display unit 305 and a touch panel unit 306 are connected to the CPU 301, and constitutes the display unit 201 in FIG. The CPU 301 is connected to a wireless communication unit 307 that performs wireless data transmission / reception with the wireless control device 103.

  The input means of the present invention corresponds to the fixed key input unit 304, that is, the keyboard unit 202. The handwriting start key 203, the data storage key 204, and the data display key 205 are displayed as virtual keys on the display unit 201 or realized as one function of software processing, and correspond to the input means of the present invention. It shall be.

  The storage means of the present invention corresponds to the RAM 303, the original bright handwritten memo data display means corresponds to the display unit 201, and the transmission means of the present invention corresponds to the wireless communication unit 307.

  The handwritten memo data input means of the present invention corresponds to the touch panel unit 306. Here, the touch panel is described as the handwritten memo data input means. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a general pointing device (stylus pen, pen tablet, other pen type input device, etc.) capable of handwriting input is not limited thereto. ) As long as it is acceptable.

  The order information creation means, input range designation means, and handwritten memo data creation means of the present invention are achieved by the CPU 301 executing an operation program stored in the ROM 302. Further, the handwritten memo data displayed on the handwritten memo data display means is data read from the storage means based on the information input from the input means and the handwritten memo data input means by the CPU 301 executing the operation program. .

  Next, the internal configuration of the data control apparatus 102 is shown in FIG. A CPU 401 that centrally controls each unit is provided, and a ROM 402 that stores fixed data such as an operation program and a RAM 403 that stores variable data including order information and handwritten memo data are connected to the CPU 401. Further, a communication unit 404 is connected to the CPU 401 so as to be connected to the connector 108 of FIG. The CPU 401 is connected to a hard disk device 405 including order information 406 and handwritten memo data 407.

  The receiving means and the control device transmitting means of the present invention correspond to the communication unit 404, and the control device storage means of the present invention corresponds to the RAM 403.

  The basic usage and operation of each device in the system of the present invention will be described. First, the customer service representative visits each table in the restaurant, listens to the customer's order, and inputs order information including the order name and accompanying information such as the quantity and table number to the order input device 101. . The order information is transmitted to the wireless control apparatus 103 wirelessly. Here, the table number is one piece of identification information that can be used to identify a customer.

  The wireless control device 103 has a function of relaying transmission / reception of signals performed between the data control device 102, the order input device 101, the restaurant printer 104, and the display device 105. The order information transmitted from the order input device 101 is wirelessly received by the wireless control device 103, and after protocol conversion or the like is performed, the order information is output to the data control device 102 via the connector 106, the transmission cable 107, and the connector 108. The

  The data control device 102 performs transmission / reception of signals to / from the wireless control device 103, management of received data, and management of the entire system. The CPU 401 of the data control device 102 analyzes the order information input from the order input device 101 and received via the wireless control device 103, records the order information in the RAM 403 of the data control device 102, and displays cooking instruction display data; The slip data for the guest slip is created and transmitted to the wireless control apparatus 103.

  The wireless control device 103 transmits the input display data to the display device 105 and the slip data to the restaurant printer 104.

  Thus, the order information input from the order input device 101 is displayed on the display device 105 in the form of a cooking instruction, and is output from the restaurant printer 104 in the form of a slip.

  In the present embodiment, the data control apparatus 102 and the wireless control apparatus 103 are described as separate apparatuses. However, the data control apparatus 102 can include all the functions of the wireless control apparatus 103.

  Next, the function of the order input device of the present invention will be specifically described. If the customer service representative is unfamiliar with the operation of the order input device 101, the menu has just been revised, and the menu layout on the keyboard cannot be completely memorized, etc., the menu name on the keyboard Instead of searching, enter the customer's order details as a handwritten memo.

  FIG. 5 to FIG. 8 show examples of display of the order input device and key input as operation flow diagrams.

  FIG. 5 is an example of an operation flow for displaying the order input device and inputting a handwriting start key. Reference numeral 501 denotes a point in time when the input of the order “one Japanese-style hamburger” and “one doria” is completed. Here, instead of pressing the key corresponding to the customer's next order menu, when the handwriting start key 203 is pressed as indicated by 502, the handwriting area indicated by 503 pops up and a handwritten memo can be input with a pen or the like.

  FIG. 6 is an operation flow example 1 of display of the order input device and data storage key input. The order of “one steak” is entered as a handwritten memo with the stylus pen shown at 601, and the handwritten memo is stored by pressing the data storage key 204 shown at 602, and handwritten on the display unit as shown at 603. In this example, the number of memos is displayed.

  FIG. 7 is an operation flow example 2 of the order input device display and data storage key input. The handwritten memo data to be stored may be the entire handwritten area, but if the data is not spread over the entire handwritten area as shown in FIG. 7, only a part of it can be stored using the function of the input range specifying means. It is good to do so. In other words, if a rectangular area where characters are written can be specified with a stylus pen and can be saved by pressing the data save key 204 shown in 702, only the minimum necessary information is saved as shown in 701. Can be.

  The data stored as the handwritten memo data can be referred to on the display unit 201 by inputting a display instruction for the handwritten memo data by pressing the data display key at any timing as necessary. FIG. 8 is an example of an operation flow of display of the order input device and data display key input. In this example, when the data display key 205 is pressed while “handwritten memo” is displayed, the handwritten memo data is displayed in a reduced size at the bottom of the display unit as shown at 802. Here, the display position of the handwritten memo data does not necessarily have to be below the display area, and an appropriate display method such as pop-up may be selected. Since order information “one steak” is displayed as shown in FIG. 8, a fixed key corresponding to steak may be searched again and input as order information. In other words, an order is once entered in front of the customer as handwritten memo data, and the user can enter the order by slowly searching for the key when the user is calm. Although not shown, when the display size of handwritten memo data is originally small, the display size of the handwritten memo data can be enlarged and displayed in accordance with the display screen size of the display unit 201. If power saving of the display unit 201 is taken into consideration, the handwritten memo data is so displayed that the display unit 201 is suppressed to a specific screen size or less, or the power consumption of the display unit 201 is a predetermined power consumption or less. It is also possible to change the display size.

  Next, FIG. 9 to FIG. 12 show an operation flow of the order input device 101 when inputting an order.

  FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing an outline of the entire order input. First, accompanying information such as a table number and the number of people seated by the customer, which are input via an input unit such as the keyboard unit 202 of the order input device, is input (S01). Next, input processing of the order itself input via the input unit such as the keyboard unit 202 or the touch panel unit 306 of the order input device is performed (S02). Next, order confirmation processing is performed for the customer (S03). Finally, order information transfer processing (S04) is performed, and the entire order entry is completed.

  FIG. 10 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the order input device in steps S03 and S04. Since S03 is an operation after the order input process in S02, the process is initially waiting for an order input for the next order (S10).

  First, if a normal order is input in the order input waiting state (S10), the order input device executes the order input process (S11) and waits for the order input again.

  If the confirmation key in the keyboard portion of FIG. 2 is pressed in the order input waiting state (S10), the process proceeds to confirmation process (12), and after the confirmation process is completed, the process proceeds to order transfer process (S15).

  If the handwriting start key 203 is pressed while waiting for order input (S10) (S13), the process proceeds to the handwritten memo input process of FIG.

  If the data display key 205 is pressed while waiting for order input (S10) (S14), the process proceeds to the handwritten memo display process of FIG.

  FIG. 11 is a flowchart describing in detail the handwritten memo input process. First, a handwritten region is displayed at an appropriate position on the display unit 201 (S21), and a pen input is waited for.

  Next, drawing is performed in response to the pen input input to the touch panel unit 306 (S22).

  If the handwriting storage key 204 is pressed while waiting for pen input (S23), the drawn data is stored as image information in the RAM 303 (S24), and the number of handwritten memos held as internal information is increased by one ( S25), the handwriting area of the touch panel provided with the display unit 201 is erased, and this process is terminated.

  FIG. 12 is a flowchart describing in detail the handwritten memo display process. First, it is determined whether or not the number of handwritten memos held as internal information in the RAM 303 is one or more (S31). If there is no one, an error message is displayed on the display unit 201 (S32), and the process is terminated.

  If the number of handwritten memos is one or more in the determination in step S31, the corresponding handwritten memo is reduced to an appropriate size and displayed on the display unit 201 (S33). Here, the display reduction process is not essential, and the presence or absence of the reduction process and the reduction rate may be determined appropriately for each system in consideration of the visibility of the display.

  When there are a plurality of handwritten memo data for a specific order, the display size of the handwritten memo data is changed so that all or a predetermined number of them can be displayed on the display unit 201. It is also possible to display the handwritten memo data on one screen. Further, even if it is handwritten memo data related to an order from another customer, the display size of the handwritten memo data is changed so that a plurality of data held in the RAM 303 can be displayed together, and a plurality of handwritten memo data Can be displayed on one screen.

  Through the above processing, the customer order information and handwritten memo data are stored in the order input device.

  FIG. 13 is a holding structure diagram of order information and handwritten memo data, and shows an example in which a set of order information and handwritten memo data is stored in the RAM 303 of the order input device. That is, the order information 1301 input in step S11 of FIG. 10 and the handwritten memo data 1302 input in steps S21 to S25 of FIG.

  As described above, the handwritten memo data is stored in the RAM 303 as a set with a set of order information. Therefore, if the handwritten memo data is searched using accompanying information (table number or the like) included in the order information, it is individually read and displayed later. It is also possible.

  FIG. 14 is an internal structure diagram of order information and handwritten memo data. As shown in FIG. 14, the order information 1301 and the handwritten memo data 1302 are identified by providing a data type flag at the head of each data. For example, when the data type flag is 0, the order information is 130. In such a case, it may be identified as handwritten memo data.

  By holding the data as described above, the handwritten memo can be handled as it is as a handwritten memo in addition to the usage method of searching for a corresponding key while referring to the handwritten memo data and inputting an order.

  For example, the order information and handwritten memo data input to the order input device 101 are transferred to the data control device 102 in step S04, but the handwritten memo data transferred together with the order information is stored in the RAM 402 or the hard disk device of the data control device 102. Since it is stored in association with 405, the content itself held as handwritten memo data can be printed on the slip, as shown in the slip printing example 1 in FIG.

  Further, with such a configuration, handwritten memo data can be stored and managed independently of order information. For example, as shown in a print example 2 of a slip in FIG. Handwritten memo data can be used as a transmission means. In the example of FIG. 16, a “contacted” message is transmitted to other employees. Similarly, a handwritten memo can be displayed on the display device 105 in the store.

  That is, as shown in the explanatory diagram showing the exchange between the display device and the data control device in FIG. 17, in response to a memo request from the display device 105 to the data control device 102, a procedure for transmitting handwritten memo data from the data control device 102 Should be provided. By providing such means, verbal exchanges between employees in the store can be minimized, so that the work efficiency of the employees can be improved and a quiet store suitable for meals can be realized.

  As described above, since the present invention has a function of inputting a handwritten memo to the order input device 101, even an unskilled customer service representative can perform a smooth order-taking operation without error.

  In addition, since the size of the image data that is handwritten memo data can be freely selected, the memory consumption of the order input device that stores the handwritten memo data can be minimized.

  In addition, when displaying handwritten memo data, the display size can be reduced, so that the display area for displaying handwritten memo data in the order input device is minimized, Power consumption can be reduced. In some cases, a plurality of images can be displayed simultaneously. Conversely, handwritten memo data with a small display size can be displayed large and easy to see.

  In addition, the handwritten memo data of the order input device can be used for purposes other than order information, and the handwritten memo data can be displayed on the device as needed. Can also be done smoothly.

  In the present invention, the order input device is held by an employee (a person in charge of customer service), but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a stationary order input device may be used. The present invention can also be applied to a case where a device having the same function is delivered to a customer and the customer performs self-order. In most cases, customers are not skilled in detailed operations related to order entry, and the function of inputting handwritten memos according to the present invention is a very effective function even in order to realize an order without error.

It is a system configuration figure showing an embodiment of the invention. It is the external appearance of an order management apparatus. It is an internal block diagram of an order input device. It is an internal structure figure of a data control apparatus. It is an example of an operation flow of display of an order input device and handwriting start key input. It is the operation flow example 1 of a display of an order input device, and data storage key input. It is the operation flow example 2 of a display of an order input device, and data storage key input. It is an example of an operation flow of display of an order input device and data display key input. It is a flowchart which shows the outline of the whole order input. It is a flowchart explaining operation | movement of the order input device of step S03, S04. It is the flowchart which described the handwritten memo input process in detail. It is the flowchart which described the handwritten memo display process in detail. It is a holding structure figure of order information and handwritten memo data. It is an internal structure figure of order information and handwritten memo data. It is the example 1 of printing of a slip. It is the example 2 of printing of a slip. It is explanatory drawing which shows the exchange of a display apparatus and a data control apparatus.

Explanation of sign

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 101 Order input apparatus 102 Data control apparatus 103 Wireless control apparatus 104 Restaurant printer 105 Display apparatus 106 Connector 107 Transmission cable 108 Connector 201 Display part 202 Keyboard part 203 Handwriting start key 204 Data storage key 205 Data display key 301 CPU (central processing unit)
302 ROM
303 RAM
304 Fixed Key Input Unit 305 Display Unit 306 Touch Panel Unit 307 Wireless Communication Unit 309 Order Information 310 Handwritten Memo Data 401 CPU (Central Processing Unit)
402 ROM
403 RAM
404 Communication Communication Unit 405 Hard Disk Device 406 Order Information 407 Handwritten Memo Data 501 Order Input Device Displayed During Order Input 502 Handwritten Start Key Pressed 503 Handwritten Memo Area Pop-Up 601 Stylus Pen 602 Data Save Key Pressed 603 Indicating that one handwritten memo is stored 701 Indicating that a part of the handwritten memo area is stored 801 Depressing the data display key 802 Displaying example of handwritten memo data 1301 Order information 1302 Handwritten memo data

Claims (4)

An order input device that can be input by a customer service representative or a customer who receives input of information related to a customer's order, creates order information, and transmits the order information to an external data control device,
An input means for inputting information relating to the order of the customer and identification information for identifying the customer;
Order information creating means for creating order information using information inputted from the input means;
A handwritten memo data input means for inputting information relating to the order of the customer as handwritten notes,
Handwritten memo data creating means for creating handwritten memo data using the handwritten memo input from the handwritten memo data input means;
Displaying the order information created by the order information creating means and the handwritten memo data created by the handwritten memo data creating means in association with each other and storing the handwritten memo data stored in the storage means Handwritten memo data display means ,
The handwritten memo data display means is input from the input means information indicating that handwritten memo data indicating information relating to the customer's order input from the handwritten memo data input means is present in the storage means. A display command for displaying the handwritten memo data is displayed in a state in which information indicating that the handwritten memo data is present is displayed in the display area while being displayed in a display area for displaying information related to the customer's order. If the handwritten memo data is displayed,
The input means is an order input device that accepts input of information related to the customer's order in a state where the handwritten memo data display means displays the handwritten memo data . The handwritten memo data input means further attached receives the handwritten memo data independently of the information relating to the order of the customer,
The storage means stores the handwritten memo data received from the handwritten memo data input means independently of the order information;
The order input device according to claim 1. The handwritten memo data display means, when there are a plurality of handwritten memo data indicating information relating to the customer's order in the storage means, the display size of each of the handwritten memo data is changed and displayed together.
The order input device according to claim 1 or 2. Further, the data control device further includes a transmission unit that transmits information including the handwritten memo data stored in the storage unit and the order information .
The order input device according to any one of claims 1 to 3 .

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