JP4775721B2 - POS terminal device and POS system - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a POS terminal device and a POS system that prevent an illegal cash register operation by an operator.

  Generally, in a POS (Point Of Sales) system, operators of various classes such as store managers, manager classes, full-time employee classes, or part and part-time classes can operate POS terminal devices (POS cash registers). It is not possible for a certain operator to perform an illegal cash register operation such as opening a cash drawer of a POS terminal device and taking out money other than at the time of accounting, or canceling registered sales data and taking out money. It is.

  As a technique for preventing such an illegal cash register operation, there is a technique for restricting the contents of the cash register operation for each operator by authenticating each operator. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses permission information storage means for storing operation permission information indicating correspondence between operator identification information of an operator and cash register operation content to be executed, and operation permission information corresponding to input operator identification information. Is read from the permission information storage means, and the permission / non-permission of the requested cash register operation is determined based on the operation permission information, and the requested cash register operation is controlled based on the determination result by the operation permission determining means A POS terminal device having an operation control means is disclosed.

JP-A-6-44267

  However, in the conventional technique for preventing illegal cash register operations including the example disclosed in Patent Document 1, the cash register operation content permitted for each operator is uniquely determined. Can not do. For example, when a customer who wants to return a product comes when an operator who is not permitted to return the product is in charge of the cash register operation, it is necessary to call an operator who is allowed to return the product. . In the meantime, the customer must wait and the service to the customer is reduced.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a POS terminal device that can prevent an illegal cash register operation by an operator without deteriorating service to a customer.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide a POS system having such a POS terminal device.

  According to the present invention, the permission information storage means for storing the operation permission information that determines the permission / non-permission of execution for each operator identification information representing each operator for a plurality of cash register operations, and the operation permission regarding the operator identification information to be input Information is read out from the permission information storage means, and is requested based on the determination result by the operation permission determination means and the operation permission determination means for determining permission / non-permission of the requested cash register operation based on the operation permission information. A POS terminal device having an operation control means for controlling a cash register operation, having a human sensor for detecting presence / absence of a customer in the vicinity of the POS terminal device, wherein the operation permission information includes operator identification information for a plurality of cash register operations. Permission / non-permission of execution for each customer presence / absence is determined, and the operation permission determination means is input operator identification information. In addition, the operation permission information regarding the presence / absence of the customer sensed by the human sensor is read from the permission information storage means, and the permission / denial of the requested cash register operation is determined based on the operation permission information. A characteristic POS terminal device is obtained.

  The human sensor may be an optical sensor, a thermal sensor, or a pressure sensor.

  Furthermore, it further has an operation monitoring means for monitoring normality / abnormality of the registration operation based on a time from when the determination result by the operation permission determination means is output until the registration operation is controlled by the operation control means. May be. The operation monitoring unit may notify the host device connected to the POS terminal device via the network when the monitoring result is abnormal. Further, the operation monitoring means may store the normality / abnormality of the cash register operation in the storage means as a log file.

  According to the present invention, there is also provided a POS system comprising the POS terminal device and a POS host device connected to the POS terminal device via a network and exchanging information with the POS terminal device. .

  The POS terminal device according to the present invention can prevent an illegal cash register operation by an operator without deteriorating service to customers.

  The POS terminal device according to the present invention relates to permission information storage means for storing operation permission information that determines permission / non-permission of execution for each operator identification information representing each operator for a plurality of cash register operations, and operator identification information that is input The operation permission information is read from the permission information storage means, the operation permission determining means for determining whether the requested cash register operation is permitted / not permitted based on the operation permission information, and the register requested based on the determination result by the operation permission determining means. Operation control means for controlling the operation.

  In particular, this apparatus has a human sensor that detects the presence / absence of a customer near the POS terminal apparatus. Further, the operation permission information stored in the permission information storage means defines permission / non-permission of execution for each operator identification information and for each presence / absence of a customer for a plurality of cash register operations. Then, the operation permission determining means reads out the operator identification information inputted and the operation permission information regarding the presence / absence of the customer sensed by the human sensor from the permission information storage means, and permits / disallows the requested cash register operation. The determination is made based on the operation permission information. The requested registration operation is controlled based on the determination result by the operation control means and the operation permission determination means.

  With such a configuration, the POS terminal device according to the present invention can prevent an illegal cash register operation by an operator without deteriorating service to the customer such as waiting for the customer before the cash register.

  Hereinafter, with reference to the drawings, more specific embodiments of the POS terminal device and the POS system according to the present invention will be described in detail.

[Example 1]
Referring to FIG. 1, a POS terminal device 100 according to a first embodiment of the present invention is a component of a POS system, as in a conventional POS terminal device, and each operator identification information representing each operator for a plurality of cash register operations. The permission information storage means 130 for storing the operation permission information that determines whether to execute or not, and the operation permission information related to the input operator identification information are read from the permission information storage means 130, and the requested registration operation permission / Operation permission determining means 110 for determining non-permission based on the operation permission information, and operation control means 120 for controlling the registration operation requested based on the determination result by the operation permission determining means 110 are provided.

  More specifically, the permission information storage unit 130 includes a storage unit 103 (FIG. 3) described later. Further, the operation permission determination unit 110 and the operation control unit 120 are stored in the storage unit 103 and are based on the program for causing the CPU 101 (FIG. 3), which will be described later, to execute the operation permission determination, the operation restriction, and the program. The CPU 101 operates.

  The POS terminal device 100 further includes a human sensor 150 that detects the presence / absence of the customer at the standing position of the customer near the POS terminal device 100.

  Further, the operation permission information stored in the permission information storage unit 130 defines permission / non-permission of execution for each operator identification information and for each presence / absence of a customer for a plurality of cash register operations.

  Further, the operation permission determining means 110 reads out the operation permission information regarding the presence / absence of the customer sensed by the human sensor 150 from the permission information storage means 130 in addition to the input operator identification information, and the requested cash register operation. Permission / non-permission is determined.

  Referring to FIG. 3, the POS terminal device 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention more specifically includes a storage unit 103 that stores information including an operation program and an application program, and an operation stored in the storage unit 103. A central processing unit (CPU) 101 that controls the operation of the apparatus based on a system program and an application program, a memory 102 that temporarily stores information, and a POS terminal apparatus 100 are connected to the POS terminal apparatus 100 via a network. A communication interface (I / F) 104 that is a means for communicating with a POS host device (not shown) that exchanges information with each other, an input device 105, an output device 106, and a cash drawer for storing money that is electrically locked and unlocked 107 and the aforementioned human sensor 150 The has.

  The input device 105 includes a keyboard 105a provided in the housing of the apparatus to be operated by an operator, a barcode reader 105b, and a touch panel 105c provided in an operator display 106a described later. The output device 106 includes an operator display 106a that displays various types of information for an operator, a customer display 106b that displays settlement information and the like for a customer, and a receipt printer 106c that prints a receipt for the customer or for both the customer and the store. And have.

  The human sensor 150 is, for example, an optical sensor such as a light-shielding detection type or an image processing type including a camera and an image processing circuit, a thermal sensor such as an infrared type, or a pressure sensitive sensor such as a floor embedded type. is there.

  Here, referring to FIG. 2, the operation permission information stored in the permission information storage means 130 includes sales processing, receipt issuance, return processing, cash drawer opening, inspection report output, and a plurality of cash register operations. For each checkout process, execution permission / non-permission is defined for each store manager / manager class, full-time employee class, part-time employee class, and part / part-time job class, and for each customer presence / absence. Is correspondence table information.

  Specifically, sales processing, receipt issuance, and return processing are permitted when the store manager / manager class is in charge of cashier, while the customer is present, while there is no setting when there is no customer, While the full-time employee class and part-time job class are in charge of cashiers, it is permitted when customers are present, but is not permitted when there are no customers.

  The opening of cash drawers is permitted regardless of the presence / absence of customers while the manager / manager class is in charge of cashiers, and the presence / absence of customers is determined when the full-time employee classes and part-time workers are in charge of cashiers. It is set to disallowed.

  Regarding inspection report output, there is no setting when customers are in the store manager / manager class, full-time employee class, and part-time job class, but permission is given when there are no customers. Is set.

  The checkout process is not set when the store manager / manager class is in charge of cashiers, but when the customer is not present, it is set to permit when the customer is not present. The full-time employee class and part-time job While the class is in charge of cash register, it is set to disapproved regardless of the presence / absence of the customer.

  Next, the operation of the POS terminal apparatus 100 will be described with reference to FIGS.

  First, an operator in charge of the POS terminal device 100 inputs an ID key as operator identification information representing a store manager / manager class, a full-time employee class, or a part-time job class from the touch panel 105c. The CPU 101 stores and registers the ID key as the current operator in the storage unit 103 or the memory 102 (step S1). In this example, it is assumed that a part-time job class is registered. The operator identification information may not be manually input, but may be a storage medium such as an IC card or an RF (Radio Frequency) tag, or may be replaced with human body authentication information such as an operator's fingerprint.

  When the operator in charge operates one of the input devices 105 to perform the registration operation, a registration operation request is made to the operation control means 120 (CPU 101) (step S2). The contents (sales processing, receipt issuance..., Any) are notified to the operation permission determination means 110 (CPU 101).

  The operation permission determination unit 110 reads the registered ID key from the storage unit 103 or the memory 102, and detects the presence / absence of the customer in front of the POS terminal device 100 by the human sensor 150 (step S3).

  The operation permission determination unit 110 further reads and refers to the operation permission information from the permission information storage unit 130 (storage unit 103) (step S4), and the register operation contents notified from the operation control unit 120 are stored in the storage unit 103 or the memory. It is determined whether or not to allow the cashier operation based on the ID key registered in 102 and the presence / absence of the customer detected by the human sensor 150 (step S5).

  If the result of the determination by the operation permission determining means 110 is permission, the requested cash register operation is executed by the operation control means 120 (step S6). On the other hand, if the result of the determination by the operation permission determining means 110 is not permitted, the requested cash register operation is prohibited by the operation control means 120, and an error notification that the cash register operation is not permitted is given as an error notification. The operator is notified from the display 106a or a buzzer or speaker (not shown) (step S7).

  For example, when the requested cash register operation is a sales process, in step S4, the operation permission determination unit 110 reads and references the operation permission information of the sales process from the permission information storage unit 130, and in step S5, the storage unit 103 or the memory 102 stores it. It is determined whether to permit or not based on the ID key of the registered part-time job and the presence / absence of the customer detected by the human sensor 150. If the customer is present, the process proceeds to step S6, and a series of sales processing such as product registration using the keyboard 105a, barcode reader 105b, and touch panel 105c, money transfer using the cash drawer 107, and receipt issuance using the receipt printer 106c. Is executed. If the customer is not present, the process proceeds to step S7, where the sales process is prohibited by the operation control means 120, and that is notified to the operator from the operator display 106a or the like as an error notification.

  If the requested cash register operation is a return process, the operation permission determination means 110 reads and references the operation permission information for the sales process from the permission information storage means 130 in step S4, and stores it in the storage unit 103 or the memory 102 in step S5. It is determined whether to permit or not based on the ID key of the registered part-time job and the presence / absence of the customer detected by the human sensor 150. When the customer is present, the process proceeds to step S6, where the returned goods are registered using the keyboard 105a, the barcode reader 105b, and the touch panel 105c, the returned goods are collected, refunded using the cash drawer 107, and the receipt printer 106c as necessary. A series of returns processing such as issuing a receipt that has been re-accounted using is performed. If the customer is not present, the process proceeds to step S7, the return process is prohibited by the operation control means 120, and an error notification is notified to the operator from the operator display 106a or the like.

  As described above, the present apparatus controls the cash register operation not only according to the operator class but also depending on whether or not the customer is in the vicinity of the apparatus. Therefore, security can be ensured without causing the customer to wait.

[Example 2]
The POS terminal device 100 ′ according to the first embodiment of the present invention is different from the first embodiment in that it includes an operation monitoring unit that monitors normal / abnormal cash register operations. For this reason, detailed description of the same or similar configuration and operation as in the first embodiment will be omitted.

  Referring to FIG. 5, the POS terminal device 100 ′ according to the second embodiment of the present invention determines whether or not to execute each operator identification information representing each operator for a plurality of cash register operations as in the first embodiment. The permission information storage means 130 for storing the operation permission information and the operation permission information related to the input operator identification information are read from the permission information storage means 130, and the permission / non-permission of the requested cash register operation is determined based on the operation permission information. The operation permission determining means 110 to perform, the operation control means 120 for controlling the cash register operation requested based on the determination result by the operation permission determining means 110, and the presence / absence of the customer at the standing position of the customer in the vicinity of the POS terminal device 100. And a human sensor 150 for sensing. The operation permission information stored in the permission information storage unit 130 defines permission / non-permission of execution for each operator identification information and for each presence / absence of a customer for a plurality of cash register operations. The operation permission determination unit 110 reads out the operation permission information regarding the presence / absence of the customer detected by the human sensor 150 in addition to the input operator identification information from the permission information storage unit 130 and permits the requested cash register operation. / Judge the disapproval.

  The POS terminal device 100 ′ further determines that the registration operation is not controlled within a predetermined time based on the time from when the determination result by the operation permission determination unit 110 is output until the registration operation is controlled by the operation control unit 120. An operation monitoring unit 140 for monitoring normal / abnormal of the register operation is provided so as to determine that the register operation is abnormal.

  More specifically, when the operation monitoring unit 140 uses the POS terminal device 100 in FIG. 3 as the POS terminal device 100 ′, the operation monitoring unit 140 stores the program stored in the storage unit 103 and causes the CPU 101 to perform cash register operation monitoring. The CPU 101 operates based on a program.

  Further, when the monitoring result is abnormal, the operation monitoring unit 140 informs the POS host device (not shown) as a higher-level device that is installed in the store's backyard or headquarters and connected via the network. Notification is made through the communication interface 104.

  Further, the operation monitoring unit 140 stores the normality / abnormality of the cash register operation in the storage unit as a log file.

  Furthermore, the operation monitoring means 140 obtains the customer presence / absence information from the human sensor 150 via the operation permission determination means 110, and the customer presence / absence information is displayed in the POS with an abnormal monitoring result. The host device may be notified through the communication interface 104.

  Next, the operation of the POS terminal device 100 ′ will be described with reference to FIG. 3 and FIGS. 5 and 6.

  As in the first embodiment, first, an operator in charge of the POS terminal device 100 'inputs an ID key as operator identification information representing the operator class from the touch panel 105c. The CPU 101 stores and registers the ID key as the current operator in the storage unit 103 or the memory 102 (step S1). In this example, it is assumed that a part-time job class is registered.

  When the operator in charge operates one of the input devices 105 to perform the registration operation, a registration operation request is made to the operation control means 120 (CPU 101) (step S2). The contents (sales processing, receipt issuance..., Any) are notified to the operation permission determination means 110 (CPU 101).

  The operation permission determination unit 110 reads the registered ID key from the storage unit 103 or the memory 102, and detects the presence / absence of the customer in front of the POS terminal device 100 by the human sensor 150 (step S3).

  The operation permission determination unit 110 further reads and refers to the operation permission information from the permission information storage unit 130 (storage unit 103) (step S4), and the register operation contents notified from the operation control unit 120 are stored in the storage unit 103 or the memory. It is determined whether or not to allow the cashier operation based on the ID key registered in 102 and the presence / absence of the customer detected by the human sensor 150 (step S5).

  If the result of the determination by the operation permission determining means 110 is not permitted, the requested cash register operation is prohibited by the operation control means 120, and the operator display 106a indicates that the cash register operation is not permitted as an error notification. The operator is notified from a buzzer or speaker (not shown) (step S7).

  If the result of the determination by the operation permission determination unit 110 is permission, the operation monitoring unit 140 starts to count the time until the requested registration operation is executed by the operation control unit 120, and requests it within a predetermined time. It is determined whether or not the registered register operation is executed by the operation control means 120 (step S6).

  If the result of the determination by the operation permission determination means 110 is permission, the requested cash register operation is executed by the operation control means 120 (step S8).

  On the other hand, if the requested registration operation is not executed by the operation control unit 120 even after the predetermined time has elapsed, the operation monitoring unit 140 indicates that the operator is absent from the POS terminal device 100 ′, for example, It is considered that the customer has stopped in front of the POS terminal device 100 ′ because of an inquiry or a complaint immediately before execution, and is determined as an abnormality in the cash register operation. Then, a notice of abnormality in the cash register operation and the presence / absence information of the customer is sent to the POS host device (not shown) installed in the backyard or the headquarters through the communication interface 104, and a log indicating that the abnormality is present The file is stored in the storage unit 103 (step S9). Upon receiving the notification, the POS host device prompts the person in charge of the headquarters to confirm the POS terminal device 100 ′ by displaying a message, a lamp, a buzzer, and the like. The person in charge confirms the situation of the POS terminal device 100 ′ by checking the monitoring camera in the store or going to the actual sales floor, and takes measures.

  As described above, in this embodiment, when the POS terminal device becomes unattended and makes the customer wait, the situation in which the operator cannot respond due to inquiries or complaints, or the product without the cash register operation When an illegal act that is handed over occurs, it is possible to promptly notify the person in charge and take action by urgently dispatching a suitable person to the site.

  The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and it goes without saying that various modifications are possible within the technical scope described in the claims.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the POS terminal device by Example 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the operation permission information memorize | stored in the permission information memory | storage means in the POS terminal device shown by FIG. It is a block diagram which shows the more concrete structure of the POS terminal device shown by FIG. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of the POS terminal device shown by FIG. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the POS terminal device by Example 1 of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of the POS terminal device shown by FIG.

Explanation of symbols

101 CPU
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 102 Memory 103 Storage part 104 Communication interface 105 Input device 105a Keyboard 105b Bar code reader 105c Touch panel 106 Output device 106a Operator display 106b Customer display 106c Receipt printer 107 Cash drawer 110 Operation permission judgment means 120 Operation control means 130 Authorization information storage means 140 Operation Monitoring means 150 Human sensor

Claims (6)

Permission information storage means for storing operation permission information that determines permission / non-permission of execution for each operator identification information representing each operator for a plurality of cash register operations, and operation permission information related to operator identification information to be input is stored in the permission information. An operation permission determination means for determining whether the requested registration operation is permitted or not based on the operation permission information, and an operation for controlling the requested registration operation based on a determination result by the operation permission determination means. In a POS terminal device having a control means,
It has a human sensor that senses the presence / absence of customers near the POS terminal device,
The operation permission information defines permission / non-permission of execution for each operator identification information and for each presence / absence of a customer for a plurality of cash register operations,
The operation permission judging means reads out the operator identification information inputted and the operation permission information regarding the presence / absence of the customer sensed by the human sensor from the permission information storage means, and permits / denies the requested cash register operation. Is determined based on the operation permission information.   The POS terminal device according to claim 1, wherein the human sensor is an optical sensor, a thermal sensor, or a pressure sensor.   The operation monitoring means for monitoring normality / abnormality of the registration operation based on the time from when the determination result by the operation permission determination means is issued until the registration operation is controlled by the operation control means. 2. The POS terminal device according to 2.   4. The POS terminal device according to claim 3, wherein when the monitoring result is abnormal, the operation monitoring unit notifies the host device connected to the POS terminal device via a network.   The POS terminal device according to claim 3 or 4, wherein the operation monitoring unit stores the normality / abnormality of the cash register operation in the storage unit as a log file.   A POS terminal device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, and a POS host device connected to the POS terminal device via a network and exchanging information with the POS terminal device. POS system.

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