JP5165219B2 - Cash register system - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a cash register system capable of discounting commodities according to coupons.

  In sales transactions of retail stores such as supermarkets and convenience stores, a cash register system called a POS system is used. In the cash register system, the prices of commodities to be purchased by the customer are totaled for each sales transaction, and the transaction is settled based on the result.

  Also, in such a retail store, in order to increase the customer's willingness to purchase the product, the discount rate of the product is given to the customer who presented a coupon indicating the predetermined product (applicable product) and the discount rate. Discounts (discounts) are made at In this case, the store staff grasps the applicable product and discount rate shown on the coupon face presented by the customer, and confirms whether the applicable product is among the products to be purchased by the customer. . If there is an applicable product, the store staff gives an instruction to the cash register system to discount the product at a discount rate shown on the ticket surface, so that the product is discounted.

  As prior art documents disclosing techniques related to the present invention, there are the following documents.

Japanese Patent No. 3142367

  By the way, some customers may present a large number of coupons regardless of whether or not they can be used for discounting the actual purchase desired product. In this case, among the many coupons presented, the store staff discriminates between the coupons that can be used for the sales transaction and the coupons that cannot be used, and the coupons that can be used are applied to discounts, but the unused coupons that were not available The coupon must be returned to the customer. However, handling such coupons is very complicated, requiring a lot of time, and the efficiency of sales transactions may deteriorate.

  In addition, when one coupon can be applied to any of a plurality of products, or when any one of a plurality of coupons can be applied to one product, the combination of the coupon and the product with the maximum discount amount The coupon should be applied in consideration of However, when the number of coupons increases, the determination of such a combination becomes very complicated, and there is a possibility that the benefits of discounts by coupons cannot be maximized due to a determination error of the store staff.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and a first object of the present invention is to provide a cash register system capable of easily grasping a coupon that cannot be used.

  It is a second object of the present invention to provide a cash register system that can maximize the discount amount when a coupon is used.

In order to solve the above problems, the invention of claim 1 is a cash register system capable of discounting the application target product in accordance with a discount parameter that defines a discount amount and a coupon associated with a predetermined application target product. Product specifying means for specifying a transaction product that is a target of one sales transaction, coupon specifying means for specifying all coupons presented by a customer who performs the one sales transaction, and each application target of the coupon A determination unit that determines whether each of the coupons can be used for discounting in the one sales transaction based on the product and the transaction product; and a display unit that displays a determination result of the determination unit. The display means displays a list of the coupon information presented by the customer, and the coupons that have been determined differently by the determination means. Serial Ru with different display mode of the coupon information.

The invention according to claim 2 is the cash register system according to claim 1, wherein the display means changes the display mode of the background of the coupon information between coupons determined differently by the determination means. to Ru.

The invention of claim 3 is the cash register system according to claim 1 or 2 , wherein the coupon information determined to be unusable displayed on the display means includes the application target product of the coupon. .

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the cash register system according to any one of the first to third aspects, the display means displays sales side display means for displaying information on the seller side and information on the customer side. The coupon information presented by the customer is displayed as a list on both the sales side display means and the customer side display means.

Further, the invention of claim 5 is the cash register system according to any one of claims 1 to 4 , wherein expiration date information is recorded in the coupon, and a transaction time at which the one sales transaction is made is counted. timing means for, based on the respective expiration date information and the transaction time of the coupons, obtain further Bei; and determining means enabled or disabled each of the coupons.

Further, in the cash register system according to claim 5 , the invention of claim 6 is based on the discount parameter and the application target product of the coupon determined to be valid, and the transaction product. obtain further Bei in one trading derivation means discount amount derives the combination of the transaction item and the coupon becomes maximum, the.

The invention of claim 7 is the cash register system according to any one of claims 1 to 6 , wherein the coupon specifying unit reads an electromagnetic recording element included in a portable data carrier presented by a customer. Take .

According to the inventions of claims 1 to 7 , since it is determined whether or not a coupon can be used and the determination result is displayed, even if a customer presents a large number of coupons, a coupon that cannot be used can be easily used. I can grasp. Furthermore, since the display mode of the coupon information is different between coupons that have been determined differently by the determination means, the available coupon and the unavailable coupon can be easily identified.

In particular, according to the invention of claim 3 , since the application target product of the coupon determined to be unusable is displayed, additional purchase of the application target product can be expected.

In particular, according to the invention of claim 4 , it is possible to clearly notify the customer of coupons that cannot be used.

In particular, according to the invention of claim 5 , it is possible to determine whether or not only valid coupons can be used.

In particular, according to the invention of claim 6 , it is possible to determine whether or not the coupon can be used in consideration of the combination of the coupon with the maximum discount and the transaction product.

In particular, according to the invention of claim 7, it can be quickly and easily identify the coupon customer is presented.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

<1. Configuration>
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a POS system 100 that is a cash register system according to an embodiment of the present invention. The POS system 100 is employed in a store such as a supermarket or a convenience store, and includes a POS server 1 and a plurality of POS terminals 2. The POS server 1 and the POS terminal 2 are each connected to the LAN 3 and can communicate with each other.

  The POS server 1 controls the entire POS system 100 in an integrated manner, and is usually arranged in a management office or the like different from the store sales area. On the other hand, the POS terminal 2 is arranged in the sales area of the store, and is actually operated by the sales staff of the store in the case of merchandise sales transactions. Specifically, the POS terminal 2 is used for settlement processing for deriving a transaction price used for settlement of a sales transaction, settlement of the sales transaction, and the like.

  FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram showing the configuration of the POS server 1. The POS server 1 has the same hardware configuration as a general computer. That is, the POS server 1 has a configuration in which a CPU 11 that performs arithmetic processing, a ROM 12 that stores basic programs, a RAM 13 that is a work area for arithmetic processing, and a hard disk 14 that stores various data are connected to the bus line 10. ing. The POS server 1 further includes a display 15 that displays various information, an input unit 16 such as a keyboard and a mouse, and a communication unit 17 that communicates via the LAN 3, which are connected to the bus line 10. The

  A processing program is stored in the hard disk 14, and various functions as the POS server 1 are realized by the CPU 11 performing arithmetic processing according to the processing program. The hard disk 14 further stores a product master 41, a coupon master 42, and the like, which are data files necessary for the checkout process.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the configuration of the POS terminal 2 in functional blocks. The POS terminal 2 includes a control unit 21 that controls the entire apparatus, two displays 22 and 23 that display various types of information, an input unit 24 that includes various buttons for receiving operator operations and inputs, products, coupons, and the like. Are provided with a barcode reader 25 for reading the barcode attached to the printer, a print issuing unit 26 for printing and issuing a receipt, and a communication unit 27 for communicating via the LAN 3, each of which includes a bus line 20 Connected to. The input unit 24 includes various buttons such as a subtotal key for instructing a subtotal process in the settlement process and a numeric keypad.

  The control unit 21 includes a CPU 201 that performs various arithmetic processes, a ROM 202 that stores a control program, a RAM 203 that is a work area for arithmetic processes, a battery-backed SRAM 204 that is a nonvolatile memory that stores various data, And a timer 205 having a function of measuring time. The control function of each part of the apparatus and the data processing function for the settlement process are realized by the CPU 201 performing arithmetic processing according to the control program in the ROM 202.

  Of the two displays 22 and 23, one is a sales-side display 22 that displays information to be displayed on the side of a sales staff who is an operator, and the other is a customer side that displays information to be displayed on the customer side. This is a display 23. The screens of both the sales-side display 22 and the customer-side display 23 are composed of dot matrix type liquid crystal, and can display various information such as characters, figures and images in color. Further, the screen of the sales-side display 22 has a touch panel function, and an operator can give various instructions by touching the screen. On the other hand, the screen of the customer-side display 23 does not have a touch panel function, but the orientation of the screen can be adjusted so that the customer can easily see the screen.

<2. Data file>
Next, the merchandise master 41 and the coupon master 42 stored in the hard disk 14 of the POS server 1 will be described.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of the product master 41. As shown in the figure, the product master 41 is a data file in a table format, and shows various information about various products handled at the store. The product master 41 includes a plurality of records each indicating product data for one type of product. In each record, product data such as “product name” and “price” is associated with “product code” which is identification information for identifying the type of product. “Price” indicates a normal price before the discount is made.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of the coupon master 42. As shown in the figure, the coupon master 42 is also a data file in a table format. In the store of the present embodiment, coupons for discounting merchandise are appropriately issued to customers and can be used in sales transactions. The coupon master 42 will show various information about various coupons available at the store.

  The coupon master 42 includes a plurality of records each indicating coupon data for one type of coupon. In each record, “coupon name”, “discount rate”, “target product code 1”, “target product code 2”, “target product code 3” with respect to “identification number” which is identification information for identifying the type of coupon. Is associated with the coupon data.

  “Coupon name” indicates the name of the coupon, and “discount rate” indicates a discount rate as a discount parameter that defines a discount amount when the coupon is used. In addition, for each coupon, a product to be applied (hereinafter referred to as “applicable product”) is determined in advance, and “target product code 1”, “target product code 2”, and “target product code 3” are The product code of the application target product of the coupon is shown. That is, one coupon can be applied to any one of the three application target products associated by the coupon master 42.

<3. Coupon>
Next, the coupon used in the store of this Embodiment is demonstrated. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a coupon.

  The coupon 5 is composed of a paper medium, and as shown in the figure, the coupon name 51, discount rate 52, applicable product 53, identification number 54, expiration date 55, store name 56 of the store, and bar A code 57 or the like is recorded by printing.

  The bar code 57 is an encoded 13-digit number string and conforms to the JAN code format in the same way as a general product code. The 13-digit number string indicated by the barcode 57 of the coupon 5 is hereinafter referred to as “coupon code”.

  The first three-digit code C1 of the coupon code clearly indicates that the numeric string is not a product code but a coupon code by a specific numerical value such as “981”. The 4-digit code C2 from the fourth digit to the seventh digit of the coupon code indicates the identification number of the coupon. Further, the five-digit code C3 from the eighth digit to the twelfth digit of the coupon code indicates the expiration date of the coupon in the Julian date format (the first two digits indicate the year of the year and the last three digits are 1 of the year). The format shows the total number of days since the first day of the month). The last one-digit code C4 of the coupon code is a check digit.

  Therefore, by reading the barcode 57 of such a coupon 5, the identification number and expiration date of the coupon can be acquired, and the type of the coupon can be specified based on the identification number. At the store, such a coupon 5 is presented by the customer at the time of a sales transaction.

<4. Checkout process>
In the POS system 100, by reading the barcode 57 of the coupon 5 in the checkout process, it is possible to perform a discount (discount) on the product according to the coupon 5. Hereinafter, the settlement process of the POS system 100 will be described.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the flow of the settlement process. The series of processing shown in FIG. 7 is processing mainly performed in the POS terminal 2 for each sales transaction. Hereinafter, a product that is a target of the sales transaction, that is, a product that is a purchase target by a customer who performs the sales transaction is referred to as a “transaction product”.

  First, the barcodes attached to all the transaction products and the barcodes of all coupons presented by the customer are read by the barcode reader 25 of the POS terminal 2, and the types of the transaction products and all of the customers presented The type of coupon is specified (steps S1 to S8). The reading order of the bar codes may be any order, and the bar codes may be read in the order in which the transaction product and the coupon are mixed.

  Specifically, first, one barcode attached to either the transaction product or the coupon is read by the barcode reader 25, and the content of the barcode is acquired by the CPU 201 of the POS terminal 2 (step S1). Next, it is determined whether the content of the read barcode is “product code” or “coupon code” (step S2).

  When the content of the bar code is “product code”, first, this “product code” is transmitted from the POS terminal 2 to the POS server 1. In response to this, the POS server 1 searches the product master 41 for a record including the “product code” and returns the contents of the corresponding record to the POS terminal 2. Thereby, product data such as “product name” and “price” of the transaction product is specified by the CPU 201 (step S3). The acquired product data is registered in the detail table in the RAM 203 of the POS terminal 2 (step S4).

  On the other hand, when the content of the barcode is a coupon code, first, the CPU 201 specifies coupon data of “identification number” and “expiration date” included in the coupon code. Further, the “identification number” is transmitted from the POS terminal 2 to the POS server 1. In response to this, the POS server 1 searches the coupon master 42 for a record including the “identification number”, and returns the contents of the corresponding record to the POS terminal 2. Thereby, coupon data such as “coupon name”, “discount rate”, “target product code 1”, “target product code 2”, “target product code 3” of the coupon is further specified in the CPU 201 (step S5). ). Part of the coupon data obtained in this way is also registered in the detail table in the RAM 203 (step S6). Further, the acquired coupon data is also registered in the coupon check table in the RAM 203 of the POS terminal 2 (step S7).

  The processes in steps S2 to S7 are repeated every time the barcode is read (Yes in step S8). Thereby, finally, information related to all transaction products and all coupons related to the sales transaction is registered in the detail table, and information related to all coupons is registered in the coupon check table.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of the detail table 61. As shown in the figure, the detail table 61 is a data file in a table format. The detail table 61 is newly created for each sales transaction. One record of the detail table 61 indicates information related to one transaction product or one coupon, and one record is created each time a barcode is read.

  Each record includes data of “record No.”, “barcode”, “name”, “price”, “discount”, “reason for discount”, and “post-discount price”. “Record No.” indicates the registration order of records, “Bar code” indicates the content of the read barcode (ie, “Product code” or “Coupon code”), and “Name” indicates “Product name” or “Coupon name” is shown. “Price” indicates a normal price before the transaction product is discounted, and is blank when the record relates to coupon data. Further, “discount”, “reason for discount”, and “price after discount” indicate data related to the discount of the transaction product, and are all blank when the record is created.

  The main contents of the detail table 61 are displayed as a table 71 on the screens of the two displays 22 and 23 of the POS terminal 2 as shown in FIG. When the contents of the detail table 61 are updated, the updated contents are immediately reflected in the contents of the table 71 in the screens of the displays 22 and 23. As a result, both the sales staff and the customer can check the type of transaction product or coupon specified by reading the barcode.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of the coupon check table 62. As shown in the figure, the coupon check table 62 is also a data file in a table format. The coupon check table 62 is also newly created for each sales transaction. One record of the coupon check table 62 indicates coupon data of one coupon, and one record is created every time coupon data is acquired.

  Each record includes “identification number”, “expiration date”, “coupon name”, “discount rate”, “target product code 1”, “target product code 2”, “target product code 3”, and “flag”. Coupon data exists. Among these, “identification number” and “expiration date” are obtained from the coupon code indicated by the barcode, and “coupon name”, “discount rate”, “target product code 1”, “target product code 2” and “Target product code 3” is acquired from the coupon master 42. “Flag” indicates a flag indicating the state of the coupon, and is blank when a record is created.

  Returning to FIG. 7, when the bar codes of all transaction products and all coupons related to the sales transaction are read, the sales staff subsequently presses the subtotal key included in the input unit 24 (No in step S8). .

  When the subtotal key is pressed, it is first determined whether or not a coupon has been presented in the sales transaction based on the presence or absence of information relating to the coupon in the detail table 61 (step S9). And when a coupon is shown, the discount process which performs discount of transaction goods according to those coupons is made (step S10).

  When applying coupons to discounts (discounts) on transaction products, various combinations of coupons and transaction products are possible under the following conditions (a) and (b). In the discount process, a combination of a coupon and a transaction product that maximizes the discount amount is derived.

  (A) One coupon can be applied to only one of the three applicable products.

  (B) Even if there are a plurality of coupons that can be applied to one transaction product, a plurality of coupons cannot be applied to one transaction product, and only one coupon can be applied.

  FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a detailed flow of the discount process. This discount process is performed by the CPU 201 unless otherwise specified.

  First, the current time is acquired from the timer 205 as the transaction time (step S21). Next, the coupon check table 62 is referred to, and one coupon having the maximum “discount rate” is selected as a target coupon to be processed thereafter from among the coupons registered as records (step S22).

  Next, the “expiration date” of the record of the notice coupon is compared with the transaction time, and it is determined whether the notice coupon is valid or invalid based on the comparison result (step S23). Specifically, when the transaction time is within the “expiration date”, the attention coupon is determined to be valid, and when the transaction time exceeds the “expiration date”, the attention coupon is determined to be invalid. If it is determined that the noticeable coupon is invalid (No in step S23), “invalid” indicating that the coupon has expired and is invalid is registered in the “flag” of the record of the coupon check table 62 (step S29). ).

  Further, when it is determined that the attention coupon is valid (Yes in step S23), subsequently, “target product code 1”, “target product code 2”, and “target product code 3” of the record of the attention coupon are referred to. Then, three application target products of the attention coupon are specified. Then, it is determined whether any of the three application target products exists among the transaction products registered in the detail table 61 (step S24). In this determination, only transaction products that have not been discounted in the processing so far are targeted. It is determined that the discount is not made for the transaction product because the “discount” in the record is blank.

  In this determination, when none of the three application target products exists among the non-discounted transaction products (No in step S24), it is determined that the coupon of interest cannot be used for discount in the sales transaction. Then, “unused” indicating that it is valid but unavailable is registered in the “flag” of the record of the coupon of interest in the coupon check table 62 (step S28).

  On the other hand, when any of the three application target products exists among the transaction products that are not discounted (Yes in step S24), it is determined that the coupon of interest can be used for discount in the sales transaction. Then, one product having the maximum “price” among the transaction products corresponding to the application target product is selected as a target product to be discounted (step S25).

  Subsequently, a discount is applied by applying the attention coupon to the attention product. More specifically, the discounted price is derived by multiplying the “price” of the product of interest by the “discount rate” of the coupon of interest and rounding off. Then, the result of subtracting the discount amount from the “price” of the product of interest is derived as a new price after the discount of the product of interest. As shown in FIG. 12, the derived discount amount and the price after discount are registered in the “discount” and “value after discount” of the record of the product of interest in the detail table 61, respectively. Further, the “discount rate” of the notable coupon is registered in the “reason for discount” of the record of the notable product (step S26).

  When the discount for the product of interest is made, “used” indicating that it has been used for the discount is registered in the “flag” of the record of the coupon of interest in the coupon check table 62 (step S27).

  In this way, when processing is performed for one coupon, it is determined whether or not there is an unprocessed coupon, that is, whether or not there is a coupon whose record “flag” is blank in the coupon check table 62. Determination is made (step S30). And when an unprocessed coupon exists (it is Yes at Step S30), processing returns to Step S22, and one coupon from which the "discount rate" becomes the largest among the unprocessed coupons is a new attention coupon. Selected as. The same processing as described above is performed for the new attention coupon.

  In the same manner, the same processing as described above is repeated for all coupons in descending order of “discount rate”. As a result, “used”, “unused”, or “invalid” is finally registered in the “flag” of all records in the coupon check table 62. At the same time, the coupon determined to be usable for discounting is applied to the discount of the transaction product, and the result is reflected in the contents of the detail table 61 as shown in FIG. It should be noted that when the discount process is completed, in the record of the transaction product that is not the target of discount, the “price” is registered as “post-discount price” without change.

  In such a discount process, discounts are applied to the highest-priced item among the transaction products to which discount is not applied, in order from the coupon with the highest “discount rate”. Therefore, the coupon discount is applied to the transaction product in the combination that maximizes the discount amount among all the combinations of the coupon and the transaction product related to the sale transaction. That is, it can be said that the discount process is a process of deriving a combination of a coupon and a transaction product that maximizes the discount amount in the sales transaction and performing a discount on the transaction product based on the combination. In addition, the discount process can be said to be a process of deriving a combination of a coupon and a transaction product with the maximum discount amount in the sales transaction and determining that the coupon applied to the combination can be used for the discount.

  Returning to FIG. 7, when the discounting process (step S <b> 10) is completed, the result of summing up the “price after discount” in the detail table 61 is displayed on the displays 22 and 23 as the transaction price used for the settlement of the sales transaction. It is displayed (step S11).

  FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of the screens of the displays 22 and 23 on which transaction prices are displayed. As shown in the figure, a box 72 indicating a transaction price is displayed at the bottom of this screen. In addition, a table 71 showing the main contents of the detail table 61 is also displayed on this screen. Since this screen (hereinafter referred to as “registration list screen”) is displayed on both the sales-side display 22 and the customer-side display 23, both the sales staff and the customer can grasp the transaction price, and each It will be possible to clearly understand what discounts have been made on the traded products.

  If there is even one unused coupon that is determined to be unusable in the discount process, a command button 73 labeled “unused coupon screen” is displayed at the bottom of the registration list screen. When this command button 73 is touched on the screen of the sales-side display 22 (Yes in step S12), a screen displaying a list of unused coupon information (hereinafter referred to as “unused coupon screen”) is displayed on the display 22,. 23 (step S13).

  FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating an example of an unused coupon screen. As shown in the figure, on the unused coupon screen, a box 72 showing a transaction price, a table 74 showing a list of information on each unused coupon, and a message 75 showing the number of unused coupons are displayed. The In addition, a command button 76 written as “registration list screen” is also displayed on the unused coupon screen. If the command button 76 is touched on the screen of the sales side display 22, the display on the displays 22 and 23 can be returned to the registration list screen shown in FIG.

  In the table 74 of the unused coupon screen, for each unused coupon determined to be unusable, “identification number”, “coupon name”, “discount rate”, “applicable product 1”, “applicable product 2”. And coupon data of “applicable product 3” is shown. Among these, “identification number”, “coupon name”, and “discount rate” indicate the contents registered in the coupon check table 62. On the other hand, the product master 41 is referred to for “applicable product 1”, “applicable product 2”, and “applicable product 3”, and “target product code 1” and “target product code 2” in the coupon check table 62 are displayed. "And the product name of the product indicated by the" target product code 3 ".

  Since this unused coupon screen is displayed on both the sales-side display 22 and the customer-side display 23, which of the coupons presented by the customer to both the sales staff and the customer was an unused coupon. Can be clearly understood. The unused coupons are valid but could not be used in this transaction. For this reason, since this unused coupon needs to be returned to the customer because it can be used in the next and subsequent sales transactions, the unused coupon can be easily returned by referring to this unused coupon screen.

  In addition, on the unused coupon screen, product names of three application target products for each unused coupon are shown. Therefore, it is possible to clearly notify the customer of what product is targeted for purchase and whether the discount can be applied.

  In addition, at the time before settlement when the unused coupon screen or the registration list screen is displayed in this way, it is possible to additionally read the barcode of the product or coupon. If there is an additional reading of the bar code (FIG. 7: Yes in step S15), the subtotal processing including “discount processing” performed after the subtotal key is pressed is reset. And a process returns to step S2 again and the detail table 61 and the coupon check table 62 are updated. Accordingly, the customer can add a transaction product or additionally present another coupon that has not been presented. As described above, since the application target product of the unused coupon is clearly indicated on the unused coupon screen, it can be expected that the customer additionally makes the application target product a transaction product.

  If an additional barcode is not read (No in step S15), a settlement process is performed based on the transaction price (step S16). Specifically, the amount of cash for settlement delivered from the customer is input as a deposit amount via the input unit 24, and the result of subtracting the transaction price from the deposit amount is derived as a change amount, and the change The amount is displayed on the displays 22 and 23. Further, the contents of the sales transaction are transmitted to the POS server 1 and recorded as sales performance data on the hard disk 14, and a receipt indicating the content of the sales transaction is issued by the print issuing unit 26. As a result, a series of payment processing ends. In addition, when a coupon is not presented from the customer in the sales transaction (No in step S9), the total result of “price” in the detail table 61 is displayed as the transaction price (step S14), and based on the transaction price The settlement process is performed (step S16).

  As described above, in the POS system 100, all coupons presented by customers who conduct sales transactions are specified, and each of the coupons is used for discounts in sales transactions based on the applicable products and transaction products of the coupons. It is determined whether or not it is possible. Then, the determination results of the determination means are displayed on the displays 22 and 23. For this reason, even if it is a case where a customer presents many coupons, it can be grasped easily whether those coupons can be used. Moreover, since the coupons determined to be unusable are displayed as a list on the displays 22 and 23, the unused coupons can be easily returned to the customer.

  In addition, based on each coupon discount rate, applicable product, and transaction product, a combination of the coupon and the transaction product with the maximum discount in the sales transaction is derived, and the transaction is performed based on the derived combination. Since the product is discounted, the discount amount when the coupon is used can be maximized.

<5. Other embodiments>
Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment (hereinafter referred to as “first embodiment”), and various modifications are possible. Hereinafter, such other embodiments will be described. Of course, you may combine the form demonstrated below suitably.

<5-1. Second form>
In the first form, only information on unused coupons is displayed as a list as a result of determining whether each coupon can be used for discounts in sales transactions, but information on all coupons presented by customers is listed. You may make it display.

  FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen (hereinafter referred to as “coupon list screen”) displaying a list of all coupon information. As shown in the figure, on the coupon list screen, a table 77 indicating information on all coupons is displayed. That is, not only for unused coupons, but also for coupons that are determined to be usable (coupons whose “flag” is “used”) and coupons that are determined to be invalid (coupons whose “flag” is “invalid”) Information is also shown. In this table 77, “flag” is also shown for each coupon in addition to the coupon data similar to FIG.

  Moreover, in the table 77, the background color of the cell which shows coupon data differs by the coupon determined to be usable, the unused coupon determined to be unusable, and the coupon determined invalid. . In the figure, the difference in the background color of the cells is expressed in a pseudo manner by hatching. Thus, the coupons that can be used, the coupons that cannot be used, and the invalid coupons can be easily identified by making the display modes of the coupon data different between coupons that have been determined differently. Accordingly, even on the coupon list screen, unused coupons can be easily identified and returned to the customer easily. In addition, in this 2nd form, although the background color of the cell which shows coupon data is varied, you may vary other display modes, such as the color of the font which shows coupon data, a size, and a format.

  Moreover, also in this coupon list screen, the product names of three application target products are shown for each unused coupon. Therefore, it is possible to clearly notify the customer of what product is targeted for purchase and whether the discount can be applied. In the figure, the product name of the application target product is not shown for the coupon determined to be usable and the coupon determined to be invalid, but the product name may be shown. In addition, for a used coupon that has been determined to be usable, the application target product that is actually the target of discount may be clearly indicated by changing the display mode or the like.

<5-2. Third form>
In the first embodiment, the coupon type is specified by the barcode information recorded on the paper medium. However, the coupon type is specified based on the information recorded on the recording element of the portable data carrier presented by the customer. It may be. In this embodiment, the term “coupon” indicates the concept of “right to discount merchandise”, not a paper medium.

  Such a data carrier may be a membership card configured as an IC card. FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of a membership card used in this case. As shown in the figure, a membership card 8 as an IC card (RFID card) includes an IC chip 81 as an integrated circuit and an antenna coil 82 for radio wave communication.

  The IC chip 81 has a CPU that performs various calculations and a recording element such as an EEPROM that records various types of information in an electronic manner. In the recording element of the IC chip 81, information (hereinafter referred to as “coupon specifying information”) that specifies the type of coupon that can be presented by the customer who has the member card 8 is recorded. One IC chip 81 can also record coupon specifying information corresponding to a plurality of coupons. The content of coupon specific information should just be the same content as the coupon code of a 1st form.

  FIG. 17 is a functional block diagram showing the configuration of the POS terminal 2 in this embodiment. The POS terminal 2 includes an IC card reader / writer 28 that can read and write the IC chip 81 of the membership card 8 in addition to the same configuration as that shown in FIG.

  In the checkout process, the member card is presented from the customer, and the IC card reader / writer 28 reads the IC chip 81 of the member card 8. Thereby, all coupon specific information recorded in the IC chip 81 is acquired. If this coupon specific information is used similarly to the coupon code of the first form, the same process as that of the first form may be performed thereafter. Further, regarding the coupon specifying information of the unused coupons determined to be unusable, the IC card reader / writer 28 may write back the coupon identification information of the unused coupons to the IC chip 81 of the member card 8 at the end of the settlement process.

  In this way, if the type of coupon is specified based on the coupon specifying information obtained by reading the recording element of the data carrier, all coupon specifying information can be acquired by one reading, so the coupon presented by the customer can be obtained. While being able to specify quickly and easily, handling of a coupon becomes easy.

  Since a large amount of data can be recorded on the IC chip as compared with the barcode, all or most of the coupon data registered in the coupon master 42 in the first embodiment is stored as coupon specifying information in the recording element. You may let them.

  In addition, the portable data carrier is not limited to the IC card, and may be, for example, a mobile phone including the same IC chip as described above. When the data carrier is a mobile phone, it is desirable that coupon specifying information can be appropriately added to the recording element by downloading from a predetermined site using the network communication function. Also, a paper medium with an IC chip added may be used as a data carrier. Further, the recording method of the recording element for recording the coupon specifying information is not limited to the electronic method, and may be another electromagnetic method such as a magnetic method (a method that cannot be recognized by human perception).

<5-3. Other forms>
In the above embodiment, it is determined whether the coupon is valid or invalid in the discount process, but at the time of obtaining the coupon code (FIG. 7: immediately before step S5), based on the “expiration date” obtained from the coupon code. Whether the coupon is valid or invalid may be determined, and the coupon determined to be invalid may be excluded from subsequent processing. Specifically, the coupon information determined to be invalid is not registered as a record in the detail table 61 or the coupon check table 62. Thereby, also when displaying the coupon information as a list as in the second embodiment, the coupon information determined to be invalid is not displayed. When there is a coupon determined to be invalid, it is desirable to display a warning display to that effect on the displays 22 and 23 and notify both the sales staff and the customer accordingly.

  In the above embodiment, discount processing is performed after the subtotal key is pressed. However, every time the contents of the detail table 61 are updated by reading the barcode, the discount processing similar to FIG. You may display on the displays 22 and 23 by the expression similar to the screen shown in FIG. In this case, similarly to the second mode, the coupon data display mode may be different between coupons that have been determined differently.

  Moreover, in the said form, although the discount parameter which prescribes | regulates the discount amount matched with a coupon was "discount rate", a "discount amount" may be sufficient. When the coupon is associated with the “discount amount”, the price of the application target product is simply discounted by the “discount amount” by applying the coupon. Further, a discount coupon associated with “discount rate” and a discount coupon associated with “discount amount” may be used in combination. Also in this case, for example, by comparing the discount amounts in all combinations of coupons related to sales transactions and transaction products, it is possible to derive combinations of coupons and transaction products that maximize the discount amount.

  In the above embodiment, the cash register system has been described as the POS system 100 including the POS server 1 and the plurality of POS terminals 2. However, even if the cash register system is configured as a single device, The described technique can be suitably applied.

It is a figure which shows the structure of a POS system. It is a figure which shows the structure of a POS server. It is a figure which shows the structure of a POS terminal. It is a figure which shows an example of a goods master. It is a figure which shows an example of a coupon master. It is a figure which shows an example of a coupon. It is a figure which shows the flow of a payment process. It is a figure which shows an example of a detail table. It is a figure which shows an example of the screen which displayed the content of the detail table. It is a figure which shows an example of a coupon check table. It is a figure which shows the detailed flow of a discount process. It is a figure which shows an example of the detail table in which the result of the discount process was reflected. It is a figure which shows an example of a registration list screen. It is a figure which shows an example of an unused coupon screen. It is a figure which shows an example of a coupon list screen. It is a figure which shows an example of a membership card. It is a figure which shows the structure of the POS terminal of a 3rd form.

Explanation of symbols

1 POS server 2 POS terminal 3 LAN
5 Coupon 8 Member Card 23 Customer Display 25 Barcode Reader 28 IC Card Reader / Writer 61 Details Table 62 Coupon Check Table

Claims (7)

A cash register system capable of discounting the application target product according to a coupon associated with a discount parameter that defines a discount amount and a predetermined application target product,
A product identification means for identifying a transaction product that is the subject of a single transaction;
A coupon identifying means for identifying all coupons presented by a customer who conducts the one sales transaction;
Determination means for determining whether each of the coupons can be used for discount in the one sales transaction based on the application target product and the transaction product of each of the coupons;
Display means for displaying the determination result of the determination means;
Equipped with a,
The display means, cache the customer lists the information of the coupon presented, characterized Rukoto with different display modes of the coupon information between each other different determination is made coupon by said determining means Register system. The cash register system according to claim 1, wherein
The display means, cash register system according to claim Rukoto with different display modes of the background of the coupon information between each other coupon different determination is made by the determination means. The cash register system according to claim 1 or 2 ,
The cash register system , wherein the coupon information determined to be unusable displayed on the display means includes the application target product of the coupon . The cash register system according to any one of claims 1 to 3 ,
The display means includes
A seller-side display means for displaying information to the seller,
Customer-side display means for displaying information on the customer side;
With
The information of the coupon presented by the customer is displayed in a list on both the sales side display means and the customer side display means . The cash register system according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
Expiration date information is recorded on the coupon,
A time measuring means for measuring a transaction time at which the one sales transaction is performed;
Means for determining whether each of the coupons is valid or invalid based on the expiration date information and the transaction time of each of the coupons;
Further comprising cash register system according to claim Rukoto a. The cash register system according to claim 5 ,
Based on the discount parameter and the application target product of each coupon determined to be valid, and the transaction product, a combination of the coupon and the transaction product with the maximum discount amount in the one sales transaction Derivation means for deriving
Further comprising cash register system according to claim Rukoto a. The cash register system according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
The coupon identification unit, cash register system according to claim Rukoto reading an electromagnetic recording elements included in a portable data carrier customer presented.

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