JP7318077B2 - cart - Google Patents

Description

Embodiments of the present invention relate to carts.

2. Description of the Related Art An increasing number of stores such as supermarkets and shopping malls have introduced POS (point-of-sale) systems. In such stores, shopping carts are known in which a product identification device, such as a scanner, is attached to the shopping cart used by the customer to allow the customer to read the product code attached to the product. . Such scanners are attached to the handbars of shopping carts.

However, the hand bar is provided for the customer to push and pull the shopping cart, and depending on the position where the scanner is installed, there have been cases where it is difficult to grasp the hand bar and hinder movement of the shopping cart. In addition, there was an example in which it was difficult to see the inside of the shopping cart when it was attached to the center of the shopping cart.

Therefore, there is a need for a shopping cart that allows the scanner to be properly positioned on the handbar.

Japanese Patent No. 5711773

The problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a cart in which a commodity identification device for identifying commodities can be attached at a position that is easy to use.

The cart of the embodiment includes caster portions that are provided so as to be able to travel on the floor surface. A frame is provided at the rear end of the caster portion so as to face upward, and a placement portion for placing a product is provided on the caster portion or on the front side of the frame. The frame is provided with a grip portion that is gripped by the operator. Detachable merchandise identification devices for identifying merchandise are provided at a plurality of positions of the grip portion. An extension arm is provided on one of the left and right vertical frames provided on the frame. An indicator is provided on the extension arm. The grip portion is a horizontally extending hand bar that connects upper ends of the left and right vertical frames . The product identification device is attached to the grip portion by a clamp with a fastening member, and when a scanner trigger provided on the upper surface is pressed, the reading operation is started. The fastening member is a bolt that fastens the clamp, and prevents the product identification device from moving in the axial direction of the grip portion. The product identifying device is fastened by the fastening member at a position shifted to the right or left of the handbar from the central position of the handbar.

1 is an external perspective view showing a shopping cart according to an embodiment; FIG. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the controls incorporated into the shopping cart. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the transfer position of the scanner attached to the shopping cart. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a shopping cart with an extension arm attached.

Hereinafter, this embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is an external perspective view showing a shopping cart (cart) 10 compatible with a POS (point-of-sale) system according to the embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a control unit 200 incorporated in the shopping cart 10. is. In the present embodiment, the side of the handle frame portion 40 is defined as the rear, and the projection direction of the cage receiving portion 50 projecting from the handle frame portion is defined as the front.

Although not shown, the shopping cart 10 functions as a register that reads the product code of the product that the customer wishes to purchase. The read product list is transferred to a separate payment machine. The customer shall settle the account by using the payment machine.

As shown in FIG. 1 , the shopping cart 10 according to the present embodiment includes a cart section 20 for carrying a shopping basket P containing products, and an electrical component section 100 attached to the cart section 20 . The cart portion 20 includes caster portions 30 for smooth movement on the floor, handle frame portions 40 erected on the rear wheel side of the caster portions 30, and an intermediate portion of the handle frame portion 40 in the height direction. A basket receiving part 50 attached to the position facing forward is provided. The caster portion 30 and the basket receiving portion 50 are configured so that the shopping basket P can be appropriately placed thereon. The shopping basket P has a swinging handle Pa.

The caster unit 30 includes a rectangular frame 31 with an open rear side and casters 32 provided at the four corners of the frame 31 . The caster 32 has a bracket 32a that freely rotates about a vertical axis, and a rubber or resin wheel 32b that freely rotates horizontally on the bracket 32a. The frame 31 is provided with a receiving portion 33 . The receiving part 33 is formed with a size that allows the lower part of the shopping basket P to be accommodated therein.

The handle frame portion 40 includes vertical frames 41, 41 attached to the left and right rear wheel sides of the caster portion 30, respectively, and a horizontal hand bar 42 connecting the upper ends of the vertical frames 41, 41. As shown in FIG. An extension arm 43 is attached to the left vertical frame 41 .

The basket receiving portion 50 has a rectangular frame 51 and a receiving portion 52 provided below the frame 51 . The receiving part 52 is formed with a size that the lower part of the shopping basket P can be accommodated in.

The electrical equipment section 100 is provided above the caster section 30 . A battery section 110 attached across the vertical frames 41, 41 on the lower end side of the handle frame section 40, and a scanning device 120 for reading the product code are provided. It also has a display 150 that displays various information such as product names and unit prices of products read by the scanning device 120, and a camera 160 that captures the inside of the shopping basket P and the like. The battery section 110 supplies power to the scanning device 120 , the display device 150 , and the camera 160 through power lines built into the handle frame section 40 . The scanning device 120 , the display device 150 and the camera 160 are connected to each other by a cable inside the handle frame portion 40 and the extension arm 43 . A display 150 is attached to the upper end of the extension arm 43 . Also, the camera 160 is attached to the middle portion of the extension arm 43 . These configurations constitute a shopping cart as a register for reading the product code of the product that the customer wishes to purchase.

As shown in FIG. 1, the scanning device 120 has a clamp 121 detachably attached to the hand bar 42 and a scanner body 122 integrally attached to the clamp 121 . The clamp 121 is fastened by a bolt 121a to prevent the handbar 42 from moving in the axial direction.

A reading unit (product identification device) 123 for reading a product code for specifying a product is provided on the front surface of the scanner main body 122 . Further, a scanner trigger 124 for starting the reading operation by the reading section 123 is provided on the upper surface of the scanner main body 122 .

The display 150 has a display panel 152 having a touch panel function. A display panel 152 is provided on the front of the terminal housing 151 . Inside the terminal housing 151, a control section 200 that controls the battery section 110, the scanning device 120, the display device 150, and the camera 160 in cooperation is provided.

As shown in FIG. 2, a control unit 200 connects a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 201 that centrally controls each unit via a bus line 210 to a ROM (Read Only Memory) 202 that permanently stores fixed data. , a RAM (Random Access Memory) 203 that stores variable data in a rewritable manner and functions as a work area for the CPU 201 or the like, and a nonvolatile memory 204 are connected. The RAM 203 is provided with a storage area for storing a product master downloaded from the host server and a shopping list created based on the product code read by the customer and the product master. A program executed by the CPU 201 is stored in the nonvolatile memory 204 . Furthermore, the CPU 201 is connected via a bus line 210 to an interface 205 with the display panel 152 , an interface 206 with the scanning device 120 , an interface 207 with the battery section 110 , and an interface 208 with the camera 160 . Also, the CPU 201 is connected to a communication interface 209 via a bus line 210 . Via the communication interface 209, it communicates with a fare adjustment machine, a host server, and the like.

The shopping cart 10 configured in this way is used as follows. That is, the shopping cart 10 is initially placed at the entrance of the store or the like. At this time, the scanning device 120 is fixed to, for example, the central portion of the hand bar 42 by a clamp 121 . The fixing of the scanning device 120 is performed by a store clerk or the like using a tool to tighten the bolt 121a. The tightening position of the clamp 121 can be moved to an arbitrary position on the hand bar 42 by loosening the bolt 121a by a store clerk or the like using a tool. Therefore, the customer does not move scanning device 120 during use.

Next, the customer pulls out the shopping cart 10 to be used, picks up the shopping basket P, and places the shopping basket P on at least one of the casters 30 and the basket receiving portion 50 . Here, it is assumed that the shopping basket P is placed on each of the caster portion 30 and the basket receiving portion 50 . Then, while pushing the hand bar 42, the customer moves the shopping cart 10 toward the product shelf where the products are displayed.

The customer takes out the target product from the product shelf, brings the product code of the product close to the reading unit 123 of the scanning device 120 , and presses the scanner trigger 124 . As a result, the product code is read by the scanning device 120, and the read information is sent to the control unit 200, stored in the RAM 203, and displayed on the display panel 152 as the product name and price. A customer puts commodities into a shopping basket P placed on either the caster portion 30 or the basket receiving portion 50. - 特許庁After completing all the purchases, the customer goes to the payment machine. Then, by operating the touch panel of the display 150, the shopping list stored in the RAM is transmitted to the payment machine. Customers use payment machines to make payments. After completing the payment, the customer returns the shopping cart 10 to a predetermined position in the store.

Next, relocation of the scanning device 120 will be described. As described above, the clamp 121 can be moved to any position on the hand bar 42 by loosening the bolt 121 a of the clamp 121 . For example, in the example of FIG. 1, the scanning device 120 is fastened to the central position of the hand bar 42, but there are cases where it is difficult for the customer to see the inside of the shopping basket P, depending on the store's judgment. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 3, the scanning device 120 may be fastened at a position shifted to the right side of the hand bar 42 from the position indicated by the two-dot chain line. Similarly, it may be fastened at a position shifted to the left.

By changing the position of the scanning device 120 on the hand bar 42 by the store clerk in this way, it is possible to arrange the scanning device 120 in consideration of the improvement of convenience for the customer. The position of the scanning device 120 is determined by the store. For example, by preparing shopping carts 10 fastened at the center, right, and left positions respectively, the customer can scan at the desired position. A shopping cart 10 with device 120 attached can be selected.

As described above, the shopping cart 10 according to the present embodiment can attach the scanning device 120 for identifying the product at a position that is easy for the customer to use, thereby improving convenience.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the shopping cart 10 with the extension arms 44, 44 attached to the vertical frames 41, 41, respectively. The shopping cart 10 can be fitted with extension arms 44, 44 if desired. The extension arms 44, 44 are firmly attached by fastening with bolts, lock mechanisms, or the like.

Since the customer pushes and pulls the hand bar 42 to move the shopping cart 10 in the store, if the scanning device 120 is attached to the hand bar 42, the number of grip portions to hold the hand becomes small. Therefore, by attaching the extended arms 44, 44, the number of clip portions is increased, making it easier for the customer to handle.

The extended arms 44, 44 are also attached to the shopping cart 10 in advance by the store. Also, the shopping cart 10 without the extension arms 44, 44 may be mixed.

In the above-described embodiment, the position where the scanning device 120 is attached is the handbar 42. However, the position where the scanning device 120 is attached is limited to the handbar 42 as long as it is a location (grip) that is used by the customer to push and pull the shopping cart 10. can't Also, the extension arms 44, 44 may be one instead of a pair of left and right. Further, the attachment method of the scanning device 120 to the hand bar 42 may be an attachment method other than the attachment method using the clamp 121, and even when the clamp 121 is used, a fastening method other than the bolt 121a may be used.

Furthermore, although the scanning device 120 optically reads the product code, it may be configured to read the product code with a wireless tag.

While several embodiments of the invention have been described, these embodiments have been presented by way of example and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These novel embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, replacements, and modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. These embodiments and modifications thereof are included in the scope and gist of the invention, and are included in the scope of the invention described in the claims and equivalents thereof.
The description equivalent to the invention described in the original claims of the present application is added below.
[1]
A caster part provided to freely travel on the floor,
a frame provided upward from the rear end of the caster;
a placing portion provided on the caster portion or on the front side of the frame for placing a product;
a grip portion provided on the frame and held by an operator;
and a product identification device configured to be attachable and detachable at a plurality of positions of the grip portion to identify the product.
[2]
The cart according to [1], wherein the grip portion is a horizontally extending hand bar.
[3]
The cart according to [1], wherein the product identification device is fixed to the grip portion by a fastening member.
[4]
[2] The cart according to [2], wherein the frame further includes extended grips that are arranged to extend outward from both ends of the handbar and are held by the operator.
[5]
The cart according to [4], wherein the extension grip is detachably attached to the frame.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10... Shopping cart 20... Cart part 30... Caster part 31... Frame 32... Caster 40... Handle frame part 41... Vertical frame 42... Hand bar 43... Extension arm 44... Extension arm 50 Basket receiving part 51 Frame 100 Electrical part 110 Battery part 120 Scanning device 121 Clamp 121a Bolt 122 Scanner main body 123 Reading part (product identification device) 124 Scanner Trigger 150 Display device 151 Terminal housing 152 Display panel 160 Camera 200 Control unit P Shopping basket.

Claims (4)

A caster part provided to freely travel on the floor,
a frame provided upward from the rear end of the caster;
a placing portion provided on the caster portion or on the front side of the frame for placing a product;
a grip portion provided on the frame and held by an operator;
a product identification device configured to be attachable and detachable at a plurality of positions of the grip portion for identifying a product;
an extension arm provided on one of left and right vertical frames provided on the frame;
a display provided on the extension arm;
and
The grip portion is a horizontally extending hand bar that connects the upper ends of the left and right vertical frames,
The product identification device is attached to the grip portion by a fastening member by a clamp, and when a scanner trigger provided on the upper surface is pressed, a reading operation is started,
The fastening member is a bolt that fastens the clamp, and prevents the product identification device from moving in the axial direction of the grip,
The commodity identification device is a cart fastened by the fastening member at a position shifted to the right or left of the handbar from the central position of the handbar. 2. The cart according to claim 1, wherein said frame further comprises extended grips arranged to extend outwardly from both ends of said handbars and to be grasped by said operator. 3. The cart of claim 2, wherein said extended grip is detachably attached to said frame. The cart according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the extension arm is provided on the left longitudinal frame.