JPH04303296A - Merchandise information display - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To make unnecessary the extra labor while the advertising effect of the special sale merchandise is obtained and the display type is automatically selected by classifying the merchandise data of the special sale merchandise from the merchandise data of the ordinary price and displaying them. CONSTITUTION:In a merchandise information display constituted of a store controller 1 equipped with a RAM to store the merchandise data and shelf label devices 81, 82, 83,... arranged at a merchandise showcase 23 and to display the merchandise information at the shelf label devices 81, 82, 83,... based on the merchandise data stored in the RAM, the store controller 1 judges whether the price of the merchandise displayed at the shelf label devices 81, 82, 83,... is an ordinary price or a special sale price and selects the displaying type of the merchandise information displayed at the shelf label devices 81, 82, 83,... based on the judged result.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

[Industrial Application Field] The present invention provides product information such as product names and prices on a plurality of shelf label devices that are placed on product display shelves in retail stores and display product information such as product names and prices. The present invention relates to a product information display device that transfers and displays information.

0002

[Prior Art] Conventionally, in retail stores such as supermarkets and convenience stores, electronic cash registers (hereinafter referred to as ECRs) are connected through communication lines to manage the data used in these ECRs and to store sales data. POS (Point) to be aggregated
t-Of-Sales (point-of-sale information management) systems are widely used. There are two types of POS systems: a so-called parent-child type (master-slave type) POS system and a store controller type POS system.The master-slave type POS system handles things such as registering and paying customers' purchased products. There are multiple ECRs (slave units) that perform calculation processing and display of calculation results, and one central control unit (master unit) that manages the data used and generated by these units and also functions as an ECR.
master) are connected by a signal line.

[0003] Furthermore, a store controller type POS system has multiple ECRs and one central management device (which manages data used and generated by these ECRs).
Store controller) is connected by a signal line. In a master-slave type POS system, the master, and in a store controller type POS system, the store controller each aggregates data transmitted from a plurality of ECRs online in real time.

By the way, in this POS system, products can be registered by having a barcode scanner read the barcode (product code) from the barcode printed part of the product, so there is no need to attach a price tag to each product. do not have. For this reason, retail stores that use POS systems notify customers of product prices by placing shelf labels with the product name, price, etc. on the product display shelves where products are displayed. That's what I do.

[0005] In addition, at retail stores such as supermarkets and convenience stores that handle fresh foods such as fish and shellfish, meat, vegetables, and fruits, seasonal fluctuations in purchase prices, special sale days (service days), and special sale hours (service days) time)
Alternatively, product prices often change due to special sales of last-minute products. Therefore, every time the price of a product is changed, the store clerk has to change the notation on the shelf label, which is a very troublesome and labor-intensive task.

[0006] Furthermore, there is a risk of forgetting to change the shelf label or making a writing mistake. When these situations occur, the price of the product that the customer confirms by looking at the shelf label at the product display area does not match the price that is actually registered in the ECR, causing trouble between the store staff and the customer. There is an inconvenience in that the reliability of the POS system is also lowered.

[0007] Therefore, in order to solve the above-mentioned drawbacks,
A product information display device (see JP-A-57-105076 and JP-A-61-45396) has been proposed,
It has been put into practical use in some areas. This product information display device is arranged on a product display shelf, and a plurality of shelf label devices that display product information such as product names and prices are connected to a store controller (or master) of a POS system.

On the other hand, the internal memory of the store controller (or master) stores the product name, price (unit price in the case of weighed products), etc., according to the product code (or product number) as shown in FIG. A product file (PLU (Price Look Up) file) for storing product information is stored, and a shelf number is set in this PLU file. Note that the shelf number is the number of the shelf label device arranged on the product display shelf.

[0009]The user of this POS system should:
In the store controller (or master), set a shelf number for each product code (or product number), and store the product data (product name, price, etc.) corresponding to this product code (or product number) on the set shelf number. The information is transmitted to the shelf label device, and the product name, price, etc. are displayed on the corresponding shelf label device.

[0010] According to these product information display devices, there is no discrepancy between the product price displayed on the shelf label device and the product price registered in the ECR, and the store controller (or master ), there was an advantage that the price, etc. of the product displayed on the shelf label device was changed in real time.

[0011]

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] By the way, although the above-mentioned conventional product information display device satisfies the need to accurately and quickly display the price of a product whose selling price has changed, The advantage of tags, ie, their advertising function for bargain sale items by writing the price of the sale item in red or in capital letters, is ignored. The present invention was made against this background, and an object of the present invention is to provide a product information display device that can display the price of a special sale product separately from the price of a regular product.

0012

[Means for solving the problem] The invention according to claim 1 includes:
A management device equipped with a product data storage means in which product data such as product name and price of the product is stored in advance in correspondence with a product identification code that is product identification data, and a plurality of shelves arranged on the product display shelf. and a product information display device that displays product information on the shelf label device based on the product data stored in the storage means, wherein the price of the product displayed on the shelf label device is a regular price. It is characterized by comprising a determining means for determining whether it is a bargain price, and a display control means for selecting a display form of the product information to be displayed on the shelf label device based on the determination result of the determining means.

[0013] The invention according to claim 2 is the invention according to claim 1, in which the display form selected in the case of a bargain price is:
The display format is characterized by attracting the viewer's attention more than the display format selected for normal prices. The invention set forth in claim 3 is characterized in that, in the invention set forth in claim 2, the display form selected in the case of a bargain price is red.

[0014] The invention according to claim 4 is the invention according to claim 2, in which the display form selected in the case of a bargain price is:
It is characterized by its uppercase letters. The invention set forth in claim 5 is characterized in that, in the invention set forth in claim 2, in the case of a special sale price, an advertisement text is also written.

According to a sixth aspect of the invention, in the invention according to claim 1, the shelf label device includes input means for inputting the product identification code, and the product data corresponding to the input product identification code is provided. is read from the storage means of the management device, and the product information is displayed based on the product data. The invention according to claim 7 is the invention according to claim 6, wherein the management device comprises:
When transmitting the product data to the shelf label device, data indicating whether the data regarding the price is a special sale price is also transmitted.

[0016]

According to the first aspect of the invention, the determining means determines whether the price of the product displayed on the shelf label device is a regular price or a special sale price. Thereby, the display control means selects the display form of product information to be displayed on the shelf label device based on the determination result of the determination means. According to the invention according to claims 2 to 5,
In the invention set forth in claim 1, in the case of a special sale price, a person viewing the product information displayed on the shelf label device is alerted.

According to the invention set forth in claim 6, in the invention set forth in claim 1, the shelf label device reads the product data corresponding to the product identification code inputted by the input means from the storage means of the management device, and stores the product data. Display product information based on product data. According to the invention set forth in claim 7, in the invention set forth in claim 6, when transmitting the product data to the shelf label device, the management device also transmits data indicating whether the data regarding the price is a bargain price or not. do.

[0018]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a store controller type POS system to which a product information display device according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied. In this figure, 1 is a store controller, and 21 to 2n are ECs.
R and 31 to 3n+1 are signal lines such as optical fiber cables that connect the store controller 1 and the ECRs 21 to 2n in a loop, respectively.

The store controller 1 is a general-purpose computer such as a personal computer, and has signal lines 31 to 3.
By communicating with the ECRs 21 to 2n online and in real time via n+1, it controls the ECRs 21 to 2n and manages data used and generated therein. This store controller 1 includes a CPU (central processing unit) that controls each part of the device, and an RO that stores control programs used in the CPU.
It consists of a RAM that loads each processing program and stores data while the program is running, and a floppy disk device that drives a floppy disk that stores application programs and various data. There is.

Here, FIG. 2 shows R of the store controller 1.
An example of the configuration of a PLU file stored in AM or the like is shown. The PLU file in FIG. 2 differs from the PLU file in FIG. 14 in that the shelf number corresponding to the product code (or product number) is not stored. Further, in the RAM of the store controller 1, apart from the PLU file, a special sale product file as shown in FIG. 3 is stored. This special sale product file contains a special sale conditions area where the special sale conditions indicating when the special sale will be held (the special sale period) are set and stored corresponding to the product code (or product number) of the product to be sold on sale, and the price at the time of the special sale. (or unit price) is set and stored, and a bargain price (bargain unit price) area. For example, special sale conditions include every Saturday or every day from 5:00 p.m.
6:00 pm, every Saturday from 5:00 pm to 6:00 pm, or 4 days from March 3rd (in this case, once the special sale period has passed, it will be automatically deleted from the special sale product file).

Further, in FIG. 1, reference numeral 4 denotes a hard disk device, which serves as an external storage device and drives a hard disk in which application programs and various data are stored. Reference numeral 5 denotes a display such as a CRT display on which aggregated data and the like are displayed, 6 a printer that prints aggregated data and the like on paper, and 7 a keyboard comprising a numeric keypad, function keys, and the like.

Furthermore, 81, 82, 83, . . . are shelf label devices, and 91, 92, 93, . . . are store controller 1 and shelf label devices 81, 82, 83, . These are signal lines such as optical fiber cables to be connected, and the store controller 1 has signal lines 91,
Shelf label devices 81, 82, 83, through 92, 93, .
Communicate online and in real time with...

FIG. 4 shows a block diagram of the electrical configuration of the shelf label device 8, and FIG. 5 shows a front view and a side view of the external configuration. In these figures, 10 is a CPU that controls each part of the shelf label device 8, 11 is a communication interface, and the CPU 10 is a communication interface 11.
Data is exchanged with the store controller 1 via the storage controller 1. 12 is a display unit, as shown in FIG. 6, a liquid crystal display 12a capable of displaying color, on which the product name and various messages are displayed, and a 4-digit, 7-segment LED 12b, on which the unit price per 100g is displayed. It is composed of a 4-digit 7-segment LED 12c that displays the selling price.

Reference numeral 13 denotes an operation section, including an [Inventory] key for specifying the inventory mode, a [Sales Change] key for specifying the selling price change mode, and a four-digit number displayed on the 7-segment LEDs 12b and 12c of the display section 12. It consists of four increment keys for incrementing each digit of the number. The operation section 13 is equipped with a cover to prevent it from being touched by the customer, and is normally covered with a cover.
Make it invisible to customers. 14 is a ROM in which control programs and character patterns used in the CPU 10 are stored, and 15 is a RAM in which various flags, registers, and buffers are secured.

Furthermore, 16 is a light receiving terminal section, and 17 is an optical input interface. In this embodiment, a barcode scanner 18 having an optical transfer function is used to input the product code as an optical signal. The barcode scanner 18 is of a pen type and has a function of outputting a read barcode (product code) as an optical signal. That is, the store clerk reads the barcode (product code) from the barcode printed part of the product using the barcode scanner 18, presses the reading section 18b against the light receiving terminal section 16, and presses the communication switch 18a, thereby reading the barcode. An optical signal corresponding to the product code output from the scanner 18 is input from the light receiving terminal section 16 and transferred to the CPU 10 via the optical input interface 17. Examples of the barcode scanner 18 having the optical transfer function described above include the Handy Data Terminal RZ-5510 manufactured by Sharp Corporation and the Data Wand III manufactured by Symbol Technology Inc., although they have different shapes.

Additionally, in FIG. 5, 19 is a communication connector plug, and 20 is a communication connector socket into which the communication connector plug 19 is fitted. The shelf label device 8 is shown in FIG. 8 by a connection unit 22 (see FIG. 7) that has the same shape as the shelf label device 8 and connects a communication connector plug 19 and a communication connector socket 20 with a signal line 21. They are connected as appropriate and attached to the front frame of the product display shelf 23, as shown in FIG.

[0027] In such a configuration, in normal registration and payment processing, the clerk assigned to each ECR 21 to 2n uses the barcode scanner connected to each ECR 21 to 2n to scan the barcode printed part of the product. The code (product code) is read and sent to the store controller 1. The store controller 1 uses the transmitted product code as a search key to update (registration process) the sales results file stored in the RAM, etc., and also calls the product data corresponding to the product code from the PLU file, and first retrieves the product data. Send the product code to the ECR that sent it. Thereby, the corresponding ECR performs payment processing based on the received product data.

Next, in the shelf label device 8 with the product display shelves 23 shown in FIG.
0 processing will be explained based on the flowchart of FIG. The store clerk reads the product code from the barcode printed part of the product using the barcode scanner 18, presses the reading section 18b against the light receiving terminal section 16, and presses the communication switch 18a, so that the code is output from the barcode scanner 18. When the optical signal corresponding to the product code is input from the light receiving terminal section 16 and transferred to the CPU 10 via the optical input interface 17, the CPU 10 proceeds to step SA1 and stores the input product code in the RAM.
15 product code register, and display unit 1.
After displaying on the liquid crystal display 12a of No. 2, step S
Proceed to A2.

In step SA2, a counter C is used to count the number of data transmission requests to the store controller 1.
After setting 1 to 1, the process advances to step SA3. This process is performed because a data transmission request is issued to the store controller 1 up to five times if communication is impossible. In step SA3, the product code and data transmission request signal are transmitted to the store controller 1, and then the process proceeds to step SA4.

When the store controller 1 receives the product code and data transmission request signal transmitted from the shelf label device 8, it proceeds to step SB1 in FIG. In step SB1, the product data (product name, price) corresponding to the corresponding product code is read out from the PLU file stored in the RAM or the like mentioned above, and then the process proceeds to step SB2.

[0031] In step SB2, after searching the special sale product file stored in the above-mentioned RAM or the like, the process proceeds to step SB3. In step SB3, it is determined whether the special sale product file contains the product code transmitted from the shelf label device 8. If the result of this determination is "YES", the process advances to step SB4.

At step SB4, data (sale conditions, sale price) corresponding to the corresponding product code is read from the sale product file, and then the process advances to step SB5. In step SB5, the time (current time) of the internal clock with a calendar function is compared with the bargain sale conditions, and it is determined whether the current time satisfies the bargain sale conditions. If the result of this determination is "NO", the process advances to step SB6. Also,
If the determination result in step SB3 is "NO", that is, if there is no product code transmitted from the shelf label device 8 in the special sale product file, the process also proceeds to step SB6.

[0033] In step SB6, the product code and P
After transmitting the product name and price read from the LU file to the shelf label device 8, the series of operations ends. On the other hand, step S
If the determination result in B5 is "YES", that is, if the current time satisfies the bargain sale conditions, the process advances to step SB7. In step SB7, the product code, the product name read from the PLU file, the sale price read from the sale product file, and a flag indicating the sale price are sent to the shelf label device 8, and then the series of operations is completed.

Next, we will return to the explanation of the flowchart in FIG. In step SA4 of FIG. 10, the CPU of the shelf label device 8
10 determines whether the product code and product data transmitted from the store controller 1 have been received. If the result of this determination is "YES", the process advances to step SA5. In step SA5, the received product code is stored in RAM1.
It is determined whether the product code matches the product code stored in the product code register No. 5. The result of this judgment is “YES”
In this case, the process advances to step SA6.

At step SA6, the received item name, price, or special sale price, and a flag indicating that it is a special sale price are stored in the register of the RAM 15, and then the process proceeds to step SA7. In step SA7, product data display processing is performed. This processing routine is shown in FIG. In this routine, in step SC1, it is determined whether the price stored in the register of the RAM 15 is a bargain price. This is done by determining whether or not the flag indicating the above-mentioned bargain price has been received. If the determination result in step SC1 is "YES", the process advances to step SC2.

At step SC2, the price stored in the register of the RAM 15 is displayed on the 7 segment LED of the display section 12.
12c and the product name in red on the liquid crystal display 12a of the display unit 12, the process returns to the routine shown in FIG. 10 and the series of operations is completed. On the other hand, if the determination result in step SC1 is "NO", that is, if the price stored in the register of the RAM 15 is not a special sale price, the process advances to step SC3. Step SC3 displays the special sale price stored in the register of the RAM 15 on the 7-segment LED 12c of the display section 12, and displays the product name on the liquid crystal display 12a of the display section 12 in black, that is, normal color. Return to the routine and complete the series of tasks.

In the routine of FIG. 10, step SA
If the determination result in Step 5 is "NO", that is, if the received product code does not match the product code stored in the product code register of the RAM 15, step SA4
Return to Further, if the determination result in step SA4 is "NO", that is, if the product code and product data transmitted from the store controller 1 have not been received, the process proceeds to step SA8.

In step SA8, it is determined whether two seconds have elapsed since the data transmission request signal was sent to the store controller 1. If the result of this judgment is "NO",
Return to step SA4. On the other hand, if the determination result in step SA8 is "YES", that is, if two seconds have elapsed since the data transmission request signal was sent to the store controller 1, the process advances to step SA9.

At step SA9, the value of counter C is 5.
Determine whether or not. If the result of this determination is "YES", the process advances to step SA10. Step SA10
After displaying the message that there is a communication error on the liquid crystal display 12a of the display unit 12, the series of operations ends. On the other hand, if the determination result in step SA9 is "NO", that is,
If the value of counter C is not 5, step SA11
Proceed to. In step SA11, the value of the counter C is incremented by 1, and then the process proceeds to step SA3.

By the way, the price of the product displayed on the shelf label device 8 is automatically changed from the regular price to the special sale price when the current time satisfies the special sale conditions (when the special sale period begins). Once this period has passed, the price will automatically change to the regular price. Hereinafter, the process by which the store controller 1 transmits product data to the shelf label device 8 in the above case will be described based on the flowchart shown in FIG. 13. In this embodiment, the special sale period is set in units of hours, so when the time on the clock with a calendar function inside the store controller 1 changes, for example, from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. The store controller 1 proceeds to the process of step SD1, reads data for each product from the special sale product file stored in the RAM, etc., and then proceeds to step SD2.

[0041] In step SD2, the time (current time) of the internal clock with a calendar function is compared with the sale conditions to determine whether the current time is the start of the sale. If the result of this determination is "YES", the process advances to step SD3. In step SD3, the product code, the product name read from the PLU file, the sale price read from the sale product file, and a flag indicating the sale price are transmitted to the shelf label device 8, and then the process proceeds to step SD6.

On the other hand, the judgment result in step SD2 is "NO".
'', that is, if the current time is not the start of the sale,
Proceed to step SD4. In step SD4, an internal clock with a calendar function (current time) is compared with the sale conditions to determine whether the current time is the end of the sale. If the result of this determination is "YES", the process advances to step SD5.

[0043] In step SD5, the product code and P
After transmitting the product name and price (regular price) read from the LU file to the shelf label device 8, the process advances to step SD6. In step SD6, it is determined whether or not the processes of steps SD1 to SD5 described above have been completed for all products stored in the special sale product file. This judgment result is “N”
In the case of "O", the process returns to step SD1 and the above-described process is repeated for the next product.

On the other hand, the judgment result in step SD6 is "YE".
In the case of "S", that is, steps SD1 to SD5 described above are performed for all products stored in the special sale product file.
When the processing is completed, the series of operations is completed. Note that the processing of the shelf label device 8 that has received the data transmitted from the store controller 1 is the same as the processing of steps SA5 to SA7 in the flowchart of FIG. 12 described above, so the explanation thereof will be omitted.

In the above-described embodiment, only the liquid crystal display 12a of the display unit 12 where the product name is displayed is changed in color, but the 4-digit 7-segment LED 12c where the selling price (unit price) is displayed is changed. Only the color can be changed or the LCD display 12a and 7 segment LED
12c may also be changed in color. Further, in the embodiment described above, an example was shown in which the color of the liquid crystal display 12a was changed to indicate that the product was on sale, but the present invention is not limited to this. In short, all that is needed is to draw the customer's attention to the fact that the item is on sale, so the font size may be changed, or the font size may be changed along with the color. Furthermore, in addition to the product name, advertising text indicating that the product is on sale, such as "Special Sale Product" or "Advertisement Product" may also be displayed on the liquid crystal display 12a. Also,
In addition to the above-mentioned display changes, a sound generating device may be built into the shelf label device 8 to notify the fact that the product is on sale by sound.

Furthermore, in one embodiment described above, P
Although an example using an LU file and a special sale product file has been shown, when displaying product data on the above-mentioned shelf label device 8, it is only necessary to be able to determine whether the product data is a special sale product, so it is sufficient to use the PLU file. The specific configuration of the file and special sale product file is not limited to the one embodiment described above. For example, during a sale period, the product data in the PLU file may be automatically rewritten to the product data at the time of the sale. In this case, the normal product data is stored in the store controller 1.
It is temporarily saved in the RAM, etc., and is automatically restored after the special sale period has passed.

In addition, in the embodiment described above, an example was shown in which the store controller 1 controlled the display of the shelf label device 8, but the shelf label device 8 is provided with an operation means for changing the display color, and The display color may also be changed by . Further, in the above-mentioned embodiment, an example is shown in which the shelf label device 8 is equipped with input means such as the operation section 13, the light receiving terminal section 16, and the optical input interface 17, but the shelf label device 8 is not equipped with the input means. Similar effects can be obtained by using a conventional shelf label device.

[0048]

[Effects of the Invention] As explained above, according to the present invention,
The following effects can be obtained. ■In addition to having all the advantages of traditional shelf labeling devices, the product data for sale items is differentiated from regular price product data and displayed in a format that attracts the viewer's attention, promoting sale items. You can expect advertising effects. ■Since the display format is automatically selected, no extra effort is required.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a store controller type POS system to which a product information display device according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a PLU file stored in a RAM or the like of the store controller 1.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a bargain product file stored in a RAM or the like of the store controller 1.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the electrical configuration of the shelf label device 8. FIG.

5 is a front view and a side view showing the external configuration of the shelf label device 8. FIG.

6 is a front view showing the external configuration of the display section 12 of the shelf label device 8. FIG.

7 is a front view and a side view showing the external configuration of the connection unit 22. FIG.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of the connection between the shelf label device 8 and the connection unit 22.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example in which the shelf label device 8 and the connection unit 22 are attached to a product display shelf.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the operation of the CPU 10.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing the operation of the store controller 1.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing the operation of the CPU 10.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing the operation of the store controller 1.

FIG. 14 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a PLU file of a conventional product information display device.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Store controller 2 ECR 8 Shelf label device 12 Display section 13　　　　Operation section 18 Barcode scanner 23 Product display shelf

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A management device comprising a product data storage means in which product data such as product name and price of the product is stored in advance in correspondence with a product identification code that is product identification data;
Consists of multiple shelf label devices arranged on product display shelves,
In a product information display device that displays product information on the shelf label device based on the product data stored in the storage means, it is determined whether the price of the product displayed on the shelf label device is a regular price or a special sale price. A product information display device comprising: a determining device; and a display control device that selects a display form of the product information to be displayed on the shelf label device based on a determination result of the determining device. [Claim 2] The display form selected in the case of a bargain price is one that draws the viewer's attention more than the display form selected in the case of a regular price. Product information display device. 3. The product information display device according to claim 2, wherein the display format selected in the case of a bargain price is red. 4. The product information display device according to claim 2, wherein the display format selected in the case of a bargain price is uppercase letters. 5. The product information display device according to claim 2, wherein in the case of a special sale price, an advertisement text is also written. 6. The shelf label device includes input means for inputting the product identification code, reads the product data corresponding to the input product identification code from the storage device of the management device, and stores the product data. The product information display device according to claim 1, wherein the product information is displayed based on. 7. The management device, when transmitting the product data to the shelf label device, also transmits data indicating whether the data regarding the price is a bargain price or not. product information display device.