JPS5913067B2 - electronic cash register - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION This invention provides an electronic cash register (Elec-tr).
onCashRegister (hereinafter referred to as "ECR"), especially EC in a format that separates registration and payment operations.
Regarding R.

Recently, easy-to-operate ECRs have been widely used in stores, supermarkets, etc. in place of conventional mechanical cash registers for the purpose of improving registration and checkout efficiency and reducing operator fatigue.

Generally, one operator operates one ECR,
Dealing with customers. Therefore, ECRs, which have been widely used in recent years, are only slightly more efficient than mechanical registers because processing for one customer cannot be completed until processing for the next customer is completed. FIG. 1 is an illustrative diagram schematically showing the registration and payment operations of a conventional ECR.

When the registration operation (single item registration) for customer A is completed, the operator then transfers money and goods according to the total purchase price of customer A, issues a receipt, and completes the payment operation. Further, the registration/settlement operation is sequentially executed for the customer BVC, and the registration/settlement operation is executed for the customer C. In this way, if each customer is processed sequentially (serially), the time for subsequent customers will cumulatively increase. There may be long waiting lines. In this way, a long waiting line results in poor service for customers, which is not a desirable thing. Further, in general, the payment operation requires approximately 1.5 times as much processing time as the registration operation. Therefore, if there were an ECR that could process registration and payment operations separately and in conjunction with each other, the amount of time it would take for customers to make payments would be greatly reduced. Therefore,
The applicant has developed an ECR system that separates registration and payment operations.
proposed.

FIG. 2 is an external view showing a separate type ECR, which is the background of this invention.

This ECR is provided with a registration section REG and a settlement section CAS. The registration section REG has 0P of the registration operation panel.
P1 is installed, and the payment section CAS has a payment operation panel 0.
PP2 is installed. These operation panels 0PP,,0P
P2 is provided with a keyboard necessary for each task. Furthermore, the settlement unit CAS includes a printer PR that issues a receipt to a customer or prints out business details, and a tray TRY that receives change from a change dispensing mechanism (not shown). A display section DIS is provided between the record section REG and the settlement section CAS. This display section DIS
is separated into a registration display section DIS1 and a payment display section DIS2, and each of the display sections DIS1 and DIS2 is configured to be visible from the registration section REG or the payment section CAS. Each display section DISl,D
IS2 is equipped with a product department code display, an amount display, and a function (the function that the ECR is currently working on) display, as will be described later. It is changed according to the needs of Regarding such a configuration, an outline of its operation (or operation) will be explained below with reference to FIG. First, the registration operator (hereinafter referred to as Checker 1) selects 0PP1 from the operation panel of the registration department REG.
Register the purchased items of customer A (single item) by operating .

At this time, sequential single item registration is displayed on the display section DIS1. When the registration process for customer A is completed, the registration department REG
The checker 1 subsequently starts the registration process for customer B. At this time, at the same time as the registration of customer A is completed in the registration unit REGVC (registration of customer B is started), the contents are transferred to the payment unit CAS. In response, the printer PR prints all the single item registrations for this customer A, and then prints the total price, and the display section DIS2 shows the customer A.
Display the total amount. According to the displayed total amount, customer A hands cash (or card, etc.) to a payment processing operator (hereinafter referred to as cashier), and the cashier hands change to customer A, if any, along with a receipt. In this way, customer A's registration and payment processing is performed. The checker's registration of customer B is completed during the payment period for customer A by the cashier, and the checker has already started registering individual items for customer C.

Therefore, the cashier subsequently starts payment processing for customer B. When customer B's payment processing starts, the checker may have already completed the single item registration for customer C. Therefore, the cashier starts the payment process for customer C as soon as customer B's payment is completed. In this way, since the operation panel, display section, etc. are provided separately and in conjunction with each other on the registration side and the payment side, the checker can continuously register individual items, while the cashier can continuously register the items according to the checker's registration. Payment processing can be carried out immediately.

Therefore, with a separate ECR, the checker and cashier only need to perform a single task independently, which makes it easier to get used to, and is more efficient than having the same person handle both registration and payment processing. . However, in the ECR that forms the background of this invention, the customer's total amount is displayed after all single item registrations are printed, so the customer looks at the total amount after printing it out and hands the cash to the cashier. However, in the case of separate ECR, if the checker has completed the registration of all single items for the same customer, it is possible to calculate the total amount before printing out, so the total amount can be calculated before printing out. It would be more efficient if the customer could prepare the total amount by displaying the figure and having the customer prepare the total amount while printing. Therefore, the main object of the present invention is to be able to calculate the total amount after completing the registration of all individual items in the separate ECR and before completing the printing out of the individual item registration information, thereby making it possible to calculate the total amount. The objective is to provide more efficient ECR. The above objects and other objects and features of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of one embodiment of the present invention.

In addition to the configuration, there is a registration operation panel 0P on one side of the checkerboard.
P1, a registration processing circuit CHA, and a display section DIS1 are provided. This operation panel 0PP1 is provided with a total key TK, a numerical key NK, and a plus call key PEK. On the other hand, on the cashier side, →
Closing operation key DK for closing operations such as cash closing and credit closing with 1
A payment operation panel 0PP2 including a printer PR,
A display means →u total amount display MD2 is provided. In connection with the checker side and the cashier side, a memory ME that sequentially stores the unit information registered for each unit in the registration processing circuit CHA and the amount of money for each unit stored in the memory ME are scanned. An arithmetic unit CPU as a control means including a scanning unit for calculating and deriving the total amount is provided. Next, referring to FIG. 4, the operation when the checker performs registration processing will be explained.

Now, the checker starts registering a single item for customer A using the numerical keys NK included in the registration operation panel 0PP1. First, the amount of each item to be registered is entered using the numerical key NK. At this time, since the flip-flop F1 is preset, the unit price from the numerical key NNK is stored in the unit price register R1 via the AND gate G1, and the flip-flop F3 is reset. Therefore, the AND gate G2 is opened by the reset output of the flip-flop F3. Therefore,
The unit price stored in the unit price register R1 is applied to the input of the 0R gate G5 via this gate G2. Accordingly, the amount of each item in the register R1 is stored in a predetermined area of the memory ME, which has a storage area capable of storing registration information of a plurality of customers (at least three customers), and the amount included in the registration display section DIS1. It is displayed on the display MDl. Next, press the plus equal key PEK. This press signal of the plastic key PEK sets the flip-flop F1. Therefore, AND gate G1 is closed, AND gate G3 is opened, and flip-flop F2 is set. moreover,
The set output of the flip-flop F1 resets the binary counter CT via the differentiating circuit D2. As described above, when the flip-flop F2 is set, the unit price lamp APL is lit to indicate that the numerical value displayed on the amount display MDl is the unit price. Next, the operator operates the numerical keys NK to input a product department code consisting of a two-digit numerical value. This department code is AN
Since the D gate G1 is closed, the signal does not enter the register R1, but is stored in a divisional register (not shown) and is applied to the differentiating circuit D1. Therefore, the differential circuit D
, two pulses are derived according to the two-digit numerical value, and A
It is applied to a binary counter CT via an ND gate G3. This binary counter CT thus derives a count-up output which resets flip-flops F1 and F2 and sets flip-flop F3. In response, AND gate G1 is opened, unit price lamp APL is turned off, and lamp TL is turned on. In this way, one single item registration operation is completed, and all subsequent registrations for customer A's purchased items are executed. The individual item amount information for all purchased items of this customer A is stored in the memory ME.
are sequentially stored in each area. In this way, when the single item registration for customer A is completed, the checker will press the →u total key T of the registration completion input means to indicate the completion of registration for one customer.
Press K. This total key TK press signal is A
ND gate G4 is opened. Accordingly, the end code representing the end of the single item registration for the same customer stored in advance in the end code register R2 is given to the memory ME via the AND gate G4 and the 0R gate G, and the end code is stored in advance in the end code register R2.
The next area of the last single item amount will be the door. Once all single product registrations for customer A are completed as described above,
Checker One registers a single item for the next customer B.

This customer B's single item price is sequentially stored in the memory ME in the same manner as described above. As described above, the prices of all individual items purchased by a plurality of customers are registered and sequentially stored in the memory ME.

The price of each item stored in this memory ME is read at a relatively low speed synchronized with the printing speed of the printer PR, is printed for each item by the printer PR, and is given to the adding circuit AD2 and added. Ru. At the same time, the arithmetic control unit CC increments the memory address counter AC by "+1" at a relatively high speed that is faster than scanning the entire area of the memory ME during the printing time of one single item. Each storage area is scanned to read out the price of each item purchased by customer A that has not yet been printed on the printer PR, and provides it to the addition circuit AD3 and as one input to the comparison circuit CO. Accordingly, the adder circuit AD
3 adds the unprinted price of each item purchased by customer A. At this time, the arithmetic control unit CC provides the end code as the other input of the comparison circuit CO. Therefore, when the comparator circuit CO detects an end code while scanning each area of the memory ME at high speed, it gives a step prohibition (that is, high-speed scanning prohibition) signal to the arithmetic control section CC, and also sends an arithmetic command signal to the arithmetic circuit AU. give to Therefore, the arithmetic circuit AU
is the total value of the single items printed so far on the printer PR, which has been counted by the adding circuit AD, and the total value of the remaining single items that have been scanned and read out, which has been counted by the adding circuit AD3, and then the customer Find the total amount of all the individual items purchased by A. This total amount for customer A is temporarily stored in the buffer register BR, and is displayed on the display MD2 before all the individual item amounts are printed and recorded by the printer PR. Therefore, customer A knows his/her own payment amount by looking at the total amount displayed on display MD2 before all single item amounts are printed and recorded and a receipt is issued. I can prepare. Further, the total amount stored in the buffer register BR is printed on the last line of the receipt by the printer PR. Therefore, money and goods can be exchanged between customer A and the cashier before the printing of all single item prices is completed, thereby reducing the time required for payment processing. After giving or receiving money or goods, the cashier presses a closing operation key DK such as a cash closing or a credit closing. Accordingly, the customer's payment processing operation is completed. Further, when the printer PR completes printing and recording of the remaining single item price and the total price stored in the buffer register BR, it issues a receipt. Accordingly, the cashier hands the customer a receipt along with change, if any. Figure 5 shows the separate ECR of this invention.
FIG. 4 is an illustrative diagram showing an operation sequence for performing registration processing and payment processing for a plurality of customers, and is a diagram illustrating the operation explanation of FIG. 4 described above in the order of operations.

The above-described registration and payment processing of the separate ECR can also be performed by an arithmetic processing device (for example, a computer).

FIG. 6 shows a flowchart when the present invention is achieved by an arithmetic processing device. Next, with reference to FIG. 5 and FIG. 6, the case where the processing is performed by an arithmetic processing device will be explained. In step 1, the checker determines whether a customer (customer B in FIG. 5) has registered a single item.

If there is a single item registration, the checker determines whether the storage area (memory that can store all single item registration information of multiple customers) is full based on the display in step 2.
If the memory area is not full, the checker executes a single item registration operation in step 3, and then proceeds to step 4.
The department hexagram and unit price of the registered single item are displayed.
In step 5, data on the price of each item is stored in the memory area. At the next step 6, it is determined whether the holding area is full or not.

If the holding area is full, the full area is displayed in step 7, and then the process proceeds to step 8. If the holding area is not full, proceed to step 8. At step 8, it is determined whether or not the single item registration operation for the same customer has been completed, and if it has not been completed, the operations from step 1 to step 8 described above are repeated.

When the single item registration operation for the same customer is completed in step 8 described above, the checker presses the key (total key TK) instructing the end of single item registration in step 9.

Accordingly, in step 10, an end code representing the end of single item registration for the same customer is stored in the memory area. In this way, on the checker side, the processes from step 1 to step 10 are performed for each customer. In step 1 above, if the customer has not registered a single item or the memory area is full, proceed to the next step 1.
Go to 1. At step 11, it is determined whether or not the previous customer (customer A in FIG. 5) is currently paying the bill. If the payment is not in progress, it is determined in step 12 whether or not there is data in the memory area. If there is data, each storage area of the memory is scanned at high speed to read out the store information. At this time, the presence or absence of an end code is determined in step 13, and if there is no end code, the information displayed on the display is temporarily erased in step 14. When an end code is detected while scanning each storage area of the memory, the process proceeds to step 13, where the summation of the data up to that point is performed. Next step 16, then step 15
The total amount calculated for the same customer is displayed on the cashier side display. Therefore, in step 17, money can be transferred between the customer and the cashier. There is no end code in step 13 above, and step 14
After the display is erased and until the end code is detected, data (single item, price, end code) is read out from the data area in step 18.

If there is no end code in the next step 19,
At step 20, the department code and unit price (unit price) of each item are printed and recorded. On the other hand, when the end code is detected in step 19, a flag indicating that the payment is being made is set in the next step 21, and in step 22, the close key DK which instructs payment to be made can be operated. Further, when it is determined that the payment is being made in step 11 (that is, the payment in progress flag is set), the closing operation is performed in the next step 23, and then in step 24. Data (eg, total amount, deposited amount, change, etc.) is printed and recorded.

Next, in step 25, the receipt paper on which data such as the price of each item is printed is automatically cut, and in step 26, it is cut into a receipt paper on which the price of each item is printed and recorded for the next customer (Customer C in Fig. 5). Fixed information such as the date and store name is printed and recorded, and the process goes to step 27 to reset the flag indicating that payment is in progress, thereby completing the registration process and payment process for one customer. As mentioned above, according to this embodiment, the separate ECRilC. In addition, the total amount for the customer can be displayed on the cashier side display after all single items have been registered for the same customer and before the single item registration information is printed out, so the customer does not have to give or receive money or goods during the printing process. can be done.

Therefore, payment processing can be done extremely quickly, and
Efficiency can be improved. As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to calculate the total amount after completing the registration of all individual items in the separate ECRK unit and before completing the printing of the individual item registration information, thereby making it possible to calculate the total amount more efficiently. ECR is obtained.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an illustrative diagram schematically showing the registration and payment operations of a conventional ECR. FIG. 2 is an external view showing a separate type ECR, which is the background of this invention. Figure 3 shows a separate ECR that is the background of this invention.
FIG. FIG. 4 is a block diagram of one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is an illustrative diagram showing an operation sequence for performing registration processing and payment processing for a plurality of customers using the separate ECR of the present invention. 6th
The figure shows a flowchart when the present invention is achieved by an arithmetic processing device. In the figure, REG is the registration department, 0PP1
卦 and 0PP2 are the operation panels, DIS is the display section, CHA
is a registration processing circuit, ME is a memory, CPU is an arithmetic unit, P
R indicates a printer.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. An electronic cash register separated into a registration side and a settlement side, wherein the registration side comprises a registration information input means for inputting registration information, and a registration information inputting means for instructing completion of input of registration information. and a completion input means, and the payment side includes at least a display means for displaying registered information, and a payment command means that is operated when handing over cash after the registration information is displayed on the display means, Furthermore, a memory is provided in connection with the registration side or the payment side and stores the input information, and a memory is provided for controlling the registration side and the payment side and controls the registration operation from the registration completion input means. and control means for scanning and reading answer information stored in the memory and displaying the read registration information on the display means in response to an input indicating completion. formula cash register. 2. The memory stores a coded signal indicating completion of registration subsequent to the registration information in response to an input indicating completion of the registration operation from the registration completion input means. An electronic cash register as described in Scope 1. 3. The control means has a calculation function, and calculates and derives the cumulative information of the registration information up to the registration completion coded signal stored in the memory in response to the output of the payment command means, and uses the calculation output as the 3. The electronic cash register according to claim 2, wherein the electronic cash register is displayed on a display means.