KR20230103120A - Smart showcase control and operation method - Google Patents

Abstract

A smart showcase control and operation method according to the present invention is disclosed. A shopping system according to an embodiment of the present invention includes display equipment disposed in a store and displaying various products to which IDs (Identifiers) are assigned; a stock warehouse for loading and storing the displayed products; a portable terminal that recognizes an ID of a product displayed on the display equipment and receives purchase information; a store server receiving a purchase list including IDs and numbers of products for which purchase is confirmed according to the purchase information from the mobile terminal and transmitting a picking command for products included in the received purchase list; and a transfer device that collects corresponding products from the exhibition equipment or the stock warehouse according to the picking command transmitted from the store server and transports the collected products to a pick-up location.

Description

Smart showcase control and operation method {SMART SHOWCASE CONTROL AND OPERATION METHOD}

The present invention relates to a method for controlling and operating a smart showcase, and more particularly, without the need to carry products displayed in a store in a shopping cart, enter them into a virtual cart provided by an app on a terminal, and automatically pack them when payment is completed. It relates to a smart showcase control and operation method that picks up or delivers.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] In general, when a customer wants to purchase a product at a large-scale product store or shopping center, the customer carries the purchased product to the store using a product storage moving means such as a basket or a shopping cart. Then, the customer puts the products they want to purchase into the product storage vehicle, selects the product, moves to the checkout counter, and calculates the value by listing the purchased products directly at the checkout counter, or the store employee puts the purchased product at the checkout counter. Through the provided POS (Point of Sale) terminal, barcode information for classifying the name and value of the product attached to the product is read as data and calculated again to complete the calculation of the product. After that, the user moves the calculated product to the vehicle, loads it, and moves it to a place where the product is used.

For this reason, all customers have to carry shopping carts by themselves, so the store is very crowded, and safety accidents such as collisions occur while moving. Accordingly, there is a problem in that the area of the store increases in order to secure a passage for the shopping cart.

In addition, management personnel such as retrieval of shopping carts are required, and when a purchase is canceled due to a change of heart, there is an inconvenience in that the product must be returned to the place where it was originally displayed.

In addition, there was an inconvenience in that customers had to take out the purchased products from the shopping cart one by one to pay at the checkout counter and then put them back into the shopping cart after the checkout was finished.

In addition, there was a problem in that a lot of calculation time was consumed because the store employee had to read the barcodes attached to the products one by one at the checkout counter and make calculations. As a result, customers wait in line at the checkout counter for a long time, and customer dissatisfaction increases day by day due to the fact that the area around the counter is always complicated.

Even if the number of cashiers and cashiers are increased, it is cumbersome because they have to read the barcodes of each product and make a calculation. there was.

As a way to solve this problem, Patent Registration No. 10-1635922 recognizes products in real time using a plurality of barcode recognition units in the cart, receives product information from the store server through a wireless communication network, calculates, and calculates By paying for products through linkage between the store server and the payment server through the wireless communication network, there is no need to spend time for calculation and payment at the store, and costs can be reduced by reducing cashiers, but still using a cart There is discomfort caused by

Registered Patent Publication No. 10-1635922

The present invention is to solve the problems of the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to use a mobile terminal to recognize the ID of a product displayed on a shelf, put it in a virtual shopping cart, and complete a purchase. An object of the present invention is to provide a system and method for shopping using a portable terminal that packs and picks up or delivers.

Another object of the present invention is to display all the actual products prepared on the shelf for products that require direct selection by consumers among the same kind of products, such as fresh food such as meat or fish or side dish products, and to display the product selected by the consumer to a transport means. An object of the present invention is to provide a system and method for shopping using a portable terminal that does not require carrying a shopping cart by being transported and picked up or delivered.

However, the object of the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned matters, and other objects not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the description below.

In order to achieve the above objects, a shopping system according to one aspect of the present invention is a first product to which an ID (Identifier) is assigned in a store (products of the same kind do not require direct selection by consumers because they have the same quality and specifications) A first exhibition stand displaying samples of; a mobile terminal for inputting purchase information of a first product that the customer wants to purchase; a store server receiving a purchase list of a first product whose purchase is confirmed from the mobile terminal and transmitting a picking command for products included in the purchase list; and a first transfer means for transporting a first product included in a purchase list from a stock warehouse to a pick-up location or a cash register according to a picking command transmitted from the store server.

In addition, a second display stand disposed in the store and displaying a second product to which an ID (Identifier) is assigned; and a second transfer means for transporting the product selected by the customer among the second products displayed on the second exhibition stand (products of the same kind that require direct selection by the consumer because the quality and specifications are different). It is desirable to do

In addition, the first display stand preferably displays samples of the first product having the same appearance and quality among products of the same kind, and the second display stand preferably displays actual products of the second product having different appearance or quality even though they are of the same kind.

It is also preferable to further include a packaging machine for collecting and packaging the first product transported by the first transport means and the second product transported by the second transport means.

In addition, a payment server that receives a payment request transmitted from the mobile terminal through the store server, processes payment for the corresponding product according to the payment request, and transmits the payment completion information to the store server as a result of the processing. It is preferable to include more.

A shopping method according to the present invention includes the steps of viewing a sample of a first product displayed in a first exhibition stand and inputting purchase information through a mobile terminal; transmitting a purchase list including a first product whose purchase is confirmed according to the purchase information from the portable terminal to a store server; and transferring, by a first transfer means, the first product included in the purchase list from the storage warehouse to a pick-up location or cash register.

In addition, it is preferable to further include a step of transferring the product selected by the customer from among the second products displayed on the second exhibition stand to a pick-up location or a checkout counter.

In addition, it is preferable to further include a packaging step of collecting and packaging the first product transported by the first transport means and the second product transported by the second transport means.

As such, the present invention recognizes the ID of a sample product displayed on a shelf using a mobile terminal and puts it in a virtual shopping cart to complete purchase, and the actual product stored in the inventory is automatically packed and picked up or delivered. No need to lug around the shopping cart.

As a result, the area of the store is drastically reduced, safety accidents can be prevented, and manpower or space for managing the shopping cart is unnecessary.

In addition, since it is sufficient to display only sample products on the shelves installed in the store, the display space can be drastically reduced and more types of products can be displayed.

In addition, since only one or a minimum number of samples are displayed on the shelf, there is no need to double inventory management on the shelf and inventory in the warehouse.

In addition, since purchase and payment are made through a mobile terminal, the present invention can reduce congestion at the product checkout counter and reduce waiting time at the checkout counter.

In addition, the present invention may automatically move the selected product from the product storage warehouse to the original storage location when processing a return of the product selected for purchase due to a customer's change of mind.

On the other hand, for products that require direct selection by consumers (second product) among products of the same kind, such as fresh food such as meat or fish or side dishes, all actual products prepared on the shelf are displayed, and the product selected by the consumer is transported by means of transportation. By being automatically transported and packaged for pick-up or delivery, again, there is no need to lug around a shopping cart.

1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of a shopping system according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2 and 3 are diagrams showing detailed configurations of the exhibition equipment shown in FIG. 1 .
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration of the portable terminal shown in FIG. 1 .
5 is a diagram showing a virtual shopping cart displayed on a screen of a portable terminal.
6 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration of the store server shown in FIG. 1;
7 is a diagram illustrating a method for shopping according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, a system and method for shopping using a portable terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. It will be described in detail focusing on the parts necessary for understanding the operation and action according to the present invention.

In addition, in describing the components of the present invention, different reference numerals may be assigned to components having the same name according to the drawings, and the same reference numerals may be assigned despite different drawings. However, even in this case, it does not mean that the corresponding component has different functions according to the embodiment, or that it has the same function in different embodiments. Judgment will have to be made based on the description of each component in the examples.

In particular, in the present invention, when a mobile terminal is used to recognize the ID of a product displayed on a shelf and put it in a virtual shopping cart to complete a purchase, the product stored in the product storage warehouse is shipped in the actual shopping cart or automatically packed and picked up. can make it possible Furthermore, we propose a new shopping system that enables delivery to the desired address.

1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of a shopping system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, the shopping system according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a mobile terminal 110, a first exhibition stand 121, a second exhibition stand 122, a store server 130, a payment server 140, inventory It may include a warehouse 150, a first transport means 160, and a second transport means 170.

The portable terminal 110 is a device for recognizing the ID of a product in a store and may be assigned a unique ID. The portable terminal 110 may be a smart phone used by a customer or a separate recognition device disposed in a store to recognize a product to be purchased. If the mobile terminal 110 is a smart phone used by a customer, it is used after downloading and installing a dedicated application for a smart phone used in the store.

The mobile terminal 110 may recognize IDs of products displayed on the first exhibition stand 121 and the second exhibition stand 122 and directly receive purchase information for the recognized product from the customer. For example, it may include the ID of the product, the number of products, the expected shopping completion time, payment completion, and delivery.

When the purchase of the product is confirmed, the mobile terminal 110 may transmit a release command to the store server 130 .

When a release command is transmitted from the portable terminal 110, the store server 130 packs the products delivered from the first transportation means 160 and the second transportation means 171 to a place where the user picks up or packs them. Transfer or arrange delivery to the address specified by the user.

The first display stand 121 may be disposed in a store and display a sample of a first product to which an ID is assigned. In addition, the second display stand 122 displays actual products of the second product.

The first display stand 121 displays a sample of a first product having the same appearance, quality, and standard among products of the same kind, and the second display stand 122 displays an actual product of a second product having a different appearance or quality even though it is the same product. is to list.

2 and 3 are diagrams showing the detailed configuration of the exhibition stand shown in FIG. 1 .

Referring to FIG. 2 , the first display stand 121 may display a first product, which is a product group having the same appearance, quality, and standard. Sample products may be displayed because they have the same appearance or packaging. These sample products may include industrial products such as toothpaste 211, canned food 212, instant noodles 213, and sweets 214.

Referring to FIG. 3 , the second display stand 122 may display actual products of a second product of a product group having different appearances, quality, specifications, etc. even if they are products of the same type. Actual products must be on display.

The second product 200B may include, for example, fresh foods such as meat 221, marine products 222, vegetables 223, side dishes 224, and fish 225. These products have different selection criteria for each consumer.

The reason why the first product and the second product are displayed separately is that the customer selects the second product after directly checking the state of the product with the naked eye, so that the actual product, not the sample product, should be displayed. For example, when purchasing beef, some consumers can choose according to their own criteria by looking at the color or marbling of the product.

Referring back to FIG. 1 , the store server 130 interworks with the portable terminal 110 and receives a purchase list including IDs and numbers of products for which purchase is confirmed from the portable terminal 110, and displays the provided purchase list. A picking command for the included product may be transmitted to the first transport means 160 .

At this time, the store server 130 may transmit a picking command for the product included in the purchase list to the conveying equipment when payment for the product included in the provided purchase list is completed.

The store server 130 interworks with the payment server 140, receives a payment request from the mobile terminal, requests the payment server to process payment for the product according to the payment request, and sends payment completion information to the payment server in response. can be received from

The payment server 140 interlocks with the store server 130, receives a payment request transmitted from a mobile terminal through the store server 130, processes payment for the corresponding product according to the payment request, and pays as a result of the processing. Completion information may be transmitted to the store server 130 .

The stock warehouse 150 is located in a place separate from the store, such as a store basement.

The first transfer unit 160 may interwork with the store server 130 and, upon receiving a picking command from the store server 130, collect products requested for picking from the stock warehouse 150 and transfer them to the shopping cart.

The first transportation means 160 may also load the returned goods requested in the stock warehouse 150 among the collected goods when there is a return request due to a change of mind of the customer regarding the purchased goods.

At this time, the transportation means is divided into the first transportation means 160 and the second transportation means 171, and the first transportation means 160 recognizes the ID of the product through the mobile terminal, outside the store or underground Collects the products loaded in the stock warehouse 150, which is located in the store and transports the products to the user's shopping cart, and the second transport means 171 is the second display unit displayed on the second display stand in the store. 2 When the customer directly selects the product, the corresponding actual product is collected and transferred to the store checkout, and the product transferred through the first transport means 160 and the transported product through the second transport means 171 are used for actual shopping. can be put on a card.

Alternatively, the products transported by the first transport unit 160 and the second transport unit 170 may be automatically packaged in a box using a packaging machine. Since the packaging machine is a well-known means, a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 3, in this embodiment, the second transport means 171 includes a tote 171 provided near the second exhibition stand 122 and transports the tote 171 to a pick-up place or a packaging machine. It includes a shuttle 172 that transports to a place where there is a shuttle 172 and a movement path 173 along which the shuttle 172 moves. The tote 171 is a kind of plastic box containing the second product selected by the user, and when the customer selects the second product 200B and puts it on the tote 171, the shuttle 172 carrying the tote 171 It is transported to a pick-up place, a packing place, or a cash register along the moving route, and is collected together with the first product on the purchase list.

For example, after recognizing the ID of the actual product selected by the customer, the customer directly rides the tote 171 of the product on the shuttle 172 and transfers it to the storage rack, and when the user presses the shopping completion button on the mobile terminal, the checkout counter or product is packed. The product is transported to the place where the product is delivered or to the pickup location where the customer picks up the product after shopping. The storage rack in which the second products are transported and stored is equipped with a refrigeration facility for maintaining the freshness of the products.

Since a unique ID is assigned to the tote 171 and managed, the ID of the customer's portable terminal, the ID of the selected actual product, and the ID of the tote 171 are matched and managed. Therefore, when the user selects the second product, the selected second product is removed from the second exhibition stand, stored in the tote 171 to which the user's unique ID is assigned, and follows the user on the shuttle 172, so that the user There is no need to carry or push a shopping cart.

In the present invention, unlike the above embodiment, the tote 171 is not provided, and the second products selected by several users can be transported to the storage rack through the always-passing shuttle 172 or conveyor in the selected order without discrimination by the user. there is. In this case, a unique ID is given to each second product displayed on the second exhibition stand even if it is the same product, and the second products are assigned to each user in the store server in the storage rack according to the purchase information transmitted through the mobile terminal. The work of classifying and storing in a separate shopping cart or packing box is required.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration of the portable terminal shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a virtual shopping cart displayed on the screen of the portable terminal.

Referring to FIG. 4 , a portable terminal 110 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a communication unit 111, an input unit 112, a recognition unit 113, a control unit 114, a display unit 115, and a storage unit 116. ) may be included.

The communication unit 111 may transmit or receive various types of information by interworking with the store server. For example, the communication unit 111 may transmit a release command for purchased products to the store server.

The input unit 112 may receive information according to a user's menu or key manipulation. For example, the input unit 112 may receive purchase information on a purchased product.

The recognition unit 113 may recognize an ID of a product, for example, a bar code, a radio frequency identification tag (RFID) tag, or a quick response code (QR code).

The control unit 114 may control each function in conjunction with various devices in the portable terminal.

The display unit 115 may display a purchase list of products for which the ID has been recognized on the screen. Referring to FIG. 5 , products contained in a virtual shopping cart 115a are displayed on the display unit 115 . At this time, the controller 114 may turn on or off the virtual shopping state according to the user's manipulation.

In addition, on the display unit 115, a cancel button for canceling the purchase of products in the virtual shopping cart 115a is displayed for each product, the total purchase amount, and a completion button for selecting shopping completion are displayed.

The storage unit 116 may store a purchase list including products whose IDs are recognized.

6 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration of the store server shown in FIG. 1;

Referring to FIG. 6 , the store server 130 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a first communication unit 131, a second communication unit 132, a third communication unit 133, a control unit 134, and a database. (135) may be included.

The first communication unit 131 may transmit/receive various types of information through wireless communication with the mobile terminal in conjunction with the mobile terminal. For example, the first communication unit 131 may receive a purchase list including IDs and numbers of products for which purchase is confirmed according to purchase information from the portable terminal.

The second communication unit 132 may transmit/receive various types of information through wireless communication with the transport device in conjunction with the transport device. For example, the second communication unit 132 may transmit a picking command of a product included in the provided purchase list to the transfer equipment.

The third communication unit 133 may interwork with the payment server and transmit/receive various types of information with the payment server through wireless communication. For example, the third communication unit 133 transmits payment request information from the portable terminal to the payment server, and as a result of processing payment for the corresponding product according to the transmitted payment request information, payment completion information is sent from the payment server. can receive

The control unit 134 may control each function by interworking with various devices in the store server.

The database 135 may store an ID of a mobile terminal, an ID of a transfer device, an ID of a product, a purchase list provided from a mobile terminal, and payment completion information provided from a payment server.

7 is a diagram illustrating a method for shopping according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 7 , the portable terminal 110 first recognizes the ID of a product that the user wants to purchase among the products displayed on the exhibition equipment while walking around the store (S610), and can receive purchase information (S611). ).

Next, when the purchase of the product is confirmed, the mobile terminal 110 generates a purchase list including the ID and number of the product for which the purchase is confirmed (S612), and sends a release command including the generated purchase list to the store server ( 130) (S613).

Next, the store server 130 receives a purchase list including IDs and numbers of products for which purchase is confirmed from the mobile terminal 110, and requests the payment server 140 to process payment for the provided purchase list. It can (S614).

Next, the payment server 140 may process payment for the purchase list according to the payment request (S615) and transmit payment completion information to the store server 130 as a result of the processing (S616).

Next, when the payment for the product included in the purchase list is completed (S617), the store server 130 may transmit a picking command for the product included in the purchase list to the first transportation means 160 (S618). ).

Next, when receiving a picking command from the store server 130, the first transport means 160 may collect the products requested for picking from the stock warehouse 150 (S619) and transfer them to the shopping cart (S620).

The products transferred to the shopping cart may be packaged and delivered or shipped to customers.

In addition, the second product selected by the customer may be delivered or delivered to the customer by transferring it to a pick-up place, a cash register, or a place with a packaging machine through the second transport means 170 .

Meanwhile, the user may reserve a delivery destination and a delivery time through a mobile terminal. For example, entering a specific address and entering a delivery time.

In addition, the user can reserve the delivery time through the mobile terminal. For example, if a user reserves a delivery time at a specific time when entering a store or after entering the store, the store server calculates the transfer time and packing time in reverse from the reserved delivery time and stores the purchased product according to the reserved delivery time. The payment is completed, packed, and transported to the pick-up location.

Alternatively, when the user has not reserved the delivery time, the store server may prepare delivery in advance according to the entrance time based on the average shopping time. The average shopping time can be set in advance in consideration of the user's age, gender, region, and shopping time (including the day of the week).

On the other hand, even if all components constituting the embodiments of the present invention described above are described as being combined or operated as one, the present invention is not necessarily limited to these embodiments. That is, within the scope of the object of the present invention, all of the components may be selectively combined with one or more to operate. In addition, although all of the components may be implemented as a single independent piece of hardware, some or all of the components are selectively combined to perform some or all of the combined functions in one or a plurality of hardware. It may be implemented as a computer program having. In addition, such a computer program can implement an embodiment of the present invention by being stored in a computer readable storage medium such as a USB memory, a CD disk, a flash memory, etc. and read and executed by a computer. A storage medium of a computer program may include a magnetic recording medium, an optical recording medium, and the like.

The embodiments described above are examples, and various modifications and variations may be made to those skilled in the art without departing from the essential characteristics of the present invention. Therefore, the embodiments disclosed in the present invention are not intended to limit the technical idea of the present invention, but to explain, and the scope of the technical idea of the present invention is not limited by these embodiments. The protection scope of the present invention should be construed according to the claims below, and all technical ideas within the equivalent range should be construed as being included in the scope of the present invention.

110: mobile terminal
121: first exhibition stand
122: second exhibition stand
130: store server
140: payment server
150: warehouse
160: first transfer means
170: second transfer means
171: tote
172: shuttle

Claims (7)

A first display stand for displaying samples of a first product (products of the same type having the same appearance, quality, and specifications that do not require direct selection by consumers) disposed in the store and assigned an ID (identifier);
a mobile terminal for inputting purchase information of a first product that the customer wants to purchase;
a store server receiving a purchase list of a first product whose purchase is confirmed from the mobile terminal and transmitting a picking command for products included in the purchase list; and
A smart showcase control and operating method comprising: a first transport means for transporting a first product included in a purchase list from a stock warehouse to a pick-up location or a cash register according to a picking command transmitted from the store server. According to claim 1,
a second display stand arranged in the store and displaying actual products of the second products (products of the same type that require direct selection by consumers because the appearance, quality, and specifications of products of the same type are different) to which an ID (Identifier) has been assigned; and
A smart showcase control and operation method comprising: a second transport means for transporting a product selected by a customer from among the second products displayed on the second exhibition stand to a pick-up place or a cash register. According to claim 1 or 2,
Smart showcase control and operation method characterized in that it further comprises; a packaging machine for automatically packaging by collecting the first product transported by the first transport means and the second product transported by the second transport means. According to claim 1 or 2,
A payment server that receives a payment request transmitted from the mobile terminal through the store server, processes payment for the corresponding product according to the payment request, and transmits the payment completion information to the store server as a result of the processing; Smart showcase control and operation method including. viewing a sample of a first product displayed in a first exhibition stand and inputting purchase information through a mobile terminal;
transmitting a purchase list including a first product whose purchase is confirmed according to the purchase information from the portable terminal to a store server; and
A smart showcase control and operating method comprising the steps of: a first transport means transferring the first product included in the purchase list from the storage warehouse to the pick-up location or checkout counter. According to claim 5,
Smart showcase control and operation method further comprising the step of transferring the product selected by the customer from among the second products displayed in the second exhibition stand to a pick-up location or a cash register. According to claim 5 or 6,
Smart showcase control and operation method characterized in that it further comprises a packaging step of collecting and packaging the first product transported by the first transport means and the second product transported by the second transport means.

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