Electronic coupon system, contribution level calculation method, electronic coupon processing device, and electronic coupon processing program

• US 20060195360A1
• Filed: 02/27/2006
• Published: 08/31/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 02/28/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Toshiba Tec Corporation (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toshiba Tec Corporation (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Tomiyama, Takashi, Ishida, Kozo, Watanabe, Naoki, Narahashi, Masaki, Kunieda, Shigetoshi
• Application Number:
  US11/363,147
• Publication Number:
  US 20060195360A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/14.25
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0224 based on user history
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0236 Incentive or reward received by requiring registration or ID from user
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0238 at point-of-sale [POS]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0267 Wireless devices

Abstract

An electronic coupon system adds identification information for specifying users to electronic coupons every time electronic coupons are distributed among users, and when the electronic coupons are used, the identification information added to the electronic coupons are acquired as a distribution history of the electronic coupons distributed among the users. A contribution level of each user is calculated by using the acquired distribution history.

Claims

1. An electronic coupon system comprising:

a plurality of portable terminals which are configured to communicate with one another and which have identification information for specifying users;

a server configured to communicate with the portable terminals via a network;

a POS terminal configured to communicate with the portable terminals via a short-range radio; and

an information terminal configured to communicate with the POS terminal via a network, wherein

the server comprises means for issuing electronic coupons, the portable terminals each comprise means for receiving the electronic coupons issued by the server;

means for transmitting and receiving the electronic coupons among the portable terminals;

means for newly adding identification information to the electronic coupons every time the portable terminals receive the electronic coupons;

the POS terminal comprises means for receiving an electronic coupon to which at least one of the identification information has been added, from the portable terminals;

the POS terminal comprises means for acquiring identification information from the electronic coupons, the information terminal comprises means for receiving and storing identification information for said each electronic coupon from the POS terminal;

the information terminal comprises means for arraying the stored identification information in order of adding to the electronic coupons for said each electronic coupon;

the information terminal comprises means for displaying the arrayed identification information; and

means for calculating contribution levels of users who have used the electronic coupons on the basis of the arrayed identification information.

2. A contribution level calculation system of an electronic coupon processing device configured to communicate via a network with a settlement processing device configured to communicate via a short-range radio with a plurality of portable terminals which are configured to communicate with one another and which have identification information for specifying users, the contribution level calculation system comprising:

means for receiving history information and unique information which have been extracted by the settlement processing device from an electronic coupon in which at least the unique information for specifying the electronic coupon is stored along with the history information in which the identification data are added as a history at the time of being transmitted and received among said plurality of portable terminals;

means for recording the received history information and unique information so as to be associated with each other;

means for sorting and arraying the stored history information and unique information in a predetermined order;

means for calculating contribution levels of said plurality of portable terminals with respect to electronic coupons used for settlement in the settlement processing device on the basis of the arrayed history information and unique information;

means for adding up the calculated contribution levels with respect to all of the stored history information and unique information for said each identification information; and

means for displaying the identification information arrayed in a tree form with identification information stored at the start in the electronic coupon among the identification information added as a history to the history information being as a root, along with contribution level information showing a contribution level of said each added-up identification information.

3. The contribution level calculation system according to claim 2, wherein with respect to the arrayed identification information, the means for calculating contribution levels provides a first value to identification information added to the electronic coupon at the end;

when there is identification information which is adjacent to the identification information having the first value provided thereto, and which has been added to an electronic coupon previously, provides a second value obtained by multiplying the first value by a given ratio to the adjacent identification information;

changes a value obtained by subtracting the second value from the first value to a first value, and determines the changed first value and the second value to be contribution levels of a user specified by the identification information to which the respective values have been provided.

4. The contribution level calculation system according to claim 3, wherein, when the identification information having the second value provided thereto is the identification information that is added to the electronic coupon at the end previously, a value obtained by adding the first value and the second value is determined to be a contribution level of the identification information.

5. The contribution level calculation system according to claim 3, wherein, when there is identification information which is adjacent to the identification information having the second value provided thereto, and which has been added to an electronic coupon previously, a contribution level calculation is carried out with the second value being as the first value.

6. The contribution level calculation system according to claim 5, wherein, when the identification information having the second value provided thereto is the identification information that is added to the electronic coupon at the end previously, a value obtained by adding the first value and the second value is determined to be a contribution level of the identification information.

7. The contribution level calculation system according to claim 3, wherein, when a plurality of the second values are provided to the identification information, a value obtained by adding all the second values is determined to be a contribution level of the identification information.

8. An electronic coupon processing device configured to communicate via a network with a settlement processing device configured to communicate via a short-range radio with a plurality of portable terminals which are configured to communicate with one another and which have identification information for specifying users, the electronic coupon processing device comprising:

receiving means for receiving history information and unique information which have been extracted by the settlement processing device from an electronic coupon in which at least the unique information for specifying the electronic coupon is stored along with the history information in which the identification data are added as a history at the time of being transmitted and received among said plurality of portable terminals;

storing means for storing the history information and the unique information which have been received by the receiving means so as to be associated with each other;

arraying means for sorting and arraying in a predetermined order the history information and the unique information which have been stored in the storing means;

contribution level calculating means for calculating contribution levels of said plurality of portable terminals with respect to electronic coupons used for settlement in the settlement processing device on the basis of the history information and the unique information which have been arrayed by the arraying means;

adding-up means for adding up the contribution levels calculated by the contribution level calculating means for said each identification information with respect to all of the history information and the unique information stored in the storing means; and

display means for displaying the identification information arrayed in a tree form with identification information stored at the start in the electronic coupon among the identification information added as a history to the history information being as a root, along with contribution level information showing a contribution level of said each identification information added up by the adding-up means.

9. The electronic coupon processing device according to claim 8, wherein, with respect to the identification information and the contribution level information which are displayed in a tree form by the display means, any one or more of a character style, a size of characters, a color of characters, a thickness of frame lines, and a color of frame lines of display of the identification information added as a history to the electronic coupon at the end and the contribution level information are displayed so as to be different from a character style, a size of characters, a color of characters, a thickness of frame lines, and a color of frame lines of display of the other identification information and contribution level information.

10. An electronic coupon processing program which causes a computer to realize:

a function of receiving history information and unique information which have been extracted by a settlement processing device from an electronic coupon in which at least the unique information for specifying the electronic coupon is stored along with the history information in which, at the time of being transmitted and received among a plurality of portable terminals which are configured to communicate with one another and which have identification information for specifying users, the identification information are added as a history;

a function of storing the received history information and unique information so as to be associated with each other;

a function of sorting and arraying the stored history information and unique information in a predetermined order;

a function of calculating contribution levels of said plurality of portable terminals with respect to electronic coupons used for settlement in the settlement processing device on the basis of the arrayed history information and unique information;

a function of adding up the calculated contribution levels for said each identification information with respect to all of the history information and the unique information which have been stored; and

a function of displaying the identification information arrayed in a tree form with identification information stored at the start in the electronic coupon among the identification information added as a history to the history information being as a root, along with contribution level information showing a contribution level of said each added-up identification information.

11. The electronic coupon processing program according to claim 10, wherein, with respect to the identification information and the contribution level information to be displayed, any one or more of a character style, a size of characters, a color of characters, a thickness of frame lines, and a color of frame lines of display of the identification information added as a history to the electronic coupon at the end and the contribution level information corresponding to the identification information are displayed so as to be different from a character style, a size of characters, a color of characters, a thickness of frame lines, and a color of frame lines of display of the other identification information and contribution level information.