Information administering system for an eating house

• US 20080052174A1
• Filed: 10/18/2007
• Published: 02/28/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 08/02/2001
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Kazuo Okoyama, Keizo Uchioke, Satoru Goto, Takao Miyazaki
• Original Assignee: Kazuo Okoyama, Keizo Uchioke, Satoru Goto, Takao Miyazaki
• Inventors: Uchioke, Keizo, Goto, Satoru, Okoyama, Kazuo, Miyazaki, Takao
• Application Number:
  US11/907,925
• Publication Number:
  US 20080052174A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/15
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/20 Point-of-sale [POS] network systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/12 Hotels or restaurants

Abstract

A customer of an eating house orders refreshments by pressing a first touch panel provided at a customer'"'"'s seat, watching a liquid-crystal monitor on which a menu of the refreshment and an average cooking time thereof are displayed. A cook inputs cooking-state information with a second touch panel provided in a kitchen when cooking is started and is completed. The cooking-state information is displayed on the liquid-crystal monitor so that it is possible to confirm a cooking state of the ordered refreshment. When the ordered refreshment is untouched, the customer can cancel or urge the refreshment by pressing the first touch panel. Upon instructing a check with the first touch panel, the check is printed out from a printer. The customer can order, cancel and urge the refreshments without calling a waitperson.

Claims

1. A system for managing information for restaurant operations, comprising:

a first terminal unit associated with a customer, the first terminal further comprising

an input module which accepts instruction information supplied by the customer, and

a display which provides guidance information to the customer, wherein the guidance information includes information associated with a plurality of cooking states; and

a second terminal unit associated with a staff member and communicatively coupled to the first terminal unit, the second terminal unit further comprising

an input module which accepts the cooking state information, and

a display module which provides the instruction information for preparing refreshments for the customer.

2. The system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a restaurant computer communicatively coupled to the first terminal unit and the second terminal unit, the restaurant computer further comprising a storage device containing a plurality of databases having information used by at least one of the first terminal and the second terminal.

3. The system according to claim 2, wherein the plurality of databases further comprise at least one of menu database, a food value database, a price database, a cooking-time database, an order information database, and a cooking state information database.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein the first terminal unit further comprises:

a touch panel which provides an input interface to the customer;

a liquid crystal monitor which provides output information to the customer;

a processor which receives information from the touch panel and provides information to the liquid crystal monitor;

a printer operatively coupled to the processor; and

a communication interface operatively coupled to the processor and a network.

5. The system according to claim 1, wherein the second terminal unit further comprises:

a touch panel which provides an input interface to the staff;

a liquid crystal monitor which provides output information to the staff;

a processor which receives information from the touch panel and provides information to the liquid crystal monitor;

a printer operatively coupled to the processor; and

a communication interface operatively coupled to the processor and a network.

6. The system according to claim 1, wherein the instruction information comprises at least one of a selection of a refreshment, a quantity of a refreshment, cancellation of a selected refreshment, and a reminder for a selected refreshment.

7. The system according to claim 1, wherein the guidance information further comprises at least one of price information of refreshments, menu information of refreshments, food value information, and average cooking time information.

8. The system according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of cooking states comprises a served state, an undertaken state, and an untouched state.

9. A method for placing restaurant orders, comprising:

providing guidance information to a customer;

accepting instruction information for at least one refreshment item from the customer;

transmitting the instruction information to a terminal associated with a staff member; and

receiving guidance information from the terminal associated with a staff member, wherein the guidance information includes information associated with a plurality of cooking states.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein the instruction information comprises at least one of a selection of a refreshment, a quantity of a refreshment, cancellation of a selected refreshment, and a reminder for a selected refreshment.

11. The method according to claim 9, wherein the guidance information further comprises at least one of price information of refreshments, menu information of refreshments, food value information, and average cooking time information.

12. The method according to claim 9, wherein the plurality of cooking states comprises a served state, an undertaken state, and an untouched state.

13. A method for fulfilling restaurant orders, comprising:

receiving instruction information from a terminal associated with a customer;

accepting guidance information from a staff member, wherein the guidance information includes information associated with a plurality of cooking states; and

transmitting the guidance information to the terminal associated with the customer.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein the instruction information comprises at least one of a selection of a refreshment, a quantity of a refreshment, cancellation of a selected refreshment, and a reminder for a selected refreshment.

15. The method according to claim 13, wherein the guidance information further comprises at least one of price information of refreshments, menu information of refreshments, food value information, and average cooking time information.

16. The system according to claim 13, wherein the plurality of cooking states comprises a served state, an undertaken state, and an untouched state.