POS system

• US 5,821,514 A
• Filed: 07/31/1997
• Issued: 10/13/1998
• Est. Priority Date: 11/29/1993
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Fujitsu Frontech Limited (Fujitsu Limited), Fujitsu Limited
• Original Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Inventors: Sato, Miyuki, Kikuchi, Kaoru, Yoshinaga, Shinichi
• Primary Examiner(s): PITTS, HAROLD I
• Application Number:
  US08/904,344
• Time in Patent Office: 439 Days
• Field of Search: 235/375, 235/383, 235/385
• US Class Current: 235/383
• CPC Class Codes: A47F 9/048 automatically
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2002/453 self-scanning
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 17/0022 arrangements or provisious for transferring data to distant stations, e.g. from a sensing device "transfer between computer elements G06F13/00 "; data-transmission H04L
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/343 Cards including a counter
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/02 by keys or other credit registering devices
• CPC Class Codes: G07G 1/0045 with a code reader for reading of an identifying code of the article to be registered, e.g. barcode reader or radio-frequency identity [RFID] reader

Abstract

The invention provides a POS system which employs a purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus having a self scanning function and is improved in that the access time for data transfer processing is reduced to reduce the time required for settlement of accounts and complete transfer of data is assured to enhance the reliability. A two-dimensional bar code printing section is provided on the purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus and prints commodity code information from a commodity code reading section as a two-dimensional bar code. A two-dimensional bar code reading section for reading the two-dimensional bar code printed by the two-dimensional bar code printing section, a price retrieval section for retrieving prices of commodities in the accommodation section in accordance with the two-dimensional bar code information, and a totalization section for performing final settlement of accounts for the purchased commodities accommodated in the accommodation section in accordance with a result of the retrieval by the price retrieval section are provided on a settlement POS terminal.

Claims

1. A POS system, comprising:

a purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus having a self scanning function and including a commodity code reading section for reading a commodity code applied to a commodity and an accommodation section for accommodating therein a commodity whose commodity code has been read by said commodity code reading section;

a settlement POS terminal for performing final settlement of accounts for purchased commodities accommodated in said accommodation section of said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus;

a two-dimensional bar code printing section provided on said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus for printing commodity code information read by said commodity code reading section as a two-dimensional bar code;

a two-dimensional bar code reading section provided on said settlement POS terminal for reading the two-dimensional bar code printed by said two-dimensional bar code printing section of said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus;

a price retrieval section provided on said settlement POS terminal for retrieving prices of commodities accommodated in said accommodation section of said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus in accordance with the two-dimensional bar code information read by said two-dimensional bar code reading section; and

a totalization section provided on said settlement POS terminal for performing final settlement of accounts for the purchased commodities accommodated in said accommodation section of said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus in accordance with a result of the retrieval by said price retrieval section.

2. The POS system as claimed in claim 1, wherein said price retrieval section refers to a commodity information file, in which price information of the commodities corresponding to the commodity code information is stored as commodity information, to retrieve prices of the commodities.

3. The POS system as claimed in claim 2, wherein said commodity information file is provided in said settlement POS terminal.

4. The POS system as claimed in claim 2, wherein said commodity information file is provided in an upper control apparatus which controls said settlement POS terminal.

5. A POS system, comprising:

a purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus having a self scanning function and including a commodity code reading section for reading a commodity code applied to a commodity and an accommodation section for accommodating therein a commodity whose commodity code has been read by said commodity code reading section;

a settlement POS terminal for performing final settlement of accounts for purchased commodities accommodated in said accommodation section of said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus;

a price retrieval section provided in said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus for retrieving prices of the commodities accommodated in said accommodation section of said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus in accordance with commodity code information read by said commodity code reading section;

a calculation section provided in said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus for calculating a total value of the prices of the commodities in accordance with a result of the retrieval by said price retrieval section;

a detailed log production section provided on said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus for producing a detailed log of the purchased commodities in accordance with the result of the retrieval by said price retrieval section and a result of the calculation by said calculation section;

a two-dimensional bar code printing section provided on said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus for printing the detailed log produced by said detailed log production section as a two-dimensional bar code;

a two-dimensional bar code reading section provided on said settlement POS terminal for reading the two-dimensional bar code printed by said two-dimensional bar code printing section of said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus; and

a totalization section provided on said settlement POS terminal for performing final settlement of accounts for the purchased commodities accommodated in said accommodation section of said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus in accordance with a result of the reading by said two-dimensional bar code reading section.

6. The POS system as claimed in claim 5, wherein said price retrieval section refers to a commodity information file, in which price information of the commodities corresponding to the commodity code information is stored as commodity information, to retrieve prices of the commodities.

7. The POS system as claimed in claim 6, wherein said commodity information file is provided on said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus.

8. The POS system as claimed in claim 6, wherein said commodity information file is provided in an upper control apparatus which controls said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus.

16. The POS system as claimed in claim 7, further comprising:

an upper control apparatus for controlling said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus;

an error determination section provided on said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus for determining whether or not an error has occurred upon price retrieval by said price retrieval section;

a transmitting section provided on said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus for transmitting a price retrieval request having the commodity code information read by said commodity code reading section when it is determined by said error determination section than an error has occurred;

a price retrieval section provided in said upper control apparatus for retrieving prices in accordance with the commodity code information added to the price retrieval request from said transmitting section; and

a receiving section provided on said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus for receiving a result of the retrieval by said price retrieval of said upper control apparatus and outputting the result of the retrieval to said calculation section.

9. A POS system, comprising:

a purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus having a self scanning function and including a commodity code reading section for reading a commodity code applied to a commodity and an accommodation section for accommodating therein a commodity whose commodity code has been read by said commodity code reading section;

a settlement POS terminal for performing final settlement of accounts for purchased commodities accommodated in said accommodation section of said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus;

a first price retrieval section provided in said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus for retrieving prices of the commodities accommodated in said accommodation section of said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus in accordance with commodity code information read by said commodity code reading section;

a calculation section provided in said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus for calculating a total value of the prices of the commodities in accordance with a result of the retrieval by said first price retrieval section;

a detailed log production section provided on said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus for producing a detailed log of the purchased commodities in accordance with the result of the retrieval by said first price retrieval section and a result of the calculation by said calculation section;

a two-dimensional bar code printing section provided on said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus for printing the detailed log produced by said detailed log production section as a two-dimensional bar code;

an error determination section provided on said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus for determining whether or not an error has occurred upon price retrieval by said first price retrieval section;

a print contents switching section provided on said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus and operable when it is determined by said error determination section that an error has occurred for switching contents to be printed by said two-dimensional bar code printing section from the detailed log produced by said detailed log production section to the commodity code information read by said commodity code reading section;

a two-dimensional bar code reading section provided on said settlement POS terminal for reading the two-dimensional bar code printed by said two-dimensional bar code printing section of said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus;

a print contents determination section provided on said settlement POS terminal for determining whether a result of the reading by said two-dimensional bar code reading section is a detailed log or commodity code information;

a second price retrieval section provided on said settlement POS terminal and operable when it is determined by said print contents determination section that the contents to be printed are commodity code information for retrieving prices of the commodities accommodated in said accommodation section of said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus in accordance with the two-dimensional bar code information read by said two-dimensional bar code reading section; and

a totalization section provided on said settlement POS terminal and operable when it is determined by said print contents determination section that the contents to be printed are commodity code information for performing final settlement of accounts for the purchased commodities accommodated in said accommodation section of said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus in accordance with a result of the retrieval by said second price retrieval section but operable when it is determined by said print contents determination section that the contents to be printed are a detailed log for performing final settlement of accounts for the purchased commodities in accordance with the result of the reading by said two-dimensional bar code reading section.

10. The POS system as claimed in claim 9, wherein said first price retrieval section refers to a commodity information file, in which price information of the commodities corresponding to the commodity code information is stored as commodity information, to retrieve prices of the commodities.

11. The POS system as claimed in claim 10, wherein said commodity information file is provided on said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus.

12. The POS system as claimed in claim 10, wherein said commodity information file is provided in an upper control apparatus which controls said purchased commodity accommodating and transporting apparatus.

13. The POS system as claimed in any one of claims 9 to 12, wherein said second price retrieval section refers to a commodity information file, in which price information of the commodities corresponding to the commodity code information is stored as commodity information, to retrieve prices of the commodities.

14. The POS system as claimed in claim 13, wherein said commodity information file is provided in said settlement POS terminal.

15. The POS system as claimed in claim 13, wherein said commodity information file is provided in an upper control apparatus which controls said settlement POS terminal.