Apparatus and method for automatic self-adapting control of sales and adjustment of prices to market movements in an automatic vending machine

• US 6,012,834 A
• Filed: 12/02/1997
• Issued: 01/11/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 02/12/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: eBay Inc.
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Dueck, Gunter, Stamm-Wilbrandt, Hermann, Jager, Jurgen, Wallmeier, Hans-Martin
• Primary Examiner(s): MacDonald, Allen R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Kazimi, Hani M.
• Application Number:
  US08/982,796
• Time in Patent Office: 770 Days
• Field of Search: 705/1, 705/10, 705/20-22, 705/25-29, 705/409, 364/479.07, 364/479.14, 364/479.08, 235/381
• US Class Current: 700/238
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/201 Price look-up processing, e.g. updating
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 9/026 for alarm, monitoring and auditing in vending machines or means for indication, e.g. when empty

Abstract

A description is given of an electronic auction machine, which reacts to changing sales conditions with appropriately adjusted machine prices. For existing automatic vending machines restocking is based upon very vague experience figures and in particular customary fluctuations in sales are not taken into consideration. With the proposed machine, using a computer current market data are recorded (31) and using these data the current market situation is automatically assessed (32,34). A corresponding updated machine price (33,35) is then displayed.

Claims

1. A method for automatic self-adapting control of sales locally in an automatic vending machine in which a quantity of goods and/or services are offered at individually determined machine prices, comprising:

preparing sales forecast data based upon expected sales of said goods and/or services;

recording current sales data of said goods and/or services;

adjusting locally and without any intervention from outside said automatic vending machine, at least one machine price in relation to the deviation of current sales data from the forecast sales data; and

displaying an appropriately adjusted machine price of said goods and/or services.

2. The method as in claim 1, wherein expected sales are determined in accordance with parameters for conditions existing outside the machine.

3. The method as in claim 2, wherein the forecast sales data are represented by at least one data string having at least one ideal sales curve and an allocated change band width, which defines a range bordering the at least one ideal sales curve, providing an upper and lower threshold of normal sales activity beyond which a change of displayed vending machine prices is triggered.

4. The method as in claim 3, wherein at least two data strings are used for the sales forecast, each of which is recorded with at least one parameter related to external conditions, so that a switch is made between the data strings according to the conditions recorded.

5. The method as in claim 1, wherein a transition from a higher to a lower machine price is displayed in a particular manner.

6. A method as in claim 3, wherein said at least one ideal sales curve and/or said change band width are determined or learned automatically.

7. An automatic vending machine in which a quantity of goods and/or services is offered at individually and locally determined machine prices, comprising:

a change table memory for storing forecast sales data for expected sales;

a recorder for recording current market data;

a comparator for automatic assessment of market position based upon said current market data and the forecast sales data;

a price generator for calculation of a current machine price for at least one of the goods and/or services based upon an input from said comparator and without intervention from outside of said automatic vending machine; and

a display, for communicating the current machine prices, based on an input from said price generator.

8. The automatic vending machine as claimed in claim 7, wherein said forecast sales data comprises at least two data strings;

wherein said current market data received from said recorder is correlated with at least one parameter; and

wherein said change table memory switches between the data strings in accordance with the current market variables recorded.

9. The automatic vending machine as claimed in claim 7, further comprising:

a sensor for recording sales conditions prevailing outside the machine;

a timer for recording the current time,

wherein said change table memory stores switching tables therein for switching between the forecast sales data in accordance with the current market variables recorded and wherein said comparator compares the current sales data with corresponding sales data from the switching tables and

wherein said price generator generates current machine prices based on an input from said comparator.

10. An automatic vending machine as claimed in claim 7, wherein said display includes a special display for displaying a transition from a higher to a lower machine price.

11. An automatic vending machine, in which a quantity of goods and/or services is offered at locally determined machine prices, comprising:

a memory for storing at least one ideal sales curve for selected parameters, wherein each said at least one ideal sales curve is the output of at least one data string;

a sensor for recording internal and external environmental variables;

a comparator for comparing an ideal sales curve for selected parameters to an actual sales curve for selected parameters, such that a best fit sales curve is selected;

a price generator for generating locally an adjusted price based on input from the comparator; and

a display for displaying visually a price output by the price generator.

12. The automatic vending machine as claimed in claim 11, wherein said comparator produces a decision of whether actual sales are above, below, or equal to historical sales for selected parameters contained in said memory, wherein said selected parameters include at least one of:

at least one ideal sales curve per independent variable measured;

a last replenishment date of said goods and/or services;

a record of actual sales data from said last inventory replenishment date;

a next inventory replenishment date of said goods and/or services;

a measurement date;

a time of day on said measurement date;

a type of day of said measurement date; and

a season of said measurement date.

13. The automatic vending machine as claimed in claim 11, wherein said comparator generates an independent sales curve to create a price movement which would result in the last sale being made at the reorder date.

14. The automatic vending machine as claimed in claim 11, wherein said memory includes a table storing ideal sales lines based upon selected variables are entered and held for comparison to current sales data.

15. The automatic vending machine as claimed in claim 11, wherein said memory provides a plurality of statistical tables indicating sales and price changes for day types.

16. The automatic vending machine as claimed in claim 11, wherein said memory comprises an electronically erasable read-only memory (EEPROM).

17. The automatic vending machine as claimed in claim 11, wherein said price generator outputs a higher sales price when the sales curve calculated using a current period sales activity is less than the statistical sales curve.

18. The automatic vending machine as claimed in claim 11, wherein said price generator outputs a lower sales price when the sales curve calculated using current period sales activity is greater than the statistical sales curve.

19. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein said at least one data string comprises a change table.

20. An automatic vending machine, in which a quantity of goods and/or services is offered at prices determined by the individual machine locally using locally gathered data, comprising:

a memory for storing a plurality of statistical sales curves, wherein each of said statistical sales curves is correlated with at least one measurable variable and is based on historical performance;

a plurality of sensors for measuring and recording variables in the locality of said vending machine affecting sales activity, and providing an input to said memory;

a recorder, operatively coupled to said memory, for recording actual sales activity for a predetermined time period;

a first comparator, operatively coupled to said memory, for comparing measurements of said sensors to historical measurements wherein result is a historical sales curve based on measurements of current variables;

a second comparator, operatively coupled to said memory, for comparing said historical sales curve based on measurements of current variables to the actual sales activity;

a price generator, operatively coupled to said memory, for generating a price for one or more goods/services offered based on a calculation using an output of said second comparator; and

a display for displaying said price generated by said price generator.