Point of sale systems and methods

• US 7,827,063 B2
• Filed: 05/24/2004
• Issued: 11/02/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 05/24/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Digipos Store Solutions Group Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Digipos Store Solutions Group Ltd.
• Inventors: Sullivan, Arthur, Worsfold, Graham, Halyk, David, Girdler, Geoffrey
• Primary Examiner(s): Gart; Matthew S
• Assistant Examiner(s): CRAWLEY, TALIA F
• Application Number:
  US10/852,466
• Publication Number:
  US 20050261981A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,353 Days
• Field of Search: 705/16, 710/1, 361/676, 361/687, 709/208
• US Class Current: 705/16
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/20 Point-of-sale [POS] network systems
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 5/18 specially adapted for controlling several coin-freed apparatus from one place
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 9/002 Vending machines being part of a centrally controlled network of vending machines
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 9/026 for alarm, monitoring and auditing in vending machines or means for indication, e.g. when empty
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 9/105 Heating or cooling means, for temperature and humidity control, for the conditioning of articles and their storage dispensers for food articles requiring a processing by temperature treatment or conditioning before they are ready for dispensing G07F17/0064

Abstract

A point of sale device includes a point of sale functional component, such as, for example, a display, an input device, a printer, scales, a card reader, or other. An interface is connected to the component, through a standard port of the component. The interface includes a radio frequency communications function. The interface communicates information regarding the component over a wireless communication network. The wireless communication network connects to a maintenance gateway for the device, either via the network, other networks, or by other communicative connection. The device can be monitored and maintained by the maintenance gateway, and the maintenance gateway can be located at a remote location from the device. The interface can also include cooling elements and controls for the device and/or the interface.

Claims

1. A system for connecting one or more point of sale peripheral device at a point of sale for communicative connection to a back-office server performing sale functions, comprising:

(i) a backplane unit, comprising a chassis including;

a motherboard;

a processor connected to the motherboard;

memory connected to the processor;

a maintenance module connected to the processor;

at least one port connector communicatively connected to the processor;

a communications module connected to the processor capable of communicatively connecting each respective point of sale peripheral device to the back-office server; and

(ii) a point of sale engine unit, comprising a frame slidably engageable with the backplane unit including;

at least one plug connector for mating with the at least one port connector when the frame is slidably engaged with the backplane unit;

a plurality of electrical connectors for connecting, respectively, the one or more point of sale peripheral device, the one or more point of sale peripheral device communicatively connected to the processor of the backplane unit by the at least one plug connector when mated with the at least one port connector on slidable engagement of the point of sale engine unit to the backplane unit;

(iii) a cooling module of the point of sale engine unit, the cooling module is communicatively connected to the processor by the at least one plug connector on mating with the at least one port connector when the frame of the point of sale engine unit is slidably engaged with backplane unit;

wherein the cooling module is controlled by the processor of the backplane unit to prevent overheating of the one or more point of sale peripheral device when connected to the point of sale engine unit;

wherein the maintenance module monitors the one or more point of sale peripheral device when connected to the point of sale engine unit and initiates signaling by the communications module external to the system for maintaining operational the one or more point of sale peripheral device and the system.

2. The system of claim 1,

wherein the at least one point of sale peripheral device is selected from the group consisting of:

analog input device, digital input device, analog output device, digital output device, and combination analog and digital device.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the maintenance module is controlled by the processor for detecting operational status of the one or more point of sale peripheral device and communicates externally to the system upon operational malfunction of one or more point of sale peripheral device.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the at least one point of sale peripheral device is selected from the group consisting of:

printer, display, input device, scale, card reader, MSR and point of sale element.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the communications module comprises:

a wireless communications unit communicatively connected to the back-office server; and

wherein the wireless communications unit provides maintenance and backup communication for the one or more point of sale peripheral device via the system.

6. The system of claim 5, further comprising:

a maintenance gateway, separate from the back-office server, for maintaining operational the one or more point of sale peripheral device and the system, the maintenance gateway communicatively connects to the maintenance module via a communications link selected from the group consisting of;

TCP/IP network, digital packetized network, local cable, wireless channel, radio frequency (RF) link, 802.11 channel, cellular channel, and combinations.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the maintenance gateway communicates with the back-office server to operationally maintain the one or more point of sale peripheral device and the system.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the cooling module comprises:

a circuit;

a heat sink connected to the circuit;

a first fan connected to the circuit for directing air flow towards the heat sink; and

a second fan connected to the circuit for directing air flow from the heat sink.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the processor controls the first fan and the second fan for operationally maintaining the one or more point of sale device;

and

wherein the processor, responsive to communications by the communications module upon detection by the maintenance module of operational malfunction of either of the one or more point of sale peripheral device and the system, selectively varies control of the first fan and the second fan.

10. The system of claim 9, further comprising:

a power source connected to the backplane unit, the backplane unit supplying power to the first fan, the second fan and the processor;

wherein the processor selectively controls the first fan and the second fan by varying a power to the first fan and a power to the second fan in five increments comprising;

a first increment, selected if the one or more point of sale peripheral device is operating at an ambient temperature;

a second increment, selected if the one or more point of sale peripheral device is operating at an excess temperature exceeding the ambient temperature and not exceeding an overheat temperature;

a third incremented, selected if the one or more point of sale peripheral device is operating at in excess of the overheat temperature and not exceeding a damage temperature;

a fourth increment, selected if the one or more point of sale peripheral device is operating at in excess of the damage temperature and less than a back-up temperature; and

a fifth increment, selected for operating if the one or more point of sale peripheral device is then operating at the back-up temperature of the point of sale peripheral device.

11. The system of claim 10, further comprising:

a Peltier device connected to the one or more point of sale peripheral device;

wherein the Peltier device operates in the fifth stage.

15. The system of claim 1, wherein

the communications module communicates over a wireless communication network in response to monitoring by the maintenance module to maintain operational the one or more point of sale peripheral device and the system and to cooling by the cooling module to prevent overheating of the one or more point of sale peripheral device and the system.

16. The device of claim 15, wherein

the cooling module includes at least one fan connected to the processor for cooling the one or more point of sale device;

wherein the processor controls the at least one fan to prevent overheating.

19. The system of claim 3, further comprising:

a plurality of POS devices communicatively connected to the server; and

at least one point of sale peripheral device connected to each one of the plurality of POS devices;

wherein each of the plurality of POS devices communicates with the server according the network protocol;

wherein the server communicative with each one of the POS devices to monitor the respective at least one point of sale peripheral device connected to each the one of the plurality of POS devices.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein the server communicates with each one of the plurality of POS devices via the group consisting of RF channel, cellular wireless channel, local wireless data channel, POTS, optical channel, infrared connection, wired connection, and more than one of the group.

21. The system of claim 20, further comprising:

a communications module of each one of the plurality of POS devices for communicatively connecting with the server; and

a maintenance module of each respective one of the plurality of POS devices, connected to the communications module of the respective one of the plurality of POS devices, for detecting state of the respective at least one point of sale peripheral device connected to each one of the plurality of POS devices.

22. The system of claim 21, further comprising:

a respective cooler of each respective one of the plurality of POS device, connected to the respective one of the plurality of POS devices, specially adapted for cooling the respective one of the plurality of POS devices in confined location during point of sale operations, according to varying temperature state of each at least one peripheral device for the respective one of the plurality of POS devices during operations.

12. A method for connecting one or more point of sale peripheral device at a point of sale for communicative connection to a back-office server performing sale functions, comprising the steps of:

locating a point of sale (POS) unit at the point of sale, the POS unit comprising;

a backplane unit, comprising a chassis including a motherboard, a processor connected to the motherboard, memory connected to the processor, a maintenance module connected to the processor, at least one port connector communicatively connected to the processor, and a communications module connected to the processor and communicatively connected to the back-office server for communicating according to the network protocol;

(ii) an engine unit, comprising a frame slidably removably connected to the backplane unit, including;

a passive interface of at least one plug connector mated with the at least one port connector of the backplane unit by slidable removable connection of the engine unit to the backplane unit and a plurality of electrical connectors for connecting respective ones of the one or more point of sale peripheral device to the at least one plug connector; and

(iii) a cooling module of the engine unit communicatively connected to the processor by the at least one plug connector

controlling the cooling module by the processor to prevent overheating of the one or more point of sale peripheral device of the engine unit;

detecting a maintenance state of the one or more point of sale peripheral device by the maintenance module;

communicating by the communications module of the backplane unit over a communications network, in response to the step of detecting;

receiving a maintenance instruction by the communications module of the backplane unit from the communications network, in response to the step of communicating; and

performing maintenance by the maintenance module to at least one point of sale peripheral device, in response to the step of receiving.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the step of

communicating is performed via communications over a wireless communications network.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising the step of:

selectively cooling the POS unit via dual fans and a heat sink of the engine unit controlled by the processor in conjunction with the maintenance module and the communications module.

17. A method of controlling a point of sale system, comprising the steps of:

locating a sale function component at a point of sale;

wirelessly monitoring a state of the component; and

varying an operation of the sale function component in response to the step of wirelessly monitoring the state.

18. A method of cooling a device operating via power, the device having a varying temperature in operation, comprising the steps of

first incrementing the power in response to an indicator of an ambient temperature of the device;

second incrementing the power in response to an indicator of an excess temperature exceeding the ambient temperature of the device and not exceeding an overheat temperature of the device;

third incrementing the power in response to an indicator of in excess of the overheat temperature and not exceeding a damage temperature of the device;

fourth incrementing the power in response to an indicator of in excess of the damage temperature and less than a back-up temperature of the device;

fifth incrementing the power in response to an indicator of at least the back-up temperature of the device;

controlling the steps of first incrementing, second incrementing, third incrementing, fourth incrementing, and fifth incrementing by wireless communications with the device;

monitoring the varying temperature of the device at a location remote from the device, through wireless communications with the device; and

varying the step of controlling at the location remote from the device by wireless communications with the device.

23. The method of claim 18, further comprising the steps of:

wirelessly communicating between the device and a separate device remotely located from the device;

wherein the step of controlling further comprises;

wirelessly communicating between the device and the separate device.