Privilege management system, privilege management method, privilege management device, and program

Abstract

To provide a privilege management system, a privilege management method, a privilege management device, and a program for promoting use of selling-by-measure.SOLUTION: A privilege management system includes: an information acquisition unit that acquires payment information indicating a payment result, the payment information including at least measurement information related to a measurement result of a selling-by-measure product that is put in a reusable container and sold, a payment identifier that uniquely identifies a corresponding payment, and a customer identifier that uniquely indicates a customer who has purchased the selling-by-measure product according to the payment; and a privilege giving unit that gives, on the basis of the payment information acquired by the information acquisition unit, a privilege to each customer indicated by the customer identifier according to a use result of the container in purchasing the selling-by-measure product.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 7

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a privilege management system, a privilege management method, a privilege management device, and a program.

Background Art

[0002] There is known a technique in which, according to a sales mode of weighing and selling, a price is determined by measuring the weight of a product with a weighing machine (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] Weighing and selling involves procedures such as filling a container with a product when a customer tries to purchase it and performing weighing as necessary, which is different from simply picking up a product displayed in advance. Such complexity of procedures is one aspect that hinders the expansion of the use of weighing and selling. For this reason, for example, it is required to give an incentive to customers to use weighing and selling so as to promote the use of weighing and selling.

[0005] Therefore, in consideration of the above problems, an object of the present invention is to promote the use of weighing and selling.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] One aspect of the present invention for solving the above-described problems is a privilege management system including an information acquisition unit that acquires settlement information indicating a settlement result, the settlement information including at least measurement information regarding a measurement result of a weighed commodity sold in a reusable container, a settlement identifier that uniquely identifies a corresponding settlement, and a customer identifier that uniquely indicates a customer who purchased the weighed commodity corresponding to the settlement, and a privilege granting unit that grants a privilege according to the usage record of the container at the time of purchase of the weighed commodity for each customer indicated by the customer identifier based on the settlement information acquired by the information acquisition unit.

[0007] One aspect of the present invention is a privilege management method in a privilege management system, the method including an information acquisition step in which an information acquisition unit acquires settlement information indicating a settlement result, the settlement information including at least measurement information regarding a measurement result of a weighed commodity sold in a reusable container, a settlement identifier that uniquely identifies a corresponding settlement, and a customer identifier that uniquely indicates a customer who purchased the weighed commodity corresponding to the settlement, and a privilege granting step in which a privilege granting unit grants a privilege according to the usage record of the container at the time of purchase of the weighed commodity for each customer indicated by the customer identifier based on the settlement information acquired by the information acquisition step.

[0008] One aspect of the present invention is a privilege management device including an information acquisition unit that acquires settlement information indicating a settlement result, the settlement information including at least measurement information regarding a measurement result of a weighed commodity sold in a reusable container, a settlement identifier that uniquely identifies a corresponding settlement, and a customer identifier that uniquely indicates a customer who purchased the weighed commodity corresponding to the settlement, and a privilege granting unit that grants a privilege according to the usage record of the container at the time of purchase of the weighed commodity for each customer indicated by the customer identifier based on the settlement information acquired by the information acquisition unit.

[0009] One aspect of the present invention is a program for causing a computer as a privilege management device to function as an information acquisition unit that acquires settlement information indicating a settlement result, the settlement information including at least measurement information regarding a measurement result of a weighed commodity sold in a reusable container, a settlement identifier that uniquely identifies a corresponding settlement, and a customer identifier that uniquely indicates a customer who purchased the weighed commodity corresponding to the settlement; and a privilege granting unit that grants a privilege according to the usage record of the container at the time of purchase of the weighed commodity for each customer indicated by the customer identifier based on the settlement information acquired by the information acquisition unit.

Effect of the Invention

[0010] According to the present invention, an effect of promoting the use of weighing and selling can be obtained.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0011]

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Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0012] <First Embodiment> [Overall Configuration Example of Transaction Management System] FIG. 1 shows an overall configuration example of a transaction management system (an example of a privilege management system) corresponding to the first embodiment. Here, the transaction corresponds to a series of procedures from making a payment (settlement) according to the amount of a product that a customer CS tries to purchase at a store ST, to the store ST delivering the product to the customer CS according to the payment.

[0013] At the store ST, weighing sales are made to the customer CS. In addition, at the store ST, in addition to weighing sales, for example, a mode of selling products that are already displayed may also be adopted. Hereinafter, for the sake of simplicity of explanation, a case where products are sold at the store ST in a mode limited to weighing sales will be taken as an example.

[0014] In store ST, a weighing system 100 is provided to handle the sale of goods by weighing. The weighing system 100 is equipped with a weighing device. The weighing device measures the weight of the goods placed in container 10 and calculates the price of the goods based on the measured weight and the unit price of the goods. Also, in the weighing system 100, a plurality of weighing devices may be provided. Note that depending on the type of weighed goods, instead of a weighing device, a quantity measuring device configured to measure the number of goods placed in container 10 may be provided.

[0015] The weighing device of this embodiment issues a weighing slip SL for use in the settlement (payment) of weighed goods in response to weighing. Information regarding the weighing result of the weighed goods (product name or product code, purchase quantity, price, etc.) is shown on the weighing slip. Here, issuing means printing on paper and discharging the printed paper.

[0016] Also, the weighing system 100 may correspond to either a self-service format in which customer CS puts the goods into container 10 and weighs them by themselves, or a clerk-assisted format in which a clerk in charge of the weighing device puts the goods into the container and weighs them in response to a request from customer CS. Hereinafter, for the sake of simplicity, the case where the weighing system 100 is in the self-service format will be described as an example.

[0017] When purchasing goods using weighing at store ST, customer CS prepares container 10. Container 10 may be, for example, a dedicated container unified in a predetermined standard and designated by store ST, or a container (general-purpose container) widely used at store ST in general, or a container (bring-in container) that the customer brings in arbitrarily from home. Hereinafter, for the sake of convenience of explanation, the case where container 10 is a dedicated container or a general-purpose container will be taken as an example. When purchasing weighed goods, customer CS puts the required quantity of goods into container 10 at the sales floor where the weighing system 100 is arranged, and the weight of the goods in container 10 is measured by the weighing device. The weighing device calculates the price of the goods according to the weighing result and issues a weighing slip SL. The weighing slip SL has a code symbol CD1 printed thereon indicating the payment usage information. The payment usage information includes a payment ID (payment identifier) uniquely indicating the corresponding payment (transaction), a product code (product identifier) indicating the product contained in the container 10, the measured weight, and the calculated price. Also, the code symbol CD1 may be, for example, a two-dimensional code or a one-dimensional code. The customer CS moves with the weighing slip SL issued from the weighing device to the location where the POS system 200 in the store ST is installed.

[0018] The POS system 200 includes one or more POS terminals. The POS terminal executes processing corresponding to the payment for the product that the customer CS intends to purchase. The POS terminal may be enabled to perform payments corresponding to at least some of the payment types such as cash, credit card, electronic money, point card, etc. The POS system may correspond to either a self-service format in which payment is made according to the customer's operation or a clerk-assisted format in which payment is made according to the operation of the responsible store clerk. Hereinafter, for the sake of simplicity of explanation, the case where the POS system 200 corresponds to the self-service format will be taken as an example.

[0019] The customer CS who has arrived at the POS terminal causes the code symbol CD1 printed on the weighing slip SL issued from the weighing device to be read by the code reader of the POS terminal to input the payment usage information into the POS terminal for the payment of the weighed goods.

[0020] Also, the customer CS holds a customer terminal 300. The customer CS can receive the grant of environmental contribution points in response to the purchase of weighed goods by reusing the container 10. When receiving the grant of environmental contribution points, the customer CS operates the customer terminal 300. The customer terminal 300 may be, for example, a smartphone, a tablet terminal, or a personal computer, etc. An application corresponding to the environmental contribution point service (point application) may be installed on the customer terminal 300. Alternatively, the web browser installed on the customer terminal 300 may be used to access the website of the environmental contribution point service. Hereinafter, the case where the point application is installed on the customer terminal 300 will be described as an example. The customer ID of the customer CS is associated with the point application. When settling the weighed goods, the customer CS also performs an operation to cause the POS terminal to acquire the customer ID associated with the point application on the customer terminal 300. Such an operation to cause the POS terminal to acquire the customer ID is an operation for the customer CS to receive the grant of environmental contribution points in response to the purchase of the weighed goods using the container 10 this time. As an operation to cause the POS terminal to acquire the customer ID, for example, as shown in FIG. 1, the customer CS causes the code symbol CD4 indicating the customer ID to be displayed on the application screen of the point application launched on the customer terminal 300, and causes the displayed code symbol CD4 to be read by the code scanner of the POS terminal. Instead of the code symbol CD4 displayed on the customer terminal 300, for example, the code symbol CD4 printed on the point membership card distributed from the store ST may be read by the code scanner of the POS terminal. Alternatively, the customer CS may connect the customer terminal 300 on which the point application is launched to be communicable with the POS terminal by short-range wireless communication such as Bluetooth (registered trademark), and cause the customer ID to be transmitted from the customer terminal 300 to the POS terminal via communication.

[0021] The POS terminal executes a process corresponding to settlement using the input settlement usage information. For example, based on the input settlement usage information, the POS terminal displays information about the purchased item (item name, quantity, unit price, price, etc.), and executes a process corresponding to settlement (settlement process) in response to an operation by the customer for settlement (operation to insert cash, read card information such as a credit card).

[0022] The POS terminal generates settlement information indicating the result of the settlement process in response to the completion of the settlement. The settlement information includes the content of the input settlement usage information. That is, the settlement information includes a settlement ID indicating the corresponding settlement, a product code of the weighed and sold product purchased, the weight of the weighed and sold product purchased, the price of the weighed and sold product purchased, and the like. Further, the settlement information also includes the customer ID acquired by the POS terminal at the time of settlement. The POS terminal is communicably connected to the transaction management device 400. The POS terminal transmits the generated settlement information to the transaction management device 400. The transaction management device 400 stores the received settlement information. In addition, the POS terminal issues a receipt RC on which the content of the settlement information is printed. The customer CS receives the issued receipt.

[0023] In the store ST, for the container 10, instead of preparing a new one each time a product is purchased, it is operated to be reused (re - used). Moreover, when the customer CS repeatedly uses the container 10 to purchase weighed and sold products, points (an example of a privilege) are given to the customer CS. The points given in this way are, for example, in return for the contribution to the environment by repeatedly using the container 10. By repeatedly using the container 10, the consumption of plastic resources can be suppressed and environmental protection can be achieved. Hereinafter, the points given to the customer CS in response to the purchase of weighed and sold products using the container 10 will also be referred to as environmental contribution points.

[0024] The customer CS can, for example, at any time after purchasing a weighed and sold product, by operating the customer terminal 300, start a point application on the customer terminal 300 and access the point application to the transaction management device 400. Specifically, the point application may access the website of the environmental contribution point service provided by the transaction management device 400. The customer terminal 300 transmits a point awarding request including a customer ID to the transaction management device 400 as the access destination. In response to receiving the point awarding request, the transaction management device 400 manages points so that environmental contribution points are awarded to the corresponding customer CS based on the settlement information stored in association with the customer ID included in the received point awarding request. In the customer terminal 300, for example, information regarding the environmental contribution points awarded to the customer CS may be presented on the screen of the environmental contribution point service.

[0025] [Functional configuration example of customer terminal device] FIG. 2 shows a functional configuration example of the customer terminal 300. The customer terminal 300 may be configured to include, as hardware, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), and a storage device such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or an SSD (Solid State Drive). The functions of the customer terminal 300 shown in the figure are realized by the CPU provided in the customer terminal 300 executing a program.

[0026] The customer terminal 300 in FIG. 2 includes a communication unit 301, a user interface unit 302, a control unit 303, and a storage unit 304. Note that since the code reading unit 305 corresponds to the second embodiment and the fourth embodiment, the description thereof is omitted here. The communication unit 301 communicates with the transaction management device 400 via a network.

[0027] The user interface unit 302 is a part corresponding to the user interface function and includes, for example, a display unit and an operation unit. A touch panel may be provided as the display unit and the operation unit.

[0028] The control unit 303 executes various controls in the customer terminal 300. When a point application is installed in the customer terminal 300, the control unit 303 includes an application handling unit 331. The application handling unit 331 executes processing corresponding to the operation of the launched point application.

[0029] The storage unit 304 stores various information in the customer terminal 300. When a point application is installed in the customer terminal 300, the storage unit 304 may store data of the point application.

[0030] [Functional configuration example of transaction management device] FIG. 3 shows a functional configuration example of the transaction management device 400. The transaction management device 400 may be configured as hardware including a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, a storage device such as an HDD or an SSD, etc. The functions of the transaction management device 400 shown in the figure are realized by the CPU provided in the transaction management device 400 executing a program.

[0031] The transaction management device 400 in FIG. 3 includes a communication unit 401, a control unit 402, and a storage unit 403. The communication unit 401 is communicably connected via a network to each of the customer terminal 300 and the POS terminal in the POS system 200.

[0032] The control unit 402 executes various controls in the transaction management device 400. The control unit 402 includes an information acquisition unit 421 and a privilege granting unit 422. The information acquisition unit 421 acquires settlement information transmitted from the POS terminal in the POS system 200. The information acquisition unit 421 stores the acquired settlement information in the settlement information storage unit 432. The settlement information stored in the settlement information storage unit 432 is treated as a transaction record indicating the details of each transaction conducted between the store ST and the customer CS.

[0033] The privilege granting unit 422 executes processing related to the granting of environmental contribution points for each customer CS.

[0034] The storage unit 403 stores various types of information corresponding to the transaction management device 400. The storage unit 403 includes a customer information storage unit 431, a settlement information storage unit 432, and a point calculation information storage unit 433. Note that since the container registration information storage unit 434 corresponds to the fourth embodiment, the description thereof is omitted here.

[0035] The customer information storage unit 431 stores customer information. The customer information is information for each customer CS registered as a person who receives the environmental contribution point awarding service. FIG. 4 shows an example of the customer information stored in the customer information storage unit 431. One record (one line) in the figure corresponds to the customer information of one customer CS. The customer information corresponding to the customer CS includes fields of a customer ID, purchase history information, and cumulative point number.

[0036] The field of the customer ID stores the customer ID that uniquely indicates the corresponding customer.

[0037] The field of the purchase history information stores the purchase history information. The purchase history information is information indicating the history of the corresponding customer purchasing goods using the store ST. The purchase history information may include the settlement information of the corresponding customer CS acquired by the information acquisition unit 421 from the POS terminal of the POS system 200. The purchase history information may be generated and updated using, for example, the settlement information stored in the settlement information storage unit 432 described later.

[0038] The field of the cumulative point number stores the cumulative point number. The cumulative point number is the cumulative number of environmental contribution points currently granted to the corresponding customer.

[0039] Returning to the description with reference to FIG. 3, the settlement information storage unit 432 stores the settlement information acquired by the information acquisition unit 421 from the POS terminal of the POS system 200. FIG. 5 shows an example of the settlement information stored in the settlement information storage unit 432. One record in the figure is the settlement information corresponding to one settlement (transaction). The settlement information corresponding to one settlement (transaction) includes each field of a settlement ID, a customer ID, and settlement information items. The field of the settlement ID stores the settlement ID that uniquely indicates the corresponding settlement. The field of the customer ID stores the customer ID that indicates the position of the customer CS who purchased the product by the corresponding settlement. The field of the settlement information items stores predetermined information items regarding the settlement result. In the figure, fields such as the purchase quantity, price, settlement date and time, number of points granted, and point grant date are shown as the settlement information items. The field of the purchase quantity stores the purchase quantity, which is the quantity of the weighed and sold product targeted by the corresponding settlement. The field of the price stores the price of the weighed and sold product targeted by the corresponding settlement. The field of the settlement date and time stores the date and time (settlement date and time) when the corresponding settlement was made. The field of the number of points granted stores the number of environmental contribution points granted for the use of the container 10 due to the purchase of the weighed and sold product in the corresponding settlement. The field of the point grant date and time stores the date and time (point grant date and time) when the environmental contribution points were granted for the use of the container 10 due to the purchase of the weighed and sold product in the corresponding settlement.

[0040] Returning to FIG. 3 for the explanation. The point calculation information storage unit 433 stores the point calculation information. The point calculation information is information used to calculate the number of points to be granted (number of points granted) when the privilege granting unit 422 grants environmental contribution points to the customer CS for each settlement.

[0041] FIG. 6 shows an example of the point calculation information stored in the point calculation information storage unit 433. The point calculation information in this figure shows the number of points to be awarded for each combination of the purchase quantity and the number of purchases. In this figure, an example is shown in which the unit of the purchase quantity corresponds to "g (gram)" for weight, but it may be, for example, "ml (milliliter)" corresponding to volume, "piece" corresponding to the number of items, etc.

[0042] In the point calculation information in this figure, for the case of the first (initial) purchase times corresponding to each purchase quantity, the number of points to be awarded is set to "0", and from the second time onwards, the number of points to be awarded is greater than "0". For the first time, for example, it can be considered that there is no contribution to the environment because the weighed goods are purchased using the container 10 provided by the store ST. For purchases after the second time, since the container 10 provided at the first time is reused, it is not necessary to newly use the container 10, so a contribution to the environment can be achieved. Based on such a concept, in the point calculation information in this figure, the number of points to be awarded corresponding to the first purchase is set to "0" and no environmental contribution points are substantially awarded, and environmental contribution points are awarded from the second time onwards.

[0043] Also, it can be considered that as the number of purchases increases, the newly used containers are reduced, and the degree of contribution to the environment increases. Therefore, in the point calculation information in this figure, the number of points to be awarded tends to increase as the number of purchases increases under the same purchase quantity. That is, the value of the privilege to be awarded increases in accordance with the increase in the number of purchases. In the point number calculation information in this figure, for example, the number of points to be awarded for the purchase times "2" and "3" when the purchase quantity is "50 - 99 (g)" is "1". That is, as the number of points to be awarded according to the number of purchases, although it tends to increase as the number of purchases increases, the same number of points to be awarded may be determined between consecutive purchase times.

[0044] Also, it is not realistic to increase the number of points awarded indefinitely according to the number of purchases. Therefore, the maximum number of points awarded according to the number of purchases is determined in advance. When the number of points awarded reaches the upper limit when a predetermined number of purchases is reached, hereafter, regardless of the increase in the number of purchases, the same upper limit number of points may be awarded uniformly. Specifically, in the point calculation information in the figure, the number of points awarded reaches the upper limit corresponding to the fifth purchase, and it is determined that the upper limit number of points is awarded for purchases after the sixth time.

[0045] Also, the larger the amount (purchase amount) put into the container 10 in one purchase, the higher the reduction effect of the material corresponding to the newly used container capacity compared to the case where it is not weighed and sold when continuously purchasing the same amount. Therefore, it can be considered that the contribution to the environment is higher. Therefore, in the point calculation information in the figure, the number of points awarded increases as the purchase amount increases.

[0046] [Example of processing procedure: First example] With reference to the sequence diagram in FIG. 7, a first example of the processing procedure executed by the transaction management system of the present embodiment in relation to the awarding of environmental contribution points according to the settlement of weighed goods will be described.

[0047] Step S100: The customer CS who intends to purchase weighed goods puts the weighed goods into the container 10. The customer CS performs an operation of specifying the product type of the weighed goods on the weighing device in the weighing system 100 and causes the weighing device to weigh the weighed goods placed in the container 10. Here, the case where the weighing device is configured to measure weight will be described as an example.

[0048] Step S102: The weighing device calculates the price of the weighed weighed-for-sale product based on the weight measured (purchase quantity) of the weighed-for-sale product and the unit price per weight of the weighed-for-sale product. The weighing device may obtain the unit price per weight from a product master that stores information on the products sold at the store ST. The product master may be stored in the weighing system or in an external database. Also, the weighing device generates a settlement ID that uniquely indicates the settlement corresponding to the weighed-for-sale product weighed this time. The weighing device generates weighing information corresponding to this weighing. The weighing information may include the settlement ID generated corresponding to this weighing, the product name or product code of the weighed-for-sale product, the purchase quantity of the weighed-for-sale product, the price of the weighed-for-sale product, the weighing date and time, etc.

[0049] Step S104: The weighing device issues a weighing slip SL on which the weighing information generated in Step S102 is recorded. The weighing information may be recorded by being printed on the weighing slip SL as the code symbol CD1 as described above. The customer CS receives the issued weighing slip SL.

[0050] Step S106: The customer CS who has received the weighing slip SL is directed to go to the POS terminal for settlement. The customer CS performs an operation corresponding to the settlement on the POS terminal at the destination. At this time, the customer CS performs an operation to have the POS terminal read the weighing information printed as the code symbol CD1 on the weighing slip SL. Note that an IC tag may be provided on the weighing slip SL, and the weighing information may be stored in the IC tag. In this case, the customer CS may perform an operation to have the tag reader of the POS terminal read the weighing information stored in the IC tag of the weighing slip SL.

[0051] Step S108: Also, when settling, the customer CS performs an operation to start a point application on the customer terminal 300 and have the started point application output the customer ID of the corresponding customer CS.

[0052] Step S110: In response to the operation in step S108, the application handling unit 331 of the customer terminal 300 outputs the customer ID associated with the point application. Here, as an example, the output of the customer ID is by way of the display of the code symbol CD4 as described above. The customer CS performs an operation of having the displayed code symbol CD4 read by the code scanner of the POS terminal in the POS system 200.

[0053] Step S112: In the POS system 200, the POS terminal obtains the customer ID indicated by the code symbol CD4 read by the code scanner in response to step S110.

[0054] Step S114: In the POS system 200, the POS terminal uses the measurement information read in step S106 and executes settlement processing in response to the settlement operation by the customer CS's cash input or use of a card medium such as a credit card. Also, the POS terminal issues a receipt RC in response to the completion of the settlement processing.

[0055] Step S116: The POS terminal generates settlement information corresponding to the settlement processing in this step S110 and transmits the generated settlement information to the transaction management device 400. The settlement information may include, for example, the information shown in FIG. 5. In this case, the settlement information includes the settlement ID included in the measurement information read in step S106 and the customer ID obtained in step S112.

[0056] Step S118: In the transaction management device 400, the information acquisition unit 421 acquires the settlement information transmitted in step S112. The information acquisition unit 421 stores the acquired settlement information in the settlement information storage unit 432. In this way, every time a customer CS purchases a weighed and sold product, settlement information is accumulated in the settlement information storage unit 432.

[0057] Step S150: A customer CS who has purchased weighed goods at the store ST can receive environmental contribution points at any time. Therefore, the customer terminal 300 starts a point application, and an operation for point assignment is performed on the started point application.

[0058] Step S152: In response to the point assignment operation, the application corresponding processing unit 331 of the customer terminal 300 accesses the transaction management device 400 and then sends a point assignment request to the transaction management device 400. The point assignment request includes the customer ID of the customer CS.

[0059] Step S154: The privilege granting unit 422 executes processing corresponding to point assignment in response to the point assignment request transmitted in Step S152. First, the privilege granting unit 422 checks whether the settlement information storing the same customer ID as that included in the received point assignment request is stored in the settlement information storage unit 432.

[0060] Although not shown in the figure, if the settlement information storing the same customer ID as that included in the received point assignment request is not stored in the settlement information storage unit 432, the privilege granting unit 422 may issue an error notification indicating that environmental contribution points cannot be granted because weighed goods have not been purchased at the store ST so far.

[0061] Step S156: If it is confirmed that the settlement information storing the same customer ID as that included in the received point assignment request is stored in the settlement information storage unit 432, the privilege granting unit 422 performs point assignment confirmation. The point assignment confirmation is to check whether there is settlement information in the settlement information storage unit 432 that stores the same customer ID as that included in the received point assignment request and for which environmental contribution points have not been granted.

[0062] Incidentally, although illustration is omitted, when it is confirmed that there is no settlement information without environmental contribution points being granted, the privilege granting unit 422 may issue an error notification indicating that it is impossible to grant environmental contribution points because there is no settlement for which environmental contribution points can be granted.

[0063] Step S158: When it is confirmed in step S156 that there is settlement information without environmental contribution points being granted, the privilege granting unit 422 calculates the number of points to be granted for each piece of settlement information without environmental contribution points being granted. In calculating the number of points to be granted, the privilege granting unit 422 recognizes the purchase quantity indicated in the target settlement information. Also, the privilege granting unit 422 refers to the settlement information stored in the settlement information storage unit 432 to recognize which purchase of the weighed sales product corresponding to the target settlement information it is. The privilege granting unit 422 specifies the number of points to be granted corresponding to the combination of the recognized purchase quantity and purchase times from the point calculation information (Figure 6). In this way, the specified number of points to be granted is obtained as the calculation result.

[0064] Step S160: The privilege granting unit 422 stores each of the calculated number of points to be granted for each piece of settlement information without environmental contribution points being granted in step S158 in the field for the number of points to be granted in the corresponding settlement information (Figure 5), and stores the date and time corresponding to the current time in the field for the point granting date and time (Figure 5). Also, the privilege granting unit 422 updates the cumulative number of points (Figure 4) in the customer information of the corresponding customer CS by adding the number of points granted in association with each piece of this settlement information. In this way, environmental contribution points are granted to the customer CS in response to the purchase of weighed sales products.

[0065] Step S162: The privilege granting unit 422 transmits a notification (point granting notification) indicating that point granting has been performed in step S160 to the customer terminal 300.

[0066] Step S164: In the customer terminal 300, the application handling unit 331 performs a display to notify that the point grant has been made in response to the receipt of the point grant notification transmitted in step S162. At this time, the customer terminal 300 may display the number of points granted this time and the updated cumulative number of points. Such a display may be performed on an application screen such as a point information screen in the point application by the customer terminal 300 acquiring the information on the point grant result in step S160 from the transaction management device 400. Note that the customer terminal 300 in which the point application is launched may access the transaction management device 400 according to the user's operation, and the current cumulative number of points and the number of points granted for each settlement (transaction) granted so far may be displayed on the customer terminal 300.

[0067] [Example of processing procedure: Second example] A second example of the processing procedure executed by the transaction management system of this embodiment in relation to the grant of environmental contribution points according to the settlement of weighed goods will be described. In the first example, after the settlement information is accumulated in the transaction management device 400, the number of points to be granted corresponding to the accumulated settlement information is calculated in response to a request from the customer terminal 300, and the grant result of the calculated number of points is displayed on the customer terminal 300. In contrast, in the second example, every time the settlement of a single transaction corresponding to the purchase of weighed goods by the customer CS is completed, the transaction management device 400 grants environmental contribution points corresponding to the completed settlement.

[0068] The sequence diagram in FIG. 8 shows an example of the processing procedure as the second example in this embodiment. In the same figure, the processing in steps S200 to S218 is the same as that in steps S100 to S118 in FIG. 7.

[0069] Step S220: In the transaction management device 400, the privilege granting unit 422 calculates the number of points for awarding environmental contribution points corresponding to the settlement information stored in step S218. In this case, the privilege granting unit 422 may calculate the number of awarding points corresponding to the settlement information stored in step S218 by the same process as the calculation of the number of awarding points executed corresponding to one settlement information in step S158 of FIG. 7.

[0070] Step S222: The privilege granting unit 422 stores the number of awarding points calculated for the environmental contribution points in step S220 in the field of the number of awarding points in the settlement information stored in step S218 (FIG. 5), and stores the date and time corresponding to the current time in the field of the point awarding date and time (FIG. 5).

[0071] In this case, the customer CS can view the information on the environmental contribution points awarded so far by operating the point application on the customer terminal 300 at any time. Referring to the steps after step S250 in FIG. 8, an example of the processing procedure executed corresponding to the viewing of the information on the environmental contribution points by the customer CS will be described.

[0072] Step S250: The customer CS starts the point application on the customer terminal 300 and performs an operation to display, as an application screen, a point information screen presenting, for example, the awarding status of environmental contribution points.

[0073] Step S252: In response to the operation in step S250, the application corresponding processing unit 331 of the customer terminal 300 transmits a point information request to the transaction management device 400. The point information request includes the customer ID associated with the point application.

[0074] Step S254: In the transaction management device 400, the privilege granting unit 422 aggregates the number of points to be granted stored in the settlement information of the same customer ID as that included in the received point request from among the settlement information stored in the settlement information storage unit 432. By aggregating the number of points to be granted, the cumulative number of points of the corresponding customer CS is obtained.

[0075] Step S256: The privilege granting unit 422 transmits the point information reflecting the aggregation result in Step S254 to the customer terminal 300.

[0076] Step S258: In the customer terminal 300, the application response processing unit 331 displays a point information screen presenting the content of the received point information.

[0077] [Example of processing procedure: Third example] Next, a third example of the processing procedure executed by the transaction management system of the present embodiment in relation to the granting of environmental contribution points according to the settlement of weighed goods will be described. In the previous first and second examples, the procedure was such that the customer CS caused the POS terminal to acquire the customer ID at the time of settlement. In contrast, in the present embodiment, when the customer CS weighs the weighed goods that the customer intends to purchase using the weighing device in the weighing system 100, an operation is performed to cause the weighing device to input the customer ID.

[0078] The sequence diagram in FIG. 9 shows an example of the processing procedure as the second example in the present embodiment. Step S300: The customer CS who intends to purchase the weighed goods puts the weighed goods into the container 10. The customer CS performs an operation of designating the product type of the weighed goods on the weighing device in the weighing system 100 and causes the weighing device to weigh the weighed goods placed in the container 10. When measuring the weight of weighed goods, the customer CS inputs their customer ID into a weighing device (or a terminal provided in the weighing system 100, etc.). There are no particular restrictions on how the customer ID is input. For example, the customer CS may input the customer ID recorded on a membership card corresponding to a point awarding service by having the weighing device read it. Alternatively, the customer CS may have the weighing device read the customer ID displayed as a code symbol CD4 or the like on the screen of the point application of the customer terminal 300. Alternatively, the customer CS may input the customer ID from the customer terminal 300 to the weighing device via communication between the customer terminal 300 on which the point application has been launched and the weighing device.

[0079] Step S302: In the weighing system, the weighing device acquires the input customer ID.

[0080] Step S304: The weighing device calculates the price of the weighed goods based on the weight (purchase quantity) measured for the weighed goods and the unit price per weight of the weighed goods. The weighing device may acquire the unit price per weight from a product master that stores information on the products sold at the store ST. The product master may be stored in the weighing system or in an external database. Also, the weighing device generates a settlement ID that uniquely indicates the settlement corresponding to the weighed goods measured this time. The weighing device generates weighing information corresponding to this weighing. The weighing information may include the settlement ID generated corresponding to this weighing, the customer ID input for this weighing, the product name or product code of the weighed goods, the purchase quantity of the weighed goods, the price of the weighed goods, the weighing date and time, etc.

[0081] Step S306: The weighing device issues a weighing slip SL on which the weighing information generated in Step S304 is recorded. Also in this example, the weighing information may be recorded by being printed on the weighing slip SL as the code symbol CD1. The customer CS receives the issued weighing slip SL.

[0082] Step S308: The customer CS who has received the weighing slip SL is directed to go to the POS terminal for settlement. The customer CS performs an operation corresponding to the settlement on the POS terminal at the destination. At this time, the customer CS performs an operation to cause the POS terminal to read the weighing information printed as the code symbol CD1 on the weighing slip SL. Note that an IC tag may be provided on the weighing slip SL, and the weighing information may be stored in the IC tag. In this case, the customer CS may perform an operation to cause the tag reader of the POS terminal to read the weighing information stored in the IC tag of the weighing slip SL.

[0083] Step S310: In the POS system 200, the POS terminal executes a settlement process using the weighing information read in Step S308.

[0084] Step S312: The POS terminal generates settlement information corresponding to the settlement process in this Step S310, and transmits the generated settlement information to the transaction management device 400. The settlement information in this example includes the settlement ID and the customer ID included in the weighing information read in Step S308.

[0085] Step S314: In the transaction management device 400, the information acquisition unit 421 acquires the settlement information transmitted in Step S312. The information acquisition unit 421 stores the acquired settlement information in the settlement information storage unit 432. In this way, each time a customer CS purchases a weighed commodity, the settlement information is accumulated in the settlement information storage unit 432.

[0086] The processing of Steps S350 to S364 in the figure shows an example of a processing procedure for the customer CS to display the result of awarding environmental contribution points to himself / herself on the customer terminal 300. The processing of Steps S350 to S364 may be the same as that of Steps SS150 to S164 in FIG. 7.

[0087] <Second Embodiment> [Overall Configuration Example of Transaction Management System] Next, the second embodiment will be described. FIG. 10 shows an overall configuration example of the transaction management system of this embodiment. In the figure, the same parts as those in FIG. 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted as appropriate. In this embodiment, the settlement performed in response to the customer CS purchasing a weighed commodity is the same as that in the first embodiment. In addition, in this embodiment, a code symbol CD2 is printed on the receipt RC issued by the POS terminal as indicating the content of the settlement result. The code symbol CD2 may be, for example, access control information (e.g., URL) for accessing the transaction management device 400 and a settlement ID.

[0088] The customer terminal 300 of this embodiment includes a code reading unit 305. The code reading unit 305 includes, for example, a camera, reads the code symbol imaged by the camera, and acquires the information indicated by the code symbol.

[0089] The customer CS is made to perform an operation of causing the customer terminal 300 to read the code symbol CD2 printed on the receipt RC. In response to the customer terminal 300 reading the code symbol CD2, the transaction management device 400 can grant environmental contribution points corresponding to the purchase of the weighed commodity to the customer CS, as described with reference to FIG. 11 below.

[0090] In the case of this embodiment, by causing the customer terminal 300 to read the code symbol CD2 printed on the receipt RC, the customer terminal 300 can be configured to start a point application and connect to the transaction management device 400. In this case, the customer CS does not need to perform an operation such as instructing point granting to the point application operating on the customer terminal 300, and the operation is simplified.

[0091] [Example of processing procedure] With reference to the sequence diagram of FIG. 11, an example of the processing procedure executed by the transaction management system of this embodiment in relation to the granting of environmental contribution points corresponding to the settlement of a weighed commodity will be described. In the figure, the processes of steps S400 to S412 may be the same as steps S100, S104 to S114 in FIG. 7. However, in this embodiment, the process corresponding to step S102 in FIG. 7 is omitted. That is, in this embodiment, the customer CS does not need to input the customer ID when weighing the weighed goods in step S400. That is, in this embodiment, the customer CS does not need to perform an operation of inputting the customer ID during weighing. Also, since the customer ID is not input, the settlement information transmitted by the POS terminal to the transaction management device 400 in step S410 may include the settlement ID and not include the customer ID.

[0092] Step S414: The customer CS receives the receipt RC issued by the POS terminal in response to the completion of the settlement process in step S408. A code symbol CD2 is printed on the receipt RC. The code symbol CD2 may indicate, for example, the settlement ID generated in step S410.

[0093] Step S416: The customer CS performs an operation of causing the customer terminal 300 to read the code symbol CD2 printed on the receipt RC.

[0094] Step S418: The code reading unit 305 of the customer terminal 300 reads the code symbol CD2 of the receipt RC in response to the operation in step S416, and obtains the settlement ID from the code symbol CD2.

[0095] Step S420: The application corresponding processing unit 331 of the customer terminal 300 accesses the transaction management device 400 using the access code obtained from the code symbol CD2, and transmits a point granting request. The point granting request includes the customer ID and the settlement ID obtained from the code symbol CD2.

[0096] Step S422: In response to the point awarding request transmitted in step S420, the privilege awarding unit 422 of the transaction management device 400 first checks whether the settlement information (target settlement information) that stores the same settlement ID as that included in the received point awarding request is stored in the settlement information storage unit 432. If it is confirmed that the target settlement information is stored, the customer ID has not yet been stored in the target settlement information. Therefore, the privilege awarding unit 422 may store the customer ID included in the received point awarding request in the target settlement information.

[0097] Step S424: In this case, the environmental contribution points have not yet been awarded to the target settlement information. Therefore, the privilege awarding unit 422 calculates the number of awarding points corresponding to the target settlement information. When calculating the number of awarding points, the privilege awarding unit 422 recognizes the purchase quantity indicated in the target settlement information. Also, the privilege awarding unit 422 refers to the settlement information stored in the settlement information storage unit 432 to recognize which purchase time the target settlement information corresponds to for the weighed sales product. The privilege awarding unit 422 specifies the number of awarding points corresponding to the combination of the recognized purchase quantity and purchase times from the point calculation information (Figure 6).

[0098] Step S426: The privilege awarding unit 422 stores the number of awarding points calculated in step S424 in the field of the number of awarding points in the target settlement information (Figure 5). Also, the privilege awarding unit 422 updates the cumulative number of points (Figure 4) in the customer information of the corresponding customer CS by adding the number of points awarded to the target settlement information. In this way, environmental contribution points corresponding to the purchase of the weighed sales product are awarded to the customer CS.

[0099] The processes of step S428 and step S430 may be the same as step S162 and step S164 in Figure 7.

[0100] <Third Embodiment> [Overall Configuration Example of Transaction Management System] Next, a third embodiment will be described. FIG. 12 shows an overall configuration example of the transaction management system of this embodiment. In the figure, the same parts as those in FIG. 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted as appropriate.

[0101] Under the operation of weighing and selling in this embodiment, a plurality of types of containers 10 with different capacities as standards are prepared. The customer CS can purchase weighed and sold goods by appropriately using one or more of a plurality of types of containers 10 with different capacities. Also, in the operation of weighed and sold goods in this embodiment, the weighing and selling system 100 includes a dispenser. The customer CS is made to put the weighed and sold goods into the container 10 from the dispenser. In this case, regarding the purchase quantity, instead of measuring the weight, a purchase quantity uniquely determined corresponding to the capacity of the used container 10 is applied.

[0102] Also, under the operation of weighing and selling in this embodiment, a code symbol CD3 is attached to the container 10. The code symbol CD3 indicates a container ID that uniquely indicates the corresponding container 10. Also, under the operation of weighing and selling in this embodiment, the container ID is made to uniquely indicate the corresponding container 10 and, for example, indicate the corresponding capacity by a predetermined number of digits. That is, the capacity of the corresponding container 10 can be specified by the container ID.

[0103] As a mode of attaching the code symbol CD3 to the container 10, for example, a label printed with the code symbol CD3 may be attached to the container 10. In this embodiment, the dispenser (or the terminal in the weighing and selling system 100) is provided with a code reading unit. When the customer CS puts the weighed and sold goods from the dispenser into the container 10, the customer CS makes the code reading unit read the code symbol CD3.

[0104] Note that instead of the code symbol CD3, an IC tag storing the container ID may be provided on the container 10, and a tag reader may be provided on the dispenser (or the terminal provided in the weighing and selling system 100). In this case, the customer CS is made to perform an operation of having the tag reader of the dispenser read the container ID stored in the IC tag.

[0105] FIG. 13 shows an example of the settlement information stored in the settlement information storage unit 432 in the present embodiment. In the figure, the same parts as those in FIG. 5 are denoted by the same reference numerals and the description thereof is omitted, and mainly the differences from FIG. 5 will be described. In the settlement information in this figure, instead of the settlement information item of the purchase quantity, a settlement information item of the container ID is further included. The settlement information item of the container ID is information for specifying the container 10 in which the customer CS put the weighed and sold goods in the corresponding settlement. Further, the settlement information item of the container ID is information for specifying the capacity of the container indicated by the container ID (corresponding to the purchase quantity).

[0106] FIG. 14 shows an example of the point calculation information stored in the point calculation information storage unit 433 of the transaction management device 400 corresponding to the present embodiment. The point calculation information shown in this figure has the awarded point number determined corresponding to each combination of the capacity of the container 10 and the number of purchase times.

[0107] [Example of processing procedure] With reference to the sequence diagram of FIG. 15, an example of the processing procedure executed by the transaction management system of the present embodiment in relation to the awarding of environmental contribution points according to the settlement of weighed and sold goods will be described.

[0108] Step S500: The customer CS who intends to purchase the weighed and sold goods puts the weighed and sold goods into the container 10 from the dispenser in the weighing and selling system 100. At this time, an amount of the weighed and sold goods corresponding to the capacity is put into the container 10.

[0109] Also, in this embodiment, when the customer CS puts the prepackaged goods into the container 10 as described above, in accordance with the first embodiment, the customer CS performs an operation of inputting the customer ID into a dispenser (or a terminal provided in the prepackaging system 100). The dispenser receives the input customer ID. Also, the customer CS performs an operation of causing the code symbol CD3 attached to the container 10 to be read by the code reading unit of the dispenser.

[0110] Step S502: In the prepackaging system 100, the dispenser acquires the customer ID input in step S500. Also, the dispenser acquires the container ID from the code symbol CD3 read by the code reading unit in step S500.

[0111] Step S504: The dispenser (or the terminal in the prepackaging system) generates a settlement ID that uniquely indicates the settlement for the prepackaged goods put into the container 10 this time. Also, the dispenser generates measurement information corresponding to this weighing. The measurement information may include the settlement ID generated corresponding to this weighing, the customer ID acquired in step S502, the container ID, the product name or product code of the prepackaged goods, the price of the prepackaged goods, the weighing date and time, etc. In the case of this embodiment, the capacity of the container 10 indicated by the container ID may be treated as the purchase quantity. The price of the prepackaged goods may be calculated based on the purchase quantity according to the capacity of the container 10 and the unit price per quantity.

[0112] Step S506: The dispenser issues a weighing slip SL on which the measurement information generated in step S504 is printed as the code symbol CD1. The customer CS receives the issued weighing slip SL.

[0113] Step S508: The customer CS who has received the weighing slip SL is directed to go to the POS terminal for settlement. The customer CS performs an operation corresponding to the settlement on the POS terminal at the destination. At this time, the customer CS performs an operation of causing the POS terminal to read the measurement information recorded on the weighing slip SL.

[0114] Step S510: The POS terminal executes a settlement process using the measurement information read in step S508.

[0115] Step S512: The POS terminal generates settlement information corresponding to the settlement process in this step S510, and transmits the generated settlement information to the transaction management device 400. The settlement information may include, for example, the information shown in FIG. 13. In this case, the settlement information includes the settlement ID, customer ID, and container ID included in the measurement information read in step S508.

[0116] Step S514: In the transaction management device 400, the information acquisition unit 421 acquires the settlement information transmitted in step S512. The information acquisition unit 421 stores the acquired settlement information in the settlement information storage unit 432. In this way, also in this embodiment, every time a customer CS purchases a weighed commodity, settlement information is accumulated in the settlement information storage unit 432, similar to the first embodiment.

[0117] In FIG. 15, the procedure of the process according to steps S550 to S566 is the same as that of steps S150 to S164 in FIG. 7. However, in FIG. 15, in step S558, the process of calculating the number of points to be granted corresponding to the settlement information for which environmental contribution points have not been granted is different from step S158 in FIG. 7. Specifically, in step S558, the privilege granting unit 422 specifies the capacity corresponding to the container ID stored in the settlement information for which environmental contribution points have not been granted. Further, the privilege granting unit 422 refers to the settlement information stored in the settlement information storage unit 432, and recognizes which purchase number of the weighed commodity corresponding to the target settlement information is the purchase number using the container 10 of the specified capacity. The privilege granting unit 422 specifies the number of points to be granted corresponding to the combination of the recognized capacity and purchase number from the point calculation information (FIG. 14). In this way, the specified number of points to be granted is obtained as the calculation result.

[0118] In the case of this embodiment, in the display of the point awarding result performed on the customer terminal 300, the point awarding result corresponding to the capacity of each container 10 used by the customer CS up to now may be presented.

[0119] Note that also in this embodiment, similar to that shown in FIG. 7, at the stage where the customer CS makes a payment, the POS terminal in the POS system 200 may be made to acquire the customer ID. Also, as shown in FIG. 8, point awarding may be performed each time the payment is completed.

[0120] <Fourth Embodiment> Subsequently, the fourth embodiment will be described. The overall configuration example of the transaction management system of this embodiment may be the same as, for example, FIG. 12.

[0121] Under the operation of retail sales in this embodiment, similar to the third embodiment, a plurality of types of containers 10 having different capacities as standards are prepared. The customer CS can purchase retail goods by appropriately using one or more of the plurality of types of containers 10 having different capacities. Also, in the operation of retail goods in this embodiment, taking the case where the retail system 100 includes a dispenser as an example similar to the third embodiment. The customer CS is made to put retail goods into the container 10 from the dispenser. Regarding the purchase quantity, instead of measuring the weight, a purchase quantity uniquely determined corresponding to the capacity of the used container 10 is applied.

[0122] Also, under the operation of retail sales in this embodiment, similar to the third embodiment, a code symbol CD3 is attached to the container 10. The code symbol CD3 indicates a container ID that uniquely indicates the corresponding container 10. Also, under the operation of retail sales in this embodiment, the container ID is made to uniquely indicate the corresponding container 10 and, for example, indicate the corresponding capacity by a predetermined number of digits. That is, the capacity of the corresponding container 10 can be specified by the container ID.

[0123] In this embodiment, as in the third embodiment, as a mode of attaching the code symbol CD3 to the container 10, a label printed with the code symbol CD3 may be attached to the container 10. Also, in this embodiment, as in the third embodiment, a code reading unit is provided in the dispenser (or the terminal in the weighing and selling system 100). When the customer CS puts the weighed and sold product into the container 10 and has it weighed by the dispenser, the code reading unit is made to read the code symbol CD3.

[0124] Note that also in this embodiment, as in the third embodiment, instead of the code symbol CD3, an IC tag storing the container ID may be provided on the container 10 and a tag reader may be provided on the dispenser.

[0125] Also, the settlement information stored in the settlement information storage unit 432 in this embodiment may be the same as that in FIG. 13. Also, the point calculation information stored in the point calculation information storage unit 433 in this embodiment may be the same as that in FIG. 14.

[0126] Also, in this embodiment, when the customer CS uses the weighing and selling at the store ST, the customer CS is made to perform registration of the container 10 (container registration) that the customer will use in advance to the transaction management device 400. The transaction management device 400 of this embodiment includes a container registration information storage unit 434 (FIG. 1). The container registration information storage unit 434 stores container registration information. The container registration information is information indicating the container 10 registered corresponding to each customer CS.

[0127] FIG. 16 shows an example of the container registration information stored in the container registration information storage unit 434. As shown in the figure, the container registration information has a structure in which one or more container IDs registered corresponding to each customer ID are associated.

[0128] [Example of processing procedure] With reference to the sequence diagram of FIG. 17, an example of the processing procedure executed by the transaction management system of this embodiment in relation to the granting of environmental contribution points according to the settlement of the weighed and sold product will be described.

[0129] In this embodiment, as described above, when the customer CS uses weighing sales in the store ST, the customer CS is required to register (container registration) the container 10 that he / she will use in advance. Therefore, first, an example of the processing procedure corresponding to the container registration will be described.

[0130] Step S600: The customer CS performs a container registration operation on the customer terminal 300 that has launched the point application. The container registration operation includes an operation of causing the code reading unit of the customer terminal 300 to read the code symbol CD3 of the container ID attached to the container 10 held by the customer CS.

[0131] Step S602: The customer terminal 300 obtains the container ID from the code symbol CD3 read by the code reading unit.

[0132] Step S604: The customer terminal 300 transmits a container registration request to the transaction management device 400. The container registration request includes the customer ID and the container ID obtained in step S602. Note that, for example, the customer CS may be able to perform container registration operations for a plurality of containers 10. In this case, the customer terminal 300 may be able to transmit a container registration request including a plurality of container IDs obtained by a plurality of container registration operations.

[0133] Step S606: The transaction management device 400 executes container registration in response to the reception of the container registration request. That is, the transaction management device 400 stores, in the container registration information storage unit 434, container registration information in which the container ID included in the received container registration request is associated with the same customer ID as that included in the received container registration request.

[0134] Also, in this embodiment, in response to the completion of settlement for the customer CS to purchase weighed goods at the store ST, environmental contribution points are granted corresponding to the settlement without the customer CS operating the customer terminal 300. Referring to the procedure after step S650 in FIG. 17, an example of the processing procedure corresponding to the granting of environmental contribution points in this embodiment will be described.

[0135] Step S650: The customer CS who intends to purchase a weighed commodity at the store ST puts the weighed commodity into the container 10 from the dispenser in the weighing sales system 100. At this time, the container 10 is filled with the weighed commodity in an amount corresponding to its capacity.

[0136] Also, in the present embodiment, when the customer CS puts the weighed commodity into the container 10 as described above, in accordance with the first embodiment, the customer CS performs an operation of inputting the customer ID to the dispenser (or a terminal provided in the weighing sales system 100). The dispenser receives the input customer ID. Also, the customer CS performs an operation of causing the code reader of the dispenser (or the terminal in the weighing sales system) to read the code symbol CD3 attached to the container 10.

[0137] Step S652: In the weighing sales system 100, the dispenser acquires the container ID from the code symbol CD3 read by the code reader in step S650. In the present embodiment, the customer CS does not need to perform an operation of causing the customer ID to be input to the dispenser by the customer terminal 300 as in the third embodiment.

[0138] Step S654: The dispenser (or the terminal in the weighing sales system) generates a settlement ID that uniquely indicates the settlement for the weighed commodity put into the container 10 this time. Also, the dispenser generates weighing information corresponding to this weighing. The weighing information may include the settlement ID generated corresponding to this weighing, the container ID acquired in step S652, the commodity name or commodity code of the weighed commodity, the price of the weighed commodity, the weighing date and time, and the like. In the case of the present embodiment, the capacity of the container 10 indicated by the container ID may be treated as the purchase amount. The price of the weighed commodity may be calculated based on the purchase amount according to the capacity of the container 10 and the unit price per quantity.

[0139] Step S656: The dispenser issues a weighing slip SL on which the weighing information generated in step S654 is printed as a code symbol CD1. The customer CS receives the issued weighing slip SL.

[0140] Step S658: The customer CS who has received the weighing slip SL goes to the POS terminal for settlement. The customer CS performs an operation corresponding to the settlement on the POS terminal at the destination. At this time, the customer CS performs an operation to cause the POS terminal to read the weighing information recorded on the weighing slip SL.

[0141] Step S660: The POS terminal executes a settlement process using the weighing information read in step S658.

[0142] Step S662: The POS terminal generates settlement information corresponding to the settlement process in the current step S610, and transmits the generated settlement information to the transaction management device 400. The settlement information may, for example, not include the customer ID in the settlement information of FIG. 13. In this case, the settlement information includes the settlement ID and the container ID included in the weighing information read in step S658.

[0143] Step S664: In the transaction management device 400, the information acquisition unit 421 acquires the settlement information transmitted in step S662. The information acquisition unit 421 stores the acquired settlement information in the settlement information storage unit 432. At this time, the information acquisition unit 421 acquires the customer ID associated with the container ID included in the acquired settlement information from the container registration information storage unit 434. Then, the information acquisition unit 421 stores the acquired customer ID in the settlement information stored in the settlement information storage unit 432.

[0144] Step S666: The settlement information (target settlement information) stored in the settlement information storage unit 432 in step S664 corresponding to the current settlement has not yet had environmental contribution points added. Therefore, the privilege granting unit 422 calculates the number of points to be granted corresponding to the target settlement information. The process of calculating the number of points to be awarded in step S666 may be the same as that in step S558 of FIG. 15.

[0145] Step S668: The privilege granting unit 422 grants the number of points calculated in step S666 to the customer CS. That is, the privilege granting unit 422 stores the number of points calculated in step S666 in the field of the number of points to be awarded in the target settlement information, and stores the date and time corresponding to the current time in the field of the point awarding date and time.

[0146] Step S670: The privilege granting unit 422 transmits a notification (point awarding notification) to the customer terminal 300 that environmental contribution points have been awarded in response to the purchase of the weighed goods by the current customer CS in step S668. The point awarding notification in this case may be made, for example, by a push notification.

[0147] Step S672: In response to receiving the point awarding notification, the customer CS operates, for example, the customer terminal 300 to start the point application. The customer terminal 300 on which the point application has been started accesses the transaction management device 400 and can display the status of the environmental contribution point awarding in which the current point awarding result is reflected on the screen of the point application.

[0148] As described above, according to each of the above embodiments, when the customer CS repeatedly uses the container to purchase weighed goods, a privilege as environmental contribution points is granted to the customer CS. By granting such a privilege, the customer CS is made aware of environmental protection, and an incentive is given to repeatedly use the container to purchase weighed goods, thereby promoting the use of weighed sales.

[0149] <Modification Example> Hereinafter, modification examples of the present embodiment will be described. Regarding each of the modification examples described below, two or more may be combined as appropriate. [First Modification Example] For example, under the fourth embodiment, after the procedures of steps S650 to S656 in FIG. 17 are performed in response to the customer CS putting prepackaged goods into the container 10, there is a possibility that the customer CS may repeat the procedures of steps S650 to S656 by putting prepackaged goods into the same container 10 again without completing the settlement using the weighing slip issued to the customer CS. In such a case, as the transaction management system of this embodiment, settlement may be performed in order according to each of a plurality of weighing slips issued to the customer CS. On the other hand, there may be a case where it is desired to prohibit the issuance of the next weighing slip corresponding to the same container 10 while the previously issued weighing slip remains unsettled. In this case, for example, the prepackaging system 100 determines whether the container ID acquired corresponding to step S652 is the same as the container ID acquired in the previous step S652. When the prepackaging system 100 determines that they are the same, it further inquires of the transaction management device 400 whether the settlement of the settlement information of the settlement ID corresponding to the container ID acquired in the previous step S652 has been completed. When the response to the inquiry notifies that the settlement has been completed, the prepackaging system 100 executes the processes of steps S654 and S656 to issue a weighing slip so that the prepackaged goods put into the container 10 by the customer this time can be settled. On the contrary, when the response to the inquiry notifies that the settlement is incomplete, the prepackaging system 100 makes an error without executing the processes of steps S654 and S656, thereby making the settlement of the prepackaged goods put into the container 10 by the customer this time impossible. By performing such control, it is possible to prohibit the issuance of the next weighing slip corresponding to the same container 10 while the previously issued weighing slip remains unsettled.

[0150] [Second Variation Example] In the third embodiment, under the mode in which the container 10 is attached with a container ID (code symbol CD3), when weighing and selling goods with a weighing instrument, the weighing instrument is made to read the customer ID of the customer CS and the container ID attached to the container 10, so that the customer ID of the customer CS who purchases the weighed and sold goods and the container ID are associated with each other. Also, in the fourth embodiment, similarly under the mode in which the container 10 is attached with a container ID, the customer ID and the container ID are associated with each other by prior registration by the customer CS. In this modification, under the mode in which the container 10 is attached with a container ID, for example, when settlement is performed at a POS terminal in the POS system 200, the customer ID of the customer CS corresponding to the POS terminal may be acquired. In this modification, the customer ID thus acquired and the container ID read from the code symbol CD3 of the container 10 at, for example, a weighing instrument or a POS terminal are associated with each other, so that the relationship between the customer CS and the container 10 may be specified. The combination of the customer ID and the container ID thus associated may be stored by the transaction management device 400 as container registration information. By storing the container registration information in this way, hereafter, when the customer CS purchases weighed and sold goods and performs an operation of making the weighing instrument or the POS terminal read the container ID of the container 10, the transaction management device 400 can specify the customer ID associated with the read container ID from the container registration information and grant points. Also, in this case as well, the transaction management device 400 can store the history of the number of times of point granting and grant points according to the number of granted points corresponding to the number of times of point granting.

[0151] [Third Modification] Under each of the above embodiments, as described above, for example, a brought-in container brought by the customer CS himself / herself may be used as the container 10. In the case of a brought-in container, the newly used containers are reduced from the first use. Therefore, the transaction management system of this embodiment may grant environmental contribution points with a value greater than "0" from the first use when a brought-in container is used for purchasing weighed and sold goods.

[0152] For this purpose, as an example, in the case of the first embodiment or the second embodiment, when the customer CS puts the weighed goods into the container 10, the weighing and selling system 100 may be configured to perform an operation of designating that it is a brought-in container. By performing such an operation, the weighing information and the settlement information include information indicating that the brought-in container has been used (brought-in container use information). The transaction management device 400 may store point calculation information corresponding to a general-purpose container or a dedicated container as shown in FIGS. 6 and 14, and point calculation information corresponding to a brought-in container that allows points greater than "0" to be assigned from the beginning. If the brought-in container use information is included in the settlement information, the transaction management device 400 may perform point assignment using the point calculation information corresponding to the brought-in container. If the brought-in container use information is not included, the transaction management device 400 may perform point assignment using the point calculation information corresponding to the general-purpose container or the dedicated container.

[0153] Also, as an example, in the case of the third embodiment or the fourth embodiment, the customer CS may be configured to attach a code symbol CD3 indicating the container ID corresponding to the brought-in container provided by the store ST to his / her brought-in container. When the customer CS puts the weighed goods into the container 10 and the code symbol CD3 is read by a dispenser or a terminal in the weighing and selling system 100, the settlement information will include the container ID indicating that it is a brought-in container. If the container ID included in the settlement information indicates that it is a brought-in container, the transaction management device 400 may perform point assignment using the point calculation information corresponding to the brought-in container. If it does not indicate that it is a brought-in container, the transaction management device 400 may perform point assignment using the point calculation information corresponding to the general-purpose container or the dedicated container.

[0154] If the point assignment is performed as described above, both the general-purpose container or the dedicated container and the brought-in container can be used, and the point assignment process can be appropriately performed according to which container is used.

[0155] [Fourth Modification Example] When the container 10 is a dedicated container or a general-purpose container provided by the store ST, for example, when the customer CS repeatedly uses the container 10, it may become unusable due to damage, deterioration, etc., or may be lost. In this case, the customer CS will have the store ST replace it with a new container 10. In each of the above embodiments, the number of awarded points is increased as the number of uses of the container 10 in the purchase of weighed goods increases. However, when replacing with a new container 10 as described above, the use of the new container will not be reduced. Therefore, when the new container 10 is replaced, for example, by an operation on a predetermined terminal of a store clerk at the store ST, a notification that the container 10 has been replaced may be sent to the transaction management device 400 together with the customer ID of the corresponding customer CS. The transaction management device 400 may be configured to perform a predetermined subtraction on the number of purchases of the corresponding customer in the future in response to receiving the notification. Also, in this modification example, under the operation in which the container ID is associated with the container 10 as in the third embodiment, for example, when the container 10 is replaced and the capacity of the container 10 after replacement is different from that before replacement, the transaction management device 400 performs point awarding based on the capacity of the container 10 after replacement during the point awarding process, but performs point awarding based on the cumulative number of purchases from before replacement without resetting the number of purchases. Alternatively, the transaction management device 400 may be configured to uniformly reset the number of purchases to a predetermined value, for example, in response to the replacement of the container 10.

[0156] [Fifth Modification Example] The benefits awarded in response to the purchase of weighed goods by using the container 10 are not limited to the environmental contribution points described so far. The benefits awarded in response to the purchase of weighed goods by using the container 10 may be, for example, the provision of electronic coupons, electronic discount coupons, etc. In this case, as the number of purchases increases, the value of the electronic coupons, electronic discount coupons, etc. awarded as benefits may also increase.

[0157] In addition, a program for realizing functions as the above weighing and selling system 100 (weighing device, dispenser, terminal, etc.), POS system 200 (POS terminal, etc.), customer terminal 300, transaction management device 400, etc. is recorded on a computer-readable recording medium, and the program recorded on this recording medium is read into a computer system and executed, so that the above weighing and selling system 100 (weighing device, dispenser, terminal, etc.), POS system 200 (POS terminal, etc.), customer terminal 300, and transaction management device 400, etc. may perform processing. Here, "reading and executing the program recorded on the recording medium by the computer system" includes installing the program on the computer system. The "computer system" referred to here shall include hardware such as an OS and peripheral devices. Also, the "computer system" may include a plurality of computer devices connected via a network including communication lines such as the Internet, WAN, LAN, and dedicated lines. Further, the "computer-readable recording medium" refers to a portable medium such as a flexible disk, magneto-optical disk, ROM, CD-ROM, or a storage device such as an HDD or SDD built into the computer system. Thus, the recording medium storing the program may be a non-transitory recording medium such as a CD-ROM. Also, the recording medium includes an internal or external recording medium provided so as to be accessible from a distribution server for distributing the program. The code of the program stored in the recording medium of the distribution server may be different from the code of the program in a form executable by the terminal device. That is, as long as it can be downloaded from the distribution server and installed in an executable form on the terminal device, the form stored in the distribution server does not matter. Note that the program may be divided into a plurality of parts, downloaded at different timings, and then combined on the terminal device, or the distribution servers for distributing the respective divided programs may be different. Furthermore, the "computer-readable recording medium" shall also include a volatile memory (RAM) inside a computer system that becomes a server or a client when a program is transmitted via a network and holds the program for a certain period of time.Further, the above program may be for realizing a part of the functions described above. Furthermore, it may be a so-called difference file (difference program) that can realize the functions described above in combination with a program already recorded in a computer system.

[0158] <Appendix> (1) One aspect of the present embodiment is an information acquisition unit that acquires settlement information indicating a settlement result, including at least measurement information regarding the measurement result of a weighed commodity sold in a reusable container, a settlement identifier that uniquely identifies the corresponding settlement, and a customer identifier that uniquely indicates a customer who purchased the weighed commodity corresponding to the settlement; and a privilege granting unit that grants a privilege according to the usage record of the container at the time of purchase of the weighed commodity for each customer based on the settlement information acquired by the information acquisition unit.

[0159] (2) One aspect of the present embodiment is the privilege management system according to (1), wherein the privilege granting unit may grant the privilege by the number of points according to the usage record of the container at the time of purchase of the weighed commodity.

[0160] (3) One aspect of the present embodiment is the privilege management system according to (1) or (2), wherein the privilege granting unit may grant a privilege according to the quantity of the weighed commodity indicated in the measurement information.

[0161] (4) One aspect of the present embodiment is the privilege management system according to (3), wherein the privilege granting unit may grant a privilege according to the capacity of the container used for the purchase of the weighed commodity indicated in the settlement information.

[0162] (5) One aspect of the present embodiment is the privilege management system according to any one of (1) to (4), wherein the privilege granting unit may grant a privilege based on the number of times the container was used at the time of purchase of the weighed commodity based on the settlement information acquired by the information acquisition unit.

[0163] (6) One aspect of this embodiment is the privilege management system described in (5), wherein the privilege granting unit may be configured not to grant a privilege when the container is used for the first time.

[0164] (7) One aspect of this embodiment is the privilege management system described in (5) or (6), wherein the privilege granting unit may increase the value of the privilege to be granted in accordance with an increase in the number of times the container has been used.

[0165] (8) One aspect of this embodiment is the privilege management system described in (7), wherein when the value of the privilege reaches the upper limit, the privilege granting unit may grant a privilege with the upper limit value for subsequent use of the container.

[0166] (9) One aspect of this embodiment is the privilege management system described in (1) to (8), wherein the privilege granting unit may increase the value of the privilege to be granted in accordance with the quantity contained in the container for purchase.

[0167] (10) One aspect of this embodiment is the privilege management system described in any one of (1) to (9), wherein a container identifier uniquely indicating the container is attached to the container in a form readable by the reading unit, the information acquisition unit acquires settlement information including the container identifier read by the reading unit, and the privilege granting unit may grant a privilege according to the usage record of each container indicated by the container identifier included in the settlement information acquired by the information acquisition unit, corresponding to each customer.

[0168] (11) One aspect of this embodiment is a privilege management method in a privilege management system. An information acquisition unit acquires settlement information indicating a settlement result, including at least measurement information regarding a measurement result of a weighed commodity sold in a reusable container, a settlement identifier that uniquely identifies a corresponding settlement, and a customer identifier that uniquely indicates a customer who purchased the weighed commodity corresponding to the settlement. A privilege granting unit grants a privilege according to the usage record of the container at the time of purchase of the weighed commodity for each customer indicated by the customer identifier based on the settlement information acquired in the information acquisition step. This is a privilege management method including the above steps.

[0169] (12) One aspect of this embodiment is a privilege management apparatus including an information acquisition unit that acquires settlement information indicating a settlement result, including at least measurement information regarding a measurement result of a weighed commodity sold in a reusable container, a settlement identifier that uniquely identifies a corresponding settlement, and a customer identifier that uniquely indicates a customer who purchased the weighed commodity corresponding to the settlement; and a privilege granting unit that grants a privilege according to the usage record of the container at the time of purchase of the weighed commodity for each customer indicated by the customer identifier based on the settlement information acquired by the information acquisition unit.

[0170] (13) One aspect of this embodiment is a program for causing a computer as a privilege management apparatus to function as an information acquisition unit that acquires settlement information indicating a settlement result, including at least measurement information regarding a measurement result of a weighed commodity sold in a reusable container, a settlement identifier that uniquely identifies a corresponding settlement, and a customer identifier that uniquely indicates a customer who purchased the weighed commodity corresponding to the settlement; and a privilege granting unit that grants a privilege according to the usage record of the container at the time of purchase of the weighed commodity for each customer indicated by the customer identifier based on the settlement information acquired by the information acquisition unit.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0171] 10 Container, 100 Retail System, 200 POS System, 300 Customer Terminal, 301 Communication Unit, 302 User Interface Unit, 303 Control Unit, 304 Memory Unit, 305 Code Reading Unit, 331 Application Support Processing Unit, 400 Transaction Management Device, 401 Communication Unit, 402 Control Unit, 403 Memory Unit, 421 Information Acquisition Unit, 422 Privilege Granting Unit, 431 Customer Information Memory Unit, 432 Settlement Information Memory Unit, 433 Point Calculation Information Memory Unit, 434 Container Registration Information Memory Unit

Claims

1. An information acquisition unit that acquires settlement information indicating a settlement result, including at least measurement information regarding the measurement result of a weighed commodity sold in a reusable container, a settlement identifier that uniquely identifies the corresponding settlement, and a customer identifier that uniquely indicates a customer who purchased the weighed commodity corresponding to the settlement; A privilege granting unit that grants a privilege according to the usage record of the container at the time of purchase of the weighed commodity for each customer based on the settlement information acquired by the information acquisition unit; A privilege management system comprising the above.

2. The privilege granting unit grants the privilege based on the number of points according to the usage record of the container at the time of purchase of the weighed commodity. The privilege management system according to Claim 1.

3. The privilege granting unit grants a privilege according to the quantity of the weighed commodity indicated in the measurement information. The privilege management system according to Claim 1 or 2.

4. The privilege granting unit grants a privilege according to the capacity of the container used for the purchase of the weighed commodity indicated in the settlement information. The privilege management system according to Claim 3.

5. The privilege granting unit grants a privilege based on the number of times the container was used at the time of purchase of the weighed commodity based on the settlement information acquired by the information acquisition unit. The privilege management system according to Claim 1 or 2.

6. The privilege granting unit does not grant a privilege when the container is used for the first time. The privilege management system according to Claim 5.

7. The privilege granting unit increases the value of the privilege granted according to the increase in the number of times the container is used. The privilege management system according to Claim 5.

8. When the value of the privilege reaches the upper limit, the privilege granting unit grants a privilege with the upper limit value for subsequent uses of the container. The privilege management system according to Claim 7.

9. The privilege granting unit increases the value of the privilege granted according to the quantity put into the container for purchase. The privilege management system according to Claim 1 or 2.

10. A container identifier that uniquely indicates the container is attached to the container in a form readable by a reading unit, The information acquisition unit acquires settlement information including the container identifier read by the reading unit, The privilege granting unit grants a privilege according to the usage record of each container indicated by the container identifier included in the settlement information acquired by the information acquisition unit for each corresponding customer. The privilege management system according to Claim 1 or 2.

11. A privilege management method in a privilege management system, comprising: an information acquisition step in which an information acquisition unit acquires settlement information indicating a settlement result, the settlement information including at least measurement information regarding a measurement result of a weighed commodity sold in a reusable container, a settlement identifier that uniquely identifies the corresponding settlement, and a customer identifier that uniquely indicates a customer who purchased the weighed commodity corresponding to the settlement; a privilege granting step in which a privilege granting unit grants a privilege to each customer indicated by the customer identifier according to the usage record of the container at the time of purchase of the weighed commodity, based on the settlement information acquired in the information acquisition step; The privilege management method including the above steps.

12. An information acquisition unit that acquires settlement information indicating a settlement result, the settlement information including at least measurement information regarding a measurement result of a weighed commodity sold in a reusable container, a settlement identifier that uniquely identifies the corresponding settlement, and a customer identifier that uniquely indicates a customer who purchased the weighed commodity corresponding to the settlement; A privilege granting unit that grants a privilege to each customer indicated by the customer identifier according to the usage record of the container at the time of purchase of the weighed commodity, based on the settlement information acquired by the information acquisition unit; A privilege management device comprising the above units.

13. A program for causing a computer to function as a privilege management device, the computer functioning as: an information acquisition unit that acquires settlement information indicating a settlement result, the settlement information including at least measurement information regarding a measurement result of a weighed commodity sold in a reusable container, a settlement identifier that uniquely identifies the corresponding settlement, and a customer identifier that uniquely indicates a customer who purchased the weighed commodity corresponding to the settlement; a privilege granting unit that grants a privilege to each customer indicated by the customer identifier according to the usage record of the container at the time of purchase of the weighed commodity, based on the settlement information acquired by the information acquisition unit. ​

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