Transaction processing system

Abstract

To provide a transaction processing system that provides customers with guidance for effective sales promotion.SOLUTION: In the transaction processing system, a proposal processing device 200 communicates with an information processing terminal, a monitoring terminal, and a POS server via a communication network. The device updates the list data, which represents a list of transaction items, to include the specified item as a transaction item each time a customer selects an item. Once the payment has been settled, the device settles the payment for the transaction items included in the list represented by the list data. Furthermore, each time the list data is updated, the device determines dishes that use the transaction items included in the list represented by the list data after update. The device then guides the determined dishes to the customer.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] FIELD OF THE INVENTION An embodiment of the present invention relates to a transaction processing system. [Background technology]

[0002] It is conceivable that, upon request, the customer may be provided with recipes for dishes that use the product they are about to purchase. However, although such guidance improved customer service, it did not result in sufficient sales promotion. Under these circumstances, it has been desired to be able to provide guidance to customers that is effective in promoting sales. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2014-167787 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a transaction processing system that can provide guidance to customers that is effective in promoting sales. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] The transaction processing system of the embodiment includes an update means, a settlement means, a determination means, and a guidance means. The update means updates list data representing a list of transaction items each time a product is specified by a customer's operation to include the specified product as a transaction item. The settlement means settles the price of the transaction items included in the list represented by the list data in response to the payment being specified. The determination means determines a dish that uses the transaction item included in the list represented by the updated list data each time the list data is updated by the update means. The guidance means guides the customer to the dish determined by the determination means. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0006] [Figure 1] 1 is an overall configuration diagram of a product sales system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the main circuit configuration of the transaction processing device in FIG. 1. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the main circuit configuration of the proposed processing device in FIG. 1. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a main circuit configuration of the information processing terminal in FIG. [Figure 5] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the main circuit configuration of the POS server in FIG. 1. [Figure 6] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a method for configuring the recipe database in FIG. 3. [Figure 7] 1 is a flowchart of a transaction process. [Figure 8] 1 is a flowchart of a transaction process. [Figure 9] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a registration screen. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram showing interactions between a transaction processing device and a proposed processing device. [Figure 11] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a guide screen. [Figure 12] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a registration screen. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0007] A merchandise sales system that processes merchandise sales to customers in a store will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. The merchandise sales system is an example of a transaction processing system that processes merchandise sales as transactions. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of a product sales system 1 according to this embodiment.

[0008] Product sales system 1 includes transaction processing device 100, proposal processing device 200, accounting device 300, information processing terminal 400, monitoring terminal 500, and POS (point-of-sale) server 600. Product sales system 1 is configured so that transaction processing device 100, information processing terminal 400, monitoring terminal 500, and POS server 600 can communicate with each other via communication network 2. FIG. 1 shows one each of transaction processing device 100, proposal processing device 200, accounting device 300, monitoring terminal 500, and POS server 600, as well as two information processing terminals 400, but the number of each device is arbitrary.

[0009] Communication network 2 may be the Internet, a virtual private network (VPN), a local area network (LAN), a public communication network, a mobile communication network, or the like, either alone or in appropriate combination. For example, communication network 2 may be a combination of a LAN, the Internet, and a mobile communication network. Transaction processing device 100, accounting device 300, information processing terminal 400, monitoring terminal 500, and POS server 600 are assumed to be used, for example, within a store. In this case, a LAN, for example, is used for communication between transaction processing device 100, accounting device 300, information processing terminal 400, monitoring terminal 500, and POS server 600. However, in this embodiment, information processing terminal 400 is connected to communication network 2 by wireless access via access point 21 included in communication network 2. Communication between transaction processing device 100 and proposed processing device 200 is, for example, via the Internet.

[0010] The information processing terminal 400 is temporarily operated by a customer shopping in a store. The information processing terminal 400 is attached to, for example, a shopping cart (hereinafter simply referred to as a cart). The information processing terminal 400 may be carried by the customer. For example, an existing portable information processing device such as a tablet computer, a smartphone, or a smartwatch may be used as the information processing terminal 400. The information processing terminal 400 may be installed in a store and temporarily used by the customer, or may be owned by the customer. The information processing terminal 400 may also be operated by a store clerk on behalf of the customer.

[0011] Transaction equipment 100 registers the transaction product in response to an operation on information processing terminal 400. The proposal processing device 200 is an information processing device that performs information processing for proposing recipes to a customer who is using the information processing terminal 400. Accounting device 300 is an information processing device that calculates the price of a transaction commodity registered for one transaction in transaction processing device 100 and performs information processing to settle the price. The monitoring terminal 500 is an information processing device that processes information to support a store clerk who monitors the execution status of a transaction in the product sales system 1. The POS server 600 is an information processing device that manages transactions processed in the product sales system 1.

[0012] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the main circuit configuration of transaction processing apparatus 100. As shown in FIG. Transaction processing device 100 includes processor 101, main memory unit 102, auxiliary memory unit 103, communication unit 104, and transmission path 105. Processor 101, main memory unit 102, auxiliary memory unit 103, and communication unit 104 are capable of communicating with each other via transmission path 105.

[0013] Processor 101, main memory unit 102, and auxiliary memory unit 103 are connected via transmission line 105 to form a computer that performs information processing for controlling transaction equipment 100. Processor 101 corresponds to the central part of the computer. Processor 101 executes information processing for controlling each unit to realize various functions of transaction equipment 100 in accordance with information processing programs such as an operating system and application programs.

[0014] The main memory unit 102 corresponds to the main memory portion of the computer. The main memory unit 102 includes a read-only memory area and a rewritable memory area. The main memory unit 102 stores part of the information processing program in the read-only memory area. The main memory unit 102 may also store data required for the processor 101 to execute processes for controlling each component in the read-only memory area or the rewritable memory area. The main memory unit 102 uses the rewritable memory area as a work area for the processor 101.

[0015] The auxiliary memory unit 103 corresponds to the auxiliary memory portion of the computer. The auxiliary memory unit 103 may be, for example, an EEPROM (electric erasable programmable read-only memory), a HDD (hard disk drive), an SSD (solid state drive), or any other well-known storage device. The auxiliary memory unit 103 stores data used by the processor 101 when performing various processes and data generated by the processes performed by the processor 101. The auxiliary memory unit 103 may also store the information processing program. In this embodiment, the auxiliary memory unit 103 stores a transaction processing program PRA, which is one of the information processing programs. The transaction processing program PRA is an application program that describes the procedures for transaction processing, which will be described later. A portion of the memory area of ​​the auxiliary memory unit 103 is used as an area for storing transaction data DAA. The transaction data DAA is data representing the contents of one transaction.

[0016] The communication unit 104 executes communication processing for performing data communication via the communication network 2. For example, an existing wired communication device for the Internet can be used as the communication unit 104. Note that, instead of or in addition to the wired communication device, a wireless communication device connected to the communication network 2 via wireless communication may be used as the communication unit 104. The transmission path 105 includes an address bus, a data bus, and control signal lines, and transmits data and control signals exchanged between the connected components.

[0017] The basic hardware of transaction equipment 100 may be, for example, a general-purpose server device. Transaction equipment 100 is generally transferred with transaction processing program PRA stored in auxiliary storage unit 103. However, transaction processing equipment 100 may be transferred separately from hardware without transaction processing program PRA stored in auxiliary storage unit 103, or with a different version of the same application program stored in auxiliary storage unit 103. Transaction equipment 100 may be configured by writing transaction processing program PRA to auxiliary storage unit 103 in response to an operator's operation. Transaction processing program PRA may be transferred by recording it on a removable recording medium such as a magnetic disk, magneto-optical disk, optical disk, or semiconductor memory, or by communication via a network. Transaction processing program PRA may be stored in main storage unit 102.

[0018] FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the main circuit configuration of the proposed processing device 200. The proposed processing device 200 includes a processor 201 , a main storage unit 202 , an auxiliary storage unit 203 , a communication unit 204 , and a transmission path 205 . The functions of the processor 201, main memory unit 202, auxiliary memory unit 203, communication unit 204 and transmission path 205 are roughly equivalent to those of the processor 101, main memory unit 102, auxiliary memory unit 103, communication unit 104 and transmission path 105.

[0019] However, the auxiliary storage unit 203 stores a proposal processing program PRB instead of the transaction processing program PRA. The proposal processing program PRB is an application program that describes the information processing procedures to be performed by the processor 201 to determine recipes to be proposed to customers. In this embodiment, a large-scale language model (LLM) is used as the proposal processing program PRB. Furthermore, part of the storage area of ​​the auxiliary storage unit 203 is used to store a recipe database DBA. The recipe database DBA is a fine-tuned database that uses a large-scale language model to determine recipes to be proposed to customers.

[0020] The basic hardware of the proposed processing device 200 may be, for example, a general-purpose server device. The proposed processing device 200 is generally transferred with the proposed processing program PRB stored in the auxiliary storage unit 203. However, the proposed processing device 200 may be transferred separately from the hardware without the proposed processing program PRB stored in the auxiliary storage unit 203, or with a different version of the same application program stored in the auxiliary storage unit 203. The proposed processing device 200 may be configured by writing the proposed processing program PRB to the auxiliary storage unit 203 in response to an operator's operation. The proposed processing program PRB may be transferred by recording it on a removable recording medium such as a magnetic disk, magneto-optical disk, optical disk, or semiconductor memory, or by communication via a network. The proposed processing program PRB may be stored in the main storage unit 202.

[0021] FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the main circuit configuration of the information processing terminal 400. As shown in FIG. The information processing terminal 400 includes a processor 401, a main memory unit 402, an auxiliary memory unit 403, a touch panel 404, a sound unit 405, an interface unit 406, a wireless communication unit 407, a transmission path 408, and the like. The processor 401 , main memory unit 402 , auxiliary memory unit 403 and transmission path 408 have roughly the same functions as the processor 101 , main memory unit 102 , auxiliary memory unit 103 , communication unit 104 and transmission path 105 .

[0022] However, auxiliary storage unit 403 stores terminal program PRC instead of transaction processing program PRA. Terminal program PRC is an application program that describes the information processing procedures of processor 401 for causing information processing terminal 400 to function as a user interface for registering transaction commodities in transaction processing device 100.

[0023] The touch panel 404 displays a screen for presenting information to the operator. The touch panel 404 also allows the operator to input instructions by touching the screen. The operator of the information processing terminal 400 is usually a customer. However, the operator of the information processing terminal 400 may also be a store clerk. The sound unit 405 outputs sounds and voices for various guidance and warnings. As the sound unit, various well-known sound devices such as a voice synthesis device and a buzzer can be used alone or in combination.

[0024] An external device such as a camera 499 is connected to the interface unit 406. The interface unit 406 acts as an interface for sending and receiving data to and from the connected external device. An existing USB (universal serial bus) controller or the like can be used as the interface unit 406. The camera 499 is attached to the cart and takes a picture of a commodity held up by an operator to be registered as a trading commodity. Instead of or in addition to the camera 499, a camera built into the information processing terminal 400 may be used.

[0025] The wireless communication unit 407 executes communication processing for wirelessly performing data communication via the communication network 2. For example, an existing wireless communication device for a wireless LAN can be used as the wireless communication unit 407. Note that instead of or in addition to the wireless communication unit 407, a communication unit that is wired connected to the communication network 2 may be used.

[0026] The basic hardware of the information processing terminal 400 is assumed to be, for example, the hardware of a tablet-type information processing device. The information processing terminal 400 is generally transferred with the terminal program PRC stored in the auxiliary storage unit 403. However, the hardware may be transferred separately from the terminal program PRC without the terminal program PRC stored in the auxiliary storage unit 403, or with a different version of the same application program stored in the auxiliary storage unit 403. The information processing terminal 400 may be configured by writing the terminal program PRC to the auxiliary storage unit 403 in response to an operator's operation. The terminal program PRC may be transferred by recording it on a removable recording medium such as a magnetic disk, a magneto-optical disk, an optical disk, or a semiconductor memory, or by communication via a network. The terminal program PRC may be stored in the main storage unit 402.

[0027] FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing the main circuit configuration of the POS server 600. The POS server 600 includes a processor 601 , a main memory unit 602 , an auxiliary memory unit 603 , a communication unit 604 , and a transmission path 605 . The functions of the processor 601, main memory unit 602, auxiliary memory unit 603, communication unit 604 and transmission path 605 are roughly equivalent to those of the processor 101, main memory unit 102, auxiliary memory unit 103, communication unit 104 and transmission path 105.

[0028] However, the auxiliary storage unit 603 stores a transaction management program PRD instead of the transaction processing program PRA. The transaction management program PRD is an application program that describes the procedures for information processing by the processor 601 to manage transactions processed by the product sales system 1. In addition, part of the memory area of ​​the auxiliary storage unit 603 is used to store a transaction database DBB. The transaction database DBB is a database that accumulates transaction data that shows the details of settled transactions for each transaction.

[0029] The basic hardware of POS server 600 can be, for example, a general-purpose server device. POS server 600 is generally transferred with transaction management program PRD stored in auxiliary storage unit 603. However, the transaction management program PRD may be transferred separately from the hardware without transaction management program PRD stored in auxiliary storage unit 603, or with a different version of the same application program stored in auxiliary storage unit 603. POS server 600 may be configured by writing transaction management program PRD to auxiliary storage unit 603 in response to an operator's operation. Transaction management program PRD may be transferred by recording it on a removable recording medium such as a magnetic disk, magneto-optical disk, optical disk, or semiconductor memory, or by communication via a network. Transaction management program PRD may be stored in main storage unit 602.

[0030] Next, the operation of the product sales system 1 configured as described above will be described. Note that the contents of the various processes described below are merely examples, and it is possible to change the order of some of the processes, omit some of the processes, or add other processes as appropriate. For example, in the following explanation, in order to clearly explain the characteristic operations of this embodiment, explanation of some of the processes will be omitted. For example, if some kind of error occurs, processing may be performed to deal with the error, but a description of such processing will be omitted.

[0031] FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a method for configuring the recipe database DBA. First, when constructing the product sales system 1, as shown in FIG. 6, recipe data, sales item data, and climate data are fine-tuned using feature calculations to obtain a recipe database DBA, which is then stored in the auxiliary storage unit 203 of the proposal processing device 200. The recipe data represents a collection of recipes to be proposed to customers. The sales item data is data related to products sold in stores. The climate data is data related to the climate that should be taken into consideration when deciding on a recipe. The recipe database DBA may be updated as appropriate even after the product sales system 1 has begun to be used.

[0032] A customer performs a predetermined operation to start use on unused information processing terminal 400. When this operation is performed, processor 401 in information processing terminal 400 executes user interface processing based on terminal program PRC to cause information processing terminal 400 to function as a user interface device for transaction processing. Through this user interface processing, processor 401 notifies transaction equipment 100 of the operation by the operator and also performs operations to notify the customer of various information under instructions from transaction equipment 100. Thus, processor 401 first notifies transaction equipment 100 that the operation to start use has been performed.

[0033] When notified that an operation to start use has been performed, processor 101 in transaction equipment 100 starts transaction processing based on transaction processing program PRA. Processor 101 performs this transaction processing on information processing terminal 400 that issued the above notification. Processor 101 may also process multiple transaction processes in parallel, each targeted at multiple information processing terminals 400. In the following description, when simply referring to "information processing terminal 400," this refers to information processing terminal 400 that issued the above notification.

[0034] 7 and 8 are flowcharts of the transaction process. Processor 101, as ACT101 in FIG. 7, performs login processing. For example, processor 101 displays a login screen on touch panel 404 of information processing terminal 400 for prompting the customer to specify a user code and password, and receives the customer's specification of the user code and password. When processor 101 receives the user code and password specified by the customer from information processing terminal 400, processor 101 authenticates whether the customer is a registered user using a well-known user authentication technique. If authentication is successful, processor 101 stores the specified user code in, for example, main storage unit 102 or auxiliary storage unit 103. Alternatively, information processing terminal 400 may read the user code from the user card and notify transaction equipment 100. In transaction equipment 100, processor 101 may perform user authentication using the user code, or may store the user code as the customer's identification code without performing user authentication. Processor 101 may also allow login without obtaining a user code. That is, for example, the processor 101 receives a designation for visitor use on the login screen, and when this designation is notified from the information processing terminal 400, the processor 101 does not perform user authentication, but stores a predetermined visitor code as the customer's identification code in, for example, the main memory unit 102 or the auxiliary memory unit 103.

[0035] In ACT 102, the processor 101 generates transaction data DAA. That is, the processor 101 determines, for example, a new transaction code that is different from transaction codes serving as identifiers for identifying other transactions in accordance with a predetermined rule, generates new transaction data DAA that includes this transaction code but does not include product information related to the transaction product, and stores the new transaction data DAA in the auxiliary storage unit 103. As ACT103, the processor 101 displays a registration screen on the touch panel 404 of the information processing terminal 400. The registration screen is a screen for allowing the customer to recognize the registration status of the trading product.

[0036] FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of the registration screen. Note that in the screen examples shown in FIG. 9 and other figures, some display objects may be omitted from the illustration. The registration screen shown in Figure 9 displays an image representing the registration status in the display area ARA. The registration screen displays buttons BUA and BUB. In the example shown in Figure 9, the image displayed in the display area ARA represents a state in which two items have been registered: one with the product names "AAAAAAAAAA" and one with the unit price of 178 yen and one with the unit price of 198 yen, respectively, with a suggested price of 406 yen. The suggested price is calculated by subtracting discounts from various services, such as coupons, from the total unit price of all the items being traded. If the transaction is settled without changing the traded items or applied services, this suggested price will be the settlement amount. The image displayed in the display area ARA changes sequentially depending on the registration status of the traded items. When ACT103 is executed for the first time after the start of the transaction process, no traded items have been registered. Therefore, the display area ARA displays no information about each item, but displays an image indicating a total of 0 items and a suggested price of 0 yen. The button BUA is a soft key used by the operator to specify payment. The button BUB is a soft key that allows the operator to specify that the recipe suggestion function is enabled. The contents of the registration screen may be determined as appropriate by, for example, the creator of the terminal program PRC.

[0037] To display the registration screen and various other screens described below, processor 101 in transaction processing device 100 generates screen data representing the screen and sends it to information processing terminal 400, and processor 401 displays the screen represented by this screen data on touch panel 404. Alternatively, processor 101 sends various pieces of information to be displayed on the screen to information processing terminal 400, and processor 401 creates a screen based on this information and displays it on touch panel 404.

[0038] Customers push their carts around the sales floor, hold the items they want to purchase up to the camera 499, and then place them directly on the cart or in a basket placed on the cart. Processor 401 in information processing terminal 400 recognizes a product captured by camera 499 based on an image obtained by camera 499. That is, processor 401 performs, for example, appearance recognition processing to recognize a product based on the appearance of the product captured in the image. Alternatively, processor 401 performs, for example, barcode recognition processing to recognize a product based on a product barcode displayed on the product. Processor 401 may perform both appearance recognition processing and barcode recognition processing, or may perform only one of them. If processor 401 successfully recognizes a product, it notifies transaction equipment 100 of the product code of the product. The image obtained by information processing terminal 400 may be sent to transaction equipment 100 or any other information processing device, and transaction equipment 100 or any other information processing device may perform processing for product recognition.

[0039] Processor 101 in transaction equipment 100 displays the registration screen in ACT 103 in FIG. 7, and then proceeds to ACT 104. In ACT104, the processor 101 checks whether the product has been notified. If the processor 101 cannot confirm the event, it determines "NO" and proceeds to ACT105. In ACT 105, the processor 101 checks whether a designation to enable the recipe suggestion function has been made. If the processor 101 cannot confirm the relevant event, it determines NO and proceeds to ACT 106. In ACT 106, the processor 101 checks whether a transaction has been specified. If the processor 101 cannot confirm the event, it determines "NO" and returns to ACT 104. Thus, in ACT104 to ACT106, the processor 101 waits for notification of the product, specification of validity, or specification of payment. Then, when the processor 101 receives the product code from the information processing terminal 400 as described above, the processor 101 determines YES in ACT104 and proceeds to ACT107.

[0040] In ACT107, the processor 101 registers the commodity identified by the notified commodity code as the transacted commodity. That is, the processor 101 updates the transaction data DAA, for example, to include commodity information associated with the notified commodity code as commodity information for the transacted commodity. The processor 101 includes at least the commodity code in the commodity information included in the transaction data DAA. The processor 101 may also include the commodity name and unit price in the commodity information included in the transaction data DAA. Here, the type of information that the processor 101 includes in the commodity information may be appropriately determined, for example, by the person who determines the specifications of the commodity sales system 1. The transaction data DAA is an example of list data representing a list of transacted commodities. Thus, by the processor 101 executing information processing based on the transaction processing program PRA, the computer with the processor 101 as its central part functions as an update means.

[0041] In ACT 108, the processor 101 updates the registration screen. For example, the processor 101 updates the registration screen displayed on the touch panel 404 of the information processing terminal 400 so as to show an updated list that includes the trading product registered in ACT 107. The processor 101 then returns to the standby state of ACT 104 to ACT 106. Thus, every time a product code is notified, the processor 101 registers the product identified by that product code as a trading product.

[0042] When a customer desires a recipe suggestion, the customer designates activation of the recipe suggestion function by a predetermined operation, such as tapping button BUB shown in Fig. 9. When this designation is notified from information processing terminal 400 to transaction equipment 100, processor 101 in transaction equipment 100 determines YES in ACT 105 and proceeds to ACT 111 in Fig. 8. In this way, processor 101 executes information processing based on transaction processing program PRA, and the computer with processor 101 as its central part functions as a decision means.

[0043] In ACT111, the processor 101 requests the proposal processing device 200 to start recipe proposals. At this time, the processor 101 notifies the proposal processing device 200 of what products have been registered as transaction products. The processor 101, for example, sends data representing a list of all or part of the product codes included in the transaction data DAA to the proposal processing device 200. Alternatively, the processor 101 may send the transaction data DAA directly to the proposal processing device 200. The processor 101 also sends climate data relating to the current climate to the proposal processing device 200. Climate data is data representing weather, temperature, humidity, etc. The type of information to be represented in the climate data may be determined as appropriate by the person who determines the specifications of the product sales system 1 or the store manager, for example. The processor 101 acquires the climate data, for example, by using a web service that distributes climate-related data.

[0044] FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram showing the exchange between transaction processing apparatus 100 and proposal processing apparatus 200. As shown in FIG. When receiving the request to start the recipe proposal, the processor 201 in the proposal processing device 200 proceeds to ACT201. In ACT 201, the processor 201 calculates the feature quantities related to the trading product and weather notified together with the request.

[0045] In ACT202, processor 201 determines recipes to be suggested using a large-scale language model while referring to the recipe database DBA based on the calculated features. At this time, it is preferable that recipe database DBA is fine-tuned so that processor 201 determines recipes for dishes that use already registered trading products but also products that are not registered as trading products. It is also preferable that recipe database DBA is fine-tuned so that processor 201 determines recipes for dishes that are suitable for the current weather.

[0046] As ACT 203, processor 201 transmits response data representing recipe guidance data for the recipe determined as described above to transaction processing device 100. The recipe guidance data is data representing, for example, the name of a dish, a shopping list, and cooking procedures. The shopping list is a list of products sold in the store that must be purchased to cook the dish. Note that the type of information to be included in the recipe guidance data may be determined as appropriate by the person who determines the specifications of product sales system 1, the store manager, or the like.

[0047] After processor 101 in transaction processing apparatus 100 requests the start of recipe proposal in ACT 111 in FIG. 8, the process proceeds to ACT 112. As ACT112, the processor 101 acquires the response data transmitted from the proposal processing device 200 as described above. That is, the processor 101 stores the response data transmitted from the proposal processing device 200 and received by the communication unit 104 in the main storage unit 102 or the auxiliary storage unit 103, for example.

[0048] As ACT113, the processor 101 displays a proposal screen on the touch panel 404 of the information processing terminal 400. The proposal screen is a screen for introducing the customer to the recipe determined as the target of proposal as described above. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of the guide screen. In the guide screen shown in Figure 11, area ARB displays the name of the dish, area ARC displays a list of items that should be purchased, area ARD displays a list of items that the customer has previously purchased, and area ARE displays the cooking procedure. Note that in Figure 11, some of the text displayed in area ARE has been replaced with circles for omission.

[0049] For example, the processor 101 expands the information represented in the acquired response data for the areas ARB, ARC, and ARD. For example, for the area ARD, the processor 101 expands information about products that the customer has previously purchased among the products to be purchased. For example, the processor 101 queries the POS server 600 and acquires a list of products that the customer, identified by the user code stored in the main memory unit 102 or the auxiliary memory unit 103 in ACT101 in FIG. 7, has previously purchased. The processor 101 then generates a list to be displayed in the area ARD as a list of products that match the products to be purchased among the products included in the list of purchased products. Note that the acquired list of purchased products is preferably based on the purchase history for a specified period, such as the last few days. If the processor 101 cannot obtain information to be expanded in the area ARD, the processor 101 may, for example, leave the area ARD blank or not set the area ARD.

[0050] Thus, the processor 101 acquires information about the traded products in past transactions by a customer identified by the user code stored in the main memory unit 102 or the auxiliary memory unit 103 in ACT101 in Fig. 7. Thus, the processor 101 executes information processing based on the transaction processing program PRA, and the computer with the processor 101 as its central part functions as an identification means and an acquisition means. The button BUC is a soft key that allows the operator to specify that the display of the guide screen should be terminated and the registration screen should be displayed again.

[0051] Thus, customers can use the information screen to learn about dishes that use registered products and what products they need to prepare for those dishes. If the customer decides to make that dish, they can continue to register trading products to include the products listed in Area ARC. This information screen display motivates customers to purchase new products and helps promote sales. Customers can also refer to the list displayed in Area ARD to determine whether or not to register products listed in Area ARC as trading products. This prevents customers from making unnecessary product purchases. For the store, this reduces the effectiveness of sales promotion in the short term. However, providing such beneficial information to customers can be expected to have a long-term sales promotion effect by improving customer satisfaction.

[0052] In ACT114, the processor 101 checks whether the product has been notified. If the processor 101 cannot confirm the event, it determines "NO" and proceeds to ACT115. In ACT 115, the processor 101 checks whether a command to disable the recipe suggestion function has been issued. If the processor 101 cannot confirm this event, it determines "NO" and proceeds to ACT 116.

[0053] In ACT 116, the processor 101 checks whether a screen change has been specified. If the processor 101 cannot confirm the event, it determines NO and proceeds to ACT 117. In ACT 117, the processor 101 checks whether a transaction has been specified. If the processor 101 cannot confirm the event, it determines "NO" and returns to ACT 114.

[0054] Thus, in ACT114 to ACT117, the processor 101 waits for any of the following to be specified: notification of the product, specification of invalidation, specification of screen switching, or specification of checkout. When the processor 101 receives the product code from the information processing terminal 400, the processor 101 determines YES in ACT114 and proceeds to ACT118. In ACT 118, the processor 101 registers the product identified by the notified product code as a trading product, similar to ACT 107 in FIG.

[0055] 9, the processor 101 requests the proposal processing device 200 to re-propose a recipe. At this time, the processor 101 notifies the proposal processing device 200 of the trading product newly registered in ACT118. When the above-mentioned request for re-proposal is received, the processor 201 in the proposal processing device 200 proceeds to ACT 204 in FIG. In ACT 204, the processor 201 recalculates the features related to the products notified in the previous requests and the weather notified at the time of the start request.

[0056] In ACT 205, the processor 201 determines recipes to be proposed based on the recalculated feature amounts, similarly to ACT 202. In ACT 206, processor 201 transmits to transaction processing apparatus 100 response data representing recipe data relating to the recipe determined as described above.

[0057] After processor 101 in transaction processing apparatus 100 requests a re-proposal in ACT 119 in FIG. 8, the process proceeds to ACT 120. As ACT 120, the processor 101 acquires the response data transmitted from the proposal processing device 200 as described above. That is, the processor 101 stores the response data transmitted from the proposal processing device 200 and received by the communication unit 104 in the main storage unit 102 or the auxiliary storage unit 103, for example.

[0058] In ACT 121, the processor 101 displays a proposal screen based on the response data acquired in ACT 120 on the touch panel 404 of the information processing terminal 400, similar to ACT 113. The processor 101 then returns to the standby state of ACT 114 through ACT 117. That is, the processor 101 repeatedly executes ACT 118 through ACT 121 each time a new trading commodity is registered, updating the proposal screen while taking the new trading commodity into consideration. At this time, the processor 201 in the proposal processing device 200 also determines a recipe each time a new trading commodity is registered. By fine-tuning the recipe database DBA as described above, this recipe determination corresponds to the process of determining a dish that uses the trading commodity. Displaying the proposal screen is an example of an operation for recommending the determined dish to the customer. In other words, by the processor 201 executing information processing based on the proposal processing program PRB, the computer, with the processor 201 as its core, functions as a determination means and a guidance means.

[0059] Now, if the customer wants to check the registration screen while the proposal screen is being displayed on the touch panel 404 of the information processing terminal 400, the customer can specify screen switching by a predetermined operation, such as tapping the button BUC shown in Figure 11. When such a screen switching designation is notified from information processing terminal 400 to transaction equipment 100, processor 101 in transaction equipment 100 determines YES in ACT 116 in FIG. 9 and proceeds to ACT 122. In ACT122, the processor 101 changes the display on the touch panel 404 of the information processing terminal 400 to a registration screen if the proposal screen is displayed as described above.

[0060] FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of a registration screen when the recipe suggestion function is enabled. The registration screen shown in FIG. 12 is an example in a situation where the registered trading products are the same as those on the registration screen shown in FIG. The registration screen shown in Fig. 12 is a registration screen in a state where the recipe suggestion function is disabled, that is, a button BUD is shown instead of the button BUB on the registration screen shown in Fig. 9, and a button BUE is added. The button BUD is a soft key that allows the operator to specify that the recipe suggestion function is disabled. The button BUE is a soft key that allows the operator to specify that the suggestion screen is to be redisplayed.

[0061] Then, the processor 101 returns to the standby state from ACT114 to ACT117. Now, if the customer wants to check the proposal screen again when the registration screen shown in Figure 12 is displayed on the touch panel 404 of the information processing terminal 400, the customer can specify screen switching by a predetermined operation, such as tapping button BUE.

[0062] When such a screen switching designation is notified from information processing terminal 400 to transaction equipment 100, processor 101 in transaction equipment 100 determines YES in ACT 116 in Figure 9 and proceeds to ACT 122. Then, if the registration screen is displayed as described above on touch panel 404 of information processing terminal 400, processor 101 changes the display to the proposal screen that was displayed before the registration screen was displayed.

[0063] When a customer no longer needs recipe suggestions, the customer designates the disablement of the recipe suggestion function by a predetermined operation, such as tapping button BUD while a registration screen such as that shown in Fig. 12 is displayed on touch panel 404 of information processing terminal 400. When this designation is notified from information processing terminal 400 to transaction equipment 100, processor 101 in transaction equipment 100 determines YES in ACT 115 in Fig. 8, returns to ACT 103 in Fig. 7, and executes the subsequent steps in the same manner as described above. As a result, processor 101 transitions to a state in which the suggestion screen is not displayed even if a new transaction product is subsequently registered.

[0064] When the customer has selected all the products they wish to purchase, they specify the payment method by a predetermined operation, such as tapping button BUA shown in FIG. 9. When this specification is notified from information processing terminal 400 to transaction equipment 100, processor 101 in transaction equipment 100 determines YES in ACT 106 in FIG. 7 and proceeds to payment processing. The payment processing may be, for example, a well-known process for the customer to pay by operating checkout device 300, and illustrations and explanations thereof are omitted. In this way, processor 101 executes information processing based on transaction processing program PRA, and the computer with processor 101 as its central part functions as a payment means. Note that payment processing without using checkout device 300, such as online payment processing by processor 401 on information processing terminal 400, may also be performed.

[0065] Alternatively, the customer may specify the transaction by a predetermined operation, such as tapping button BUA shown in Fig. 12. When this specification is notified from information processing terminal 400 to transaction equipment 100, processor 101 in transaction equipment 100 determines YES in ACT 117 in Fig. 8 and proceeds to ACT 123. In ACT123, the processor 101 requests the proposal processing device 200 to end the recipe proposal. Then, the processor 101 then executes the accounting process as described above.

[0066] When receiving a request to end the recipe proposal, the processor 201 in the proposal processing device 200 proceeds to ACT 207 in FIG. As ACT207, the processor 201 performs termination processing, such as terminating the session used for the above-mentioned interaction with the transaction processing device 100 and clearing the data stored in the main memory unit 202 and auxiliary memory unit 203 for the above-mentioned processing.

[0067] As described above, when the recipe suggestion function is enabled, the product sales system 1 suggests to customers recipes that take into account the newly registered product each time a trading product is registered. This allows customers to be suggested recipes that use the trading product previously registered as trading products while they are walking around the store and adding new products. This can potentially influence the customer's subsequent purchasing behavior and serve as a guide to customers that is effective in promoting sales.

[0068] Furthermore, the product sales system 1 allows customers to specify whether the recipe suggestion function is enabled or disabled, and suggests recipes only when the function is enabled. This eliminates unnecessary information for customers who have already decided which products to purchase before visiting the store, preventing them from feeling annoyed.

[0069] This embodiment can be modified in various ways as follows. Any type of information can be used as long as it allows customers to at least recognize the dishes that use the registered transaction products. For example, it is acceptable to only provide the names of the dishes. Even in this case, it is possible to expect a sales promotion effect for customers who can determine the products they should purchase from the names of the dishes.

[0070] Climate does not need to be a consideration when deciding which recipes to suggest.

[0071] The guidance may be given by a method other than a screen display, such as outputting a voice message or sending an e-mail.

[0072] A part or all of the transaction processing may be executed by the processor 401 in the information processing terminal 400. Also, a part or all of the transaction processing may be executed by an arbitrary information processing device such as the POS server 600.

[0073] The above-described processing by proposed processing device 200 may be performed by transaction processing device 100, POS server 600, or any other information processing device.

[0074] Some or all of the functions realized by the processors 101, 201, and 401 through information processing can also be realized by hardware that executes information processing not based on a program, such as a logic circuit. Each of the above functions can also be realized by combining hardware such as the logic circuit with software control.

[0075] Although several embodiments of the present invention have been described, these embodiments are presented as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These novel embodiments can be embodied in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. These embodiments and their modifications are included within the scope and spirit of the invention, and are also included in the scope of the invention and its equivalents as defined in the claims. [Explanation of symbols]

[0076] 1...product sales system, 2...communication network, 21...access point, 100...transaction processing device, 200...proposal processing device, 300...accounting device, 400...information processing terminal, 500...monitoring terminal, 600...POS server, 101,201,401,601...processor, 102,202,402,602...main memory unit, 103,203,403,603...auxiliary memory unit, 104,204,604...communication unit, 105,205,408,605...transmission path, 404...touch panel, 405...sound unit, 406...interface unit, 407...wireless communication unit, 499...camera.

Claims

1. an updating means for updating the list data representing the list of trading commodities so that the specified commodity is included as a trading commodity each time the commodity is designated by a customer's operation; a payment means for paying the price of the trading product included in the list represented by the list data in response to the payment being specified; a determination means for determining, each time the list data is updated by the update means, a dish that uses a transaction product included in the list represented by the updated list data; a guide means for introducing the dish determined by the determination means to the customer; A transaction processing system comprising:

2. The device further includes a determination means for determining whether or not to provide guidance by the guidance means based on a customer's designation, the determining means determines the type of food when the determining means determines that guidance should be provided; The transaction processing system of claim 1 .

3. an identification means for identifying a customer; an acquisition means for acquiring information about transaction products in past transactions related to the customer identified by the identification means; Furthermore, The information providing means provides the customer with the information acquired by the acquisition means along with the dish determined by the determination means. The transaction processing system of claim 1 .

4. the determining means determines a dish that uses a trading product included in the list represented by the updated list data, taking into consideration the weather; The transaction processing system of claim 1 .

5. the determining means determines, in addition to the transaction commodity included in the list represented by the updated list data, a dish that uses a commodity other than the transaction commodity; The transaction processing system of claim 1 .

Images