Display systems and server devices

Abstract

The problem that this invention aims to solve is to provide a display system, a server device, and a display device that can display information in a way that is appealing to customers. [Solution] The display system of the embodiment comprises a display device and a server device. The server device comprises an acquisition unit that acquires terminal identification information to identify a terminal device and product identification information to identify a product that the customer intends to purchase from a terminal device that moves with the customer, a selection unit that selects one of a predetermined number of display patterns based on the product identification information acquired by the acquisition unit, and an output unit that outputs pattern identification information to identify the display pattern selected by the selection unit to the terminal device identified by the terminal identification information acquired by the acquisition unit. The display device comprises a detection unit that detects pattern identification information output by a terminal device located within a predetermined range, and a display control unit that causes the display unit to display product display information using the display pattern identified by the pattern identification information detected by the detection unit.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Embodiments of the present invention relate to a display system, a server device, and a display device.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, in stores that sell products, a system for displaying product information to customers has been used (for example, Patent Document 1). As display devices for displaying product information, there are known electronic shelf labels, electronic POPs (Point of purchase advertising), etc., which are provided in a one-to-one correspondence with the products.

[0003] The above display device electronically displays product information such as the name, price, and origin of the corresponding product, and has the advantage that the display content can be easily changed when the displayed product changes.

[0004] By the way, the information that customers who visit the store are interested in varies from customer to customer. For example, it is conceivable that one customer is interested in the price of the product, and another customer is interested in the origin of the product. However, the conventional display device has a single display pattern for the information of the displayed product and cannot perform display according to the interests of each customer. Therefore, there is room for improvement in the conventional display device in terms of performing display that gives an appealing effect to customers.

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] The problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a display system, a server device, and a display device capable of performing display that gives an appealing effect to customers.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] The display system of the embodiment is a display system having a display device provided in correspondence with each displayed product and displaying information of the corresponding product, and a server device capable of communicating with the display device, wherein the server device includes an acquisition unit that acquires terminal identification information to identify the terminal device and product identification information to identify the product that the customer intends to purchase from a terminal device that moves with the customer, a selection unit that selects one of a predetermined number of display patterns based on the product identification information acquired by the acquisition unit, and an output unit that outputs pattern identification information to identify the display pattern selected by the selection unit to the terminal device identified by the terminal identification information acquired by the acquisition unit, and the display device includes a detection unit that detects pattern identification information output by a terminal device located within a predetermined range, and a display control unit that causes the display unit to display product information using the display pattern identified by the pattern identification information detected by the detection unit. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0007] [Figure 1] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a store system including a display system according to the first embodiment. [Figure 2] Figure 2 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of the server device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 3] Figure 3 shows the data configuration of the registration information unit in the server device of the first embodiment. [Figure 4] Figure 4 shows the data structure of the product master stored in the memory section of the server device of the first embodiment. [Figure 5] Figure 5 shows the data structure of the purchase information management file stored in the memory section of the server device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 6] Figure 6 shows the data structure of the display pattern file stored in the memory section of the server device of the first embodiment. [Figure 7] Figure 7 shows the data structure of the terminal management file stored in the memory section of the server device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 8]Figure 8 shows an example of displaying items using a standard pattern with the display device of the first embodiment. [Figure 9] Figure 9 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the control unit of the server device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 10] Figure 10 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of the display device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 11] Figure 11 shows the data structure of the display pattern management file stored in the memory section of the display device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 12] Figure 12 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the control unit of the display device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 13] Figure 13 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of the terminal device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 14] Figure 14 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the control unit of the terminal device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 15] Figure 15 is a sequence chart showing the operation flow of the store system in the first embodiment. [Figure 16] Figure 16 is a flowchart showing the flow of the display pattern selection process by the control unit of the server device in the first embodiment. [Figure 17] Figure 17 is a flowchart showing the flow of the display information display processing by the control unit of the display device in the first embodiment. [Figure 18] Figure 18 is a sequence chart showing the operation flow of the store system in the second embodiment. [Figure 19] Figure 19 is a flowchart showing the flow of the display information display processing by the control unit of the display device in the second embodiment. [Figure 20] Figure 20 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of the server device according to the third embodiment. [Figure 21] Figure 21 is a diagram showing the data configuration of the location information unit in the server device of the third embodiment. [Figure 22]FIG. 22 is a diagram showing the data configuration of the display data information section in the server device according to the third embodiment. [Figure 23] FIG. 23 is a diagram showing the data configuration of the display data management file stored in the memory section of the server device according to the third embodiment. [Figure 24] FIG. 24 is a diagram showing the data configuration of the beacon management file stored in the memory section of the server device according to the third embodiment. [Figure 25] FIG. 25 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the control section of the server device according to the third embodiment. [Figure 26] FIG. 26 is a flowchart showing the flow of display data output processing by the control section of the server device 4 according to the third embodiment.

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0008] Hereinafter, the display system, server device, and display device according to the embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited by the embodiment described below. For example, in the embodiment described below, an example in which a terminal device that moves with a customer is a tablet terminal provided in a shopping cart will be described, but the terminal device may be configured by a smartphone or the like owned by the customer.

[0009] (First Embodiment) Hereinafter, the display system, server device, and display device according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an outline of a store system including a display system. The store system 1 of the present embodiment is applied to a store that sells products such as a supermarket. The store system 1 includes a plurality of accounting devices 2 and a display system 3.

[0010] The display system 3 includes a server device 4, a plurality of display devices 5 provided on the product display shelf A, and a terminal device 6 provided on the shopping cart B. The accounting device 2, the server device 4, and the display device 5 are communicably connected to each other via a network N such as a LAN (Local Area Network). The terminal device 6 is communicably connected to the accounting device 2 and the server device 4 via a wireless LAN or the like. Also, the terminal device 6 can communicate with the display device 5 by short-range wireless such as Bluetooth (registered trademark).

[0011] The accounting device 2 is, for example, a so-called self-service accounting device in which the customer C performs the accounting operation by himself / herself. The accounting device 2 executes accounting processing related to payment by cashless payment such as cash settlement or credit settlement based on the accounting information of one transaction including the product information registered with the terminal device 6. The accounting processing is processing for paying the price of the product purchased by the customer C. Note that the accounting device 2 may be a POS (Point Of Sales) terminal operated by a store clerk.

[0012] The server device 4 functions as a store server that manages store information. The server device 4 receives from each accounting device 2 settlement information such as product information and settlement method of the product paid in the accounting process 2. Also, the server device 4 receives from each accounting device 2 sales information indicating the sales amount for a predetermined period (for example, one day). The server device 4 centrally manages the product information, settlement information, sales information, etc. received from each accounting device 2, and performs sales management, etc. for one store. Also, the server device 4 stores a product master in which a product code is associated with product information (product name, price, etc.) of the products handled in the store, and transmits it to the terminal device 6 as appropriate.

[0013] Furthermore, the server device 4 stores the display patterns of product information (hereinafter also simply referred to as "display information") displayed by the display device 5. The server device 4 then obtains the product code that identifies the product that customer C intends to purchase from the terminal device 6, and selects a display pattern based on that product code. For example, if many of the obtained product codes relate to sale items, the server device 4 estimates that customer C is highly interested in price and selects a display pattern that emphasizes price. The server device 4 outputs pattern identification information indicating the selected display pattern to the terminal device 6 that obtained the product code. The product code is an example of product identification information.

[0014] The display device 5 is installed on product display shelf A, corresponding to each product on a one-to-one basis. In the example shown in Figure 1, multiple products are displayed on product display shelf A, so multiple display devices 5 are installed on product display shelf A. The display device 5 displays information for the corresponding product. The items of information to be displayed include, for example, product name, price, place of origin, new product information (information indicating that it is a new product), and special information (information indicating that it is a limited-time product or a premium product). In the following explanation, the items of information to be displayed may be referred to as "display items".

[0015] Furthermore, the display device 5 stores setting data for display items and multiple display patterns (display modes). The setting data for display items (hereinafter also simply referred to as "setting data") includes data indicating the content of product name, price, place of origin, new product information, and special information. The setting data is the data displayed on the display device 5, and for example, the product name "○○" is stored as product name data, and "×× yen" is stored as price data. The server device 4 manages the correspondence between each display device 5 and the products, and is able to input the setting data stored on each display device 5. The display device 5 receives the setting data input to the server device 4 from the server device 4 before the store opens. The display device 5 displays the setting data in one of the display patterns. For example, the display device 5 may display the setting data in a price emphasis pattern that highlights the price, or in a place of origin emphasis pattern that highlights the place of origin.

[0016] The display device 5 detects terminal IDs and pattern identification information transmitted by terminal devices 6 located within a predetermined range from itself, and displays product information using the display pattern indicated by the pattern identification information. The pattern identification information transmitted by terminal devices 6 is selected by the server device 4. This allows the display device 5 to highlight information of high interest to customer C approaching its device. If there are multiple terminal devices 6 located within a predetermined range from itself, for example, the display device 5 displays the information using the display pattern indicated by the most frequent pattern identification information among the pattern identification information corresponding to the multiple detected terminal IDs.

[0017] Furthermore, the display device 5 may be a multi-directional screen that allows customers C to view different images depending on their viewing position. In this case, the display device 5 is equipped with means for acquiring location information corresponding to the terminal ID and recognizes the position of each terminal device 6, thereby simultaneously displaying information tailored to each customer C on each terminal device 6.

[0018] The terminal device 6 consists of, for example, a tablet terminal attached to a shopping cart B. The shopping cart B is placed on the sales floor of a store and used to transport goods purchased by customer C. Therefore, the terminal device 6 installed on the shopping cart B moves along with the customer.

[0019] Terminal device 6 is equipped with a scanner (or camera), as described later, and registers products by reading product codes with the scanner based on the customer C's operation. Product registration means registering (storing) product information (product name, price, etc.) of the product to be purchased, based on the entered product code, to server device 4 or its own storage device. Products that have been registered can be said to be the products that the customer intends to purchase. Terminal device 6 outputs the product code of the product that the customer intends to purchase, i.e., the product code of the registered product, to server device 4 and obtains the product information.

[0020] The terminal device 6 may also acquire product identification information for items that a customer intends to purchase by using a camera, an RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) reader, or the like to acquire product identification information for items stored in the product compartment of the shopping cart B. For example, the terminal device 6 may capture images of items stored in the product compartment of the shopping cart B with a camera, identify the items based on the features of the captured items using object recognition technology, and acquire the product code by recognizing the target product code. Alternatively, the terminal device 6 may acquire the product code by reading the product code stored in an IC tag attached to an item stored in the product compartment of the shopping cart B with an RFID reader. In this case, the terminal device 6 can acquire product identification information for items that customer C intends to purchase even if customer C does not register the items, so the display system 3 of this embodiment can also be applied to stores that use POS terminals where store clerks perform product registration and accounting operations.

[0021] Next, we will describe in detail each of the devices that make up the display system 3. First, we will describe the server device 4.

[0022] Figure 2 is a block diagram showing the main hardware configuration of the server device 4. The server device 4 comprises a control unit 40, a memory unit 41, a display unit 42, an operation unit 43, and a communication unit 44. The control unit 40, memory unit 41, display unit 42, operation unit 43, and communication unit 44 are connected to each other via a bus 45, etc.

[0023] The control unit 40 consists of a computer equipped with a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 401, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 402, and a RAM (Random Access Memory) 403. The CPU 401, ROM 402, and RAM 403 are connected to each other via a bus 45.

[0024] The CPU 401 controls the overall operation of the server device 4. The ROM 402 stores various programs and data, such as the program used to drive the CPU 401. The RAM 403 is used as the work area for the CPU 401 and loads the various programs and data stored in the ROM 402 and the memory unit 41. The control unit 40 executes various control processes of the server device 4 by having the CPU 401 operate according to the control programs stored in the ROM 402 and the memory unit 41 and loaded into the RAM 403.

[0025] Furthermore, RAM 403 includes a registration information unit 4031. The registration information unit 4031 stores registration information obtained from the terminal device 6 during customer C's shopping, which associates information identifying the terminal device 6, information identifying customer C, and information about the products that customer C intends to purchase (hereinafter also referred to as "purchased products"). Figure 3 is a diagram showing the data structure of the registration information unit 4031. Each piece of data registered in the registration information unit 4031 is associated with information indicating the terminal ID, member ID, purchased product, and quantity.

[0026] The Terminal ID field registers the Terminal ID that identifies Terminal Device 6. The Terminal ID is an example of terminal identification information. The Member ID field registers the Member ID of Customer C. The Member ID is an example of customer identification information that identifies Customer C. The Purchased Products field registers the product codes of the purchased products. If Customer C registers multiple types of products while shopping, multiple product codes will be registered in the Purchased Products field. The Quantity field registers information indicating the quantity corresponding to the purchased products.

[0027] The memory unit 41 is composed of a storage medium such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or flash memory, and retains its contents even when the power is cut off. The memory unit 41 stores a control program 411, a product master 412, a purchase information management file 413, a threshold file 414, a display pattern file 415, and a terminal management file 416.

[0028] The control program 411 is a program that implements functions such as obtaining a terminal ID, member ID, and product code from the terminal device 6, selecting a display pattern for the display device 5 based on the obtained terminal ID and product code, and outputting pattern identification information to the terminal device 6 to identify the selected display pattern.

[0029] The product master 412 is a master file that stores product information for the products handled by the store. Since the products handled by the store change daily, the product master 412 is updated as needed. The updated product master 412 is distributed to each terminal device 6. Figure 4 shows the data structure of the product master 412. Each data entry registered in the product master 412 is associated with a product code, product name, price, and information indicating its characteristics.

[0030] The product code field registers the product code that identifies the product. The product name field registers information indicating the name of the product. The price field registers information indicating the unit price of the product. The unit price of the product may be the base price or the price including consumption tax. The characteristics field registers information indicating the characteristics of the product. The characteristics of the product are information that will appeal to customer C, and for example, information indicating "price" for sale items, "origin" for local specialty products, "new product" for newly released products, and "special" for limited-time products are registered. The characteristics of the product correspond to the display items displayed by the display device 5. Note that for some products, information indicating characteristics may not be registered.

[0031] The purchase information management file 413 is a file that manages the past purchase information of each customer C. The purchase information management file 413 is updated based on the member ID and accounting information included in the payment completion information received from the accounting device 2. Figure 5 shows the data structure of the purchase information management file 413. Each piece of data registered in the purchase information management file 413 is associated with the following information: member ID, transaction number, transaction date and time, purchased product, price, characteristics, and quantity.

[0032] The Member ID field registers the Member ID that identifies the member. The Transaction No. field registers the Transaction No. that identifies the transaction. The Transaction Date and Time field registers information indicating the date and time of the transaction. The Purchased Items field registers the product codes of the items purchased in the transaction. If multiple types of items are purchased in one transaction, multiple product codes will be registered in the Purchased Items field.

[0033] The "Price" field registers information indicating the unit price of the product. The "Characteristics" field registers information indicating the characteristics of the purchased product. Details regarding product characteristics and unit price have been described above, so redundant explanations will be omitted. The "Quantity" field registers information indicating the quantity of the corresponding purchased product.

[0034] The threshold file 414 is a file that stores thresholds set for the number of product codes obtained from the terminal device 6. The thresholds are used by the server device 4 to determine whether to select a display pattern based on past purchase information or on information registered during shopping.

[0035] For example, if the threshold is set to "5", then if the number of product codes obtained from the terminal device 6 during customer C's shopping is 5 or less, that is, if the number of product codes registered in the purchased product field of the registration information unit 4031 is 5 or less, the server device 4 will select a display pattern based on customer C's past purchase history. If the number of product codes obtained from the terminal device 6 during customer C's shopping exceeds 5, that is, if the number of product codes registered in the purchased product field of the registration information unit 4031 exceeds 5, the server device 4 will select a display pattern based on the product codes obtained from the terminal device 6. The threshold may also be a threshold related to the number of purchased products. In this case, the threshold will be the threshold for the total number of items registered in the quantity field of the registration information unit 4031. The threshold can also be set arbitrarily.

[0036] The display pattern file 415 is a file that manages the association between display patterns and their characteristics. Figure 6 shows the data structure of the display pattern file 415. Each data entry registered in the display pattern file 415 is associated with a pattern ID, name, and information indicating its characteristics.

[0037] The Pattern ID field registers a Pattern ID that identifies the display pattern shown on the display device 5. The Pattern ID is an example of pattern identification information. The Name field registers information indicating the name of the display pattern. In this embodiment, a standard pattern, a price emphasis pattern, a place of origin emphasis pattern, a new product information emphasis pattern, and a special information emphasis pattern are set. The Characteristics field registers information corresponding to the characteristics of the product. For example, the Characteristics field registers information indicating price, place of origin, new product, and special for each display pattern. The information registered in the Characteristics field is the same as the information registered in the Characteristics field of the product master 412. Note that characteristics corresponding to the standard pattern are not registered.

[0038] Here, we will explain the display patterns selected by the server device 4 with examples. Figure 8 shows an example of a standard pattern displayed by the display device 5. The display device 5 has a product name display area V, a new product information display area W, a special information display area X, a place of origin display area Y, and a price display area Z. Each display area V to Z displays the set data. Depending on the product, information may not be displayed in all of the display areas. For example, if the product is not a new product, no data is set in the new product item, so no information is displayed in the new product information display area W. Note that other information, such as a store logo, may be displayed in the display area of ​​an item for which no data is set.

[0039] The display device 5 displays information by displaying the setting data in the display pattern selected by the server device 4. For example, if the price emphasis pattern is selected, the display device 5 emphasizes the price by enlarging the price display area Z or displaying it in a different color from other areas. Similarly, if the origin emphasis pattern, new product information emphasis pattern, or special information emphasis pattern is selected, the display device 5 emphasizes the selected display item.

[0040] The terminal management file 416 is a file that manages the addresses of terminal devices 6. Figure 7 shows the data structure of the terminal management file 416. Each piece of data registered in the terminal management file 416 is associated with information indicating the terminal ID and address.

[0041] The terminal ID field registers the terminal ID that identifies terminal device 6. The address field registers address information that identifies the destination of terminal device 6, which is the output destination of the display pattern selected by server device 4. In this embodiment, terminal device 6 is a tablet terminal managed by the store and attached to shopping cart B, so the IP address of the tablet terminal is pre-set as the address information. If terminal device 6 is a member's smartphone or the like with the application program for display system 3 installed, the address field registers the address information provided by the customer during member registration.

[0042] Returning to Figure 2, let's describe the hardware of the server device 4. The display unit 42 is composed of, for example, a liquid crystal panel and displays various information. For example, the display unit 42 displays an input screen for inputting setting data for each display device 5. Setting data is a general term for the data of each display item (product name, new product information, special information, place of origin, price).

[0043] The operation unit 43 is for inputting information to the control unit 40 and consists of a keyboard, a touch panel provided on the surface of the display unit 42, and the like. For example, the operation unit 43 inputs setting data for each display device 5 to the control unit 40.

[0044] The communication unit 44 is an interface for communicating with external devices such as the accounting device 2, the display device 5, and the terminal device 6. The control unit 40 is connected to the external devices via the communication unit 44, enabling it to send and receive information (data) with the external devices.

[0045] Next, the main functional configuration of the control unit 40 of the server device 4 will be described. Figure 9 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the control unit 40 of the server device 4. The control unit 40 functions as an acquisition unit 4001, a purchase information acquisition unit 4002, a selection unit 4003, and an output unit 4004, with the CPU 401 operating according to the control program stored in the ROM 402 and the memory unit 41. Note that each of these functions may be configured with hardware such as dedicated circuits.

[0046] The acquisition unit 4001 acquires terminal identification information that identifies the terminal device 6, and product identification information that identifies the product that customer C intends to purchase, from the terminal device 6 that moves with customer C. Specifically, the acquisition unit 4001 acquires the terminal ID, the member ID entered into the terminal device 6, and the product code of the product registered on the terminal device 6 from the terminal device 6. The acquisition unit 4001 acquires the terminal ID, member ID, and product code from the terminal device 6 each time product registration is performed on the terminal device 6. Since the acquisition unit 4001 also acquires the member ID, it can be said to be an example of a customer information acquisition unit.

[0047] The purchase information acquisition unit 4002 acquires past purchase information of customer C, who is identified by the customer identification information acquired by the customer identification information acquisition unit. Specifically, the purchase information acquisition unit 4002 acquires past purchase information of customer C, who is identified by the member ID acquired by the acquisition unit 4001, from the purchase information management file 413. Alternatively, the purchase information acquisition unit 4002 may acquire purchase information from the purchase information management file stored in external memory.

[0048] The selection unit 4003 selects one of several predetermined display patterns based on the product identification information acquired by the acquisition unit 4001. Specifically, the selection unit 4003 uses characteristic information corresponding to the product code acquired by the acquisition unit 4001 to select one of the display patterns stored in the display pattern file 415.

[0049] For example, the selection unit 4003 selects a display pattern using the following selection method. When the acquisition unit 4001 acquires multiple product codes (a number exceeding a threshold in this embodiment), the selection unit 4003 reads characteristic information corresponding to each product code from the product master 412 and identifies the most frequent characteristic information among the read characteristic information. Next, the selection unit 4003 refers to the display pattern file 415 and selects a display pattern corresponding to the identified characteristic information. That is, the selection unit 4003 selects display items that are considered to be of high interest to customer C from the products purchased by customer C, and selects a display pattern that emphasizes the selected display items.

[0050] The method of selecting a display pattern by the selection unit 4003 is not limited to the above. For example, the selection unit 4003 may select a display pattern using machine learning with the product code acquired by the acquisition unit 4001 as input. In this case, a survey can be conducted among customer C regarding items of interest (price, origin, new products, special items, etc.), and the customer C's purchase information can be used as input data, while the survey results can be used as learning data.

[0051] Furthermore, the selection unit 4003 selects a display pattern based on the product identification information acquired by the acquisition unit 4001 and the purchase information acquired by the purchase information acquisition unit 4002. Specifically, if the number of product codes acquired by the acquisition unit 4001 is less than or equal to the threshold registered in the threshold file 414, the selection unit 4003 selects a display pattern based on the purchase information acquired by the purchase information acquisition unit 4002. When customer C has purchased few products, selecting items of interest from the purchased products would likely result in low selection accuracy. Therefore, the selection unit selects items that are deemed to be of interest based on past purchase information. The method for selecting a display pattern based on purchase information is the same as the method for selecting a display pattern based on product codes acquired by the acquisition unit 4001.

[0052] The selection unit 4003 selects a display pattern based on the product codes acquired by the acquisition unit 4001 if the number of product codes acquired by the acquisition unit 4001 exceeds a threshold registered in the threshold file 414. Since the information of interest to customer C may change daily, selecting items of interest based on the products purchased during shopping allows for selections that match customer C's current interests. Note that the concept of the selection unit 4003 selecting a display pattern includes selecting a pattern ID.

[0053] The output unit 4004 outputs pattern identification information to the terminal device 6 identified by the terminal identification information acquired by the acquisition unit 4001, which identifies the display pattern selected by the selection unit 4003. Specifically, the output unit 4004 reads the IP address corresponding to the terminal ID acquired by the acquisition unit 4001 from the terminal management file 416, and outputs the pattern ID selected by the selection unit 4003 to the read IP address as the output destination. The output unit 4004 also outputs various information to the accounting device 2, the display device 5, and the terminal device 6.

[0054] Next, we will describe the display device 5.

[0055] Figure 10 is a block diagram showing the main hardware configuration of the display device 5. The display device 5 comprises a control unit 50, a memory unit 51, a display unit 52, a short-range wireless communication unit 53, and a communication unit 54. The control unit 50, memory unit 51, display unit 52, short-range wireless communication unit 53, and communication unit 54 are connected to each other via a bus 55, etc.

[0056] The control unit 50 consists of a computer equipped with a CPU 501, ROM 502, and RAM 503. The CPU 501, ROM 502, and RAM 503 are connected to each other via a bus 55.

[0057] The CPU 501 controls the overall operation of the display device 5. The ROM 502 stores various programs and data, such as the program used to drive the CPU 501. The RAM 503 is used as the work area for the CPU 501 and loads the various programs and data stored in the ROM 502 and the memory unit 51. The control unit 50 executes various control processes for the display device 5 by having the CPU 501 operate according to the control programs stored in the ROM 502 and the memory unit 51 and loaded into the RAM 503.

[0058] The memory unit 51 is composed of a storage medium such as an HDD or flash memory, and retains its contents even when the power is cut off. The memory unit 51 stores a control program 511, a setting data file 512, and a display pattern management file 513.

[0059] The control program 511 is a program that implements functions such as detecting terminal IDs and pattern IDs transmitted by terminal devices 6 located within a predetermined range from the device itself, and displaying product information based on the detected terminal IDs and pattern IDs.

[0060] The configuration data file 512 stores the configuration data received from the server device 4. The configuration data includes data related to the product name, new product information, special information, place of origin, and price displayed on the display unit 52. Note that depending on the display device 5, data for one of the items may not be registered. For example, in the case of a display device 5 that corresponds to a product that is not a new product, no data will be registered in the new product information field.

[0061] The display pattern management file 513 is a file that stores the display patterns of the setting data to be displayed by the display unit 52. Figure 11 shows the data structure of the display pattern management file 513. Each data registered in the display pattern management file 513 is associated with a pattern ID, name, and information indicating the display pattern.

[0062] The Pattern ID field registers a pattern ID that identifies the display pattern. The Name field registers information indicating the name of the display pattern. The Display Pattern field registers information indicating the content of the display pattern, in other words, the display format. In addition to the standard pattern shown in Figure 8, the display patterns that can be registered are price emphasis patterns, origin emphasis patterns, new product information emphasis patterns, and special information emphasis patterns.

[0063] The display unit 52 is composed of, for example, a liquid crystal panel and displays display information. The display unit 52 displays the display information by displaying the data stored in the setting data file 512 using one of the display patterns stored in the display pattern management file 513.

[0064] The short-range wireless communication unit 53 communicates with the terminal device 6 using short-range wireless communication such as Bluetooth®. When the terminal device 6 is located within a receivable range (predetermined range) where communication via short-range wireless communication is possible, the short-range wireless communication unit 53 receives information including the terminal ID and pattern ID transmitted by the terminal device 6. For example, the receivable range is set to a range of 1 to 2 meters from the display device 5. The receivable range can be set arbitrarily.

[0065] The communication unit 54 is an interface for communicating with external devices such as the server device 4. The control unit 50 is connected to the external device via the communication unit 54, enabling it to send and receive information (data) with the external device.

[0066] Next, the main functional configuration of the control unit 50 of the display device 5 will be described. Figure 12 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the control unit 50 of the display device 5. The control unit 50 functions as a detection unit 5001, an extraction unit 5002, and a display control unit 5003, with the CPU 501 operating according to the control program stored in the ROM 502 and the memory unit 51. Note that each of these functions may be configured with hardware such as dedicated circuits.

[0067] The detection unit 5001 detects pattern identification information output by terminal devices 6 located within a predetermined range among the terminal devices 6 that move with customer C. Specifically, the detection unit 5001 detects the pattern ID and the terminal ID associated with the pattern ID transmitted by terminal devices 6 located within the receivable range, in other words, terminal devices 6 that have approached the display device 5. The detection unit 5001 detects the pattern ID and terminal ID based on the information received by the short-range wireless communication unit 53.

[0068] The extraction unit 5002 extracts display patterns identified by pattern identification information detected by the detection unit 5001 from a predetermined set of display patterns. Specifically, the extraction unit 5002 extracts the display patterns corresponding to the pattern IDs detected by the detection unit 5001 from the display pattern management file 513.

[0069] The display control unit 5003 displays the display information on the display unit 52 using the display pattern extracted by the extraction unit 5002. Specifically, the display control unit 5003 displays the setting data stored in the setting data file 512 on the display unit 52 using the display pattern extracted by the extraction unit 5002.

[0070] Next, we will describe the terminal device 6.

[0071] Figure 13 is a block diagram showing the main hardware configuration of the terminal device 6. The terminal device 6 comprises a control unit 60, a memory unit 61, a display unit 62, an operation unit 63, a scanner 64, a short-range wireless communication unit 65, and a communication unit 66. The control unit 60, memory unit 61, display unit 62, operation unit 63, scanner 64, short-range wireless communication unit 65, and communication unit 66 are connected to each other via a bus 67, etc.

[0072] The control unit 60 consists of a computer equipped with a CPU 601, ROM 602, and RAM 603. The CPU 601, ROM 602, and RAM 603 are connected to each other via a bus 67.

[0073] The CPU 601 controls the overall operation of the terminal device 6. The ROM 602 stores various programs and data, such as the program used to drive the CPU 601. The RAM 603 is used as the work area for the CPU 601 and loads the various programs and data stored in the ROM 602 and the memory unit 61. The control unit 60 executes various control processes of the terminal device 6 by having the CPU 601 operate according to the control programs stored in the ROM 602 and the memory unit 61 and loaded into the RAM 603.

[0074] The RAM 603 also includes a product information unit 6031 and a member ID unit 6032. The product information unit 6031 stores product information related to the product code read by the scanner 64. Product registration is performed when product information is stored in the product information unit 6031. The member ID unit 6032 stores the member ID entered into the operation unit 63 or read by the scanner 64.

[0075] The memory unit 61 is composed of a storage medium such as an HDD or flash memory, and retains its contents even when the power is cut off. The memory unit 61 stores the control program 611, the product master 612, and the terminal ID file 613.

[0076] The control program 611 is a program that implements functions such as executing product registration, transmitting the product code, member ID, and terminal ID of the registered product to the server device 4, receiving a pattern ID from the server device 4, transmitting information including the terminal ID and the pattern ID received from the server device 4 via short-range wireless communication, and transmitting the product information stored in the product information unit 6031 as accounting information to the accounting device 2.

[0077] Product master 612 is the product master received from server device 4. Details of the product master are explained in product master 412 of server device 4, so redundant explanations are omitted here. Terminal ID file 613 stores the terminal ID of this device.

[0078] The display unit 62 is composed of, for example, a liquid crystal panel and displays various information. For example, the display unit 62 displays product information for registered products. The display unit 62 also displays a registration screen for registering products that do not have barcodes.

[0079] The operation unit 63 is for inputting information to the control unit 60 and consists of a touch panel or the like provided on the surface of the display unit 62. For example, the operation unit 43 inputs the product code of a product that does not have a barcode to the control unit 60.

[0080] The scanner 64 reads the product code from a barcode or other code symbol attached to the product and inputs it to the control unit 60. The scanner 64 also reads the member ID from a code symbol attached to a membership card owned by customer C and inputs it to the control unit 60. The scanner 64 may also be an imaging device such as a camera.

[0081] The short-range wireless communication unit 65 communicates with the display device 5 via short-range wireless communication. The short-range wireless communication unit 65 periodically transmits information including the terminal ID and the pattern ID received from the server device 4.

[0082] The communication unit 66 is an interface for communicating with external devices such as the accounting device 2 and the server device 4. The control unit 60 is connected to the external devices via the communication unit 66, enabling it to send and receive information (data) with the external devices.

[0083] Next, the main functional configuration of the control unit 60 of the terminal device 6 will be described. Figure 14 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the control unit 60 of the terminal device 6. The control unit 60 functions as an input unit 6001, a registration unit 6002, a transmission unit 6003, a reception unit 6004, and a transmission unit 6005, with the CPU 601 operating according to the control program stored in the ROM 602 and the memory unit 61. Note that each of these functions may be configured with hardware such as dedicated circuits.

[0084] Various information is input to the input unit 6001 from the operation unit 63 and the scanner 64. For example, transaction start information, accounting instruction information, and product codes are input to the input unit 6001 from the operation unit 63. In addition, product codes and member IDs are input to the input unit 6001 from the scanner 64.

[0085] The registration unit 6002 performs product registration. Specifically, the registration unit 6002 reads product information such as product name and price, which is associated with the product code entered in the input unit 6001, from the product master 612. Then, the registration unit 6002 registers the read product information in the product information unit 6031. The product information registered in the product information unit 6031 includes the product code.

[0086] Alternatively, when a product code is entered into the input unit 6001, the registration unit 6002 may output a query for product information based on the product code to the server device 4 which stores the product master 412, and retrieve the product information from the server device 4. In this case, the memory unit 61 does not need to store the product master 612.

[0087] The transmission unit 6003 transmits the product code and member ID entered in the input unit 6001, along with the terminal ID stored in the terminal ID file, to the server device 4. Each time the registration unit 6002 registers a product, the transmission unit 6003 transmits the product code, member ID, and terminal ID of the registered product to the server device 4, along with their corresponding information. Furthermore, when accounting instruction information is entered into the input unit 6001, the transmission unit 6003 transmits the accounting information (information registered in the product information unit 6031) to the accounting device 2. The transmission unit 6003 may also transmit the accounting information and transaction identification information to the server device 4, along with their corresponding information. In this case, the terminal device 6 encodes the transaction identification information and displays it on the display unit 62. The accounting device 2 can read the transaction identification information from the terminal device 6, obtain the corresponding accounting information from the server device 4, and execute the accounting process.

[0088] The receiving unit 6004 receives a pattern ID from the server device 4. The pattern ID is a pattern ID that indicates the display pattern selected by the server device 4 based on the product code and terminal ID transmitted by the transmitting unit 6003.

[0089] When the receiving unit 6004 receives a pattern ID from the server device 4, the transmitting unit 6005 periodically transmits information including the pattern ID and terminal ID from the short-range wireless communication unit 65. The transmitting unit 6005 continues to periodically transmit information including the pattern ID and terminal ID until the receiving unit 6004 receives a different pattern ID from the server device 4. The transmitting unit 6005 may also transmit accounting information from the short-range wireless communication unit 65 when accounting instruction information is input to the input unit 6001. In other words, the terminal device 6 may output accounting information to the accounting device 2 via short-range wireless communication.

[0090] The operation of store system 1 based on the above configuration will now be explained. Figure 15 is a sequence chart showing the flow of operation of store system 1.

[0091] When customer C makes a purchase, their member ID is entered into terminal device 6 (step S1). When the product code of the purchased item is read by scanner 64 during customer C's shopping and entered into terminal device 6, product registration is performed (step S2). Terminal device 6 transmits the product code of the registered product, the entered member ID, and terminal ID to server device 4 (step S3).

[0092] Server device 4 executes a display pattern selection process to select a display pattern (step S4). In the display pattern selection process, if the number of product codes received from terminal device 6 is below a threshold, a display pattern is selected based on the past purchase information of customer C, identified by the member ID. If the number of product codes received from terminal device 6 exceeds the threshold, a display pattern is selected based on the product codes received from terminal device 6. Details of the display pattern selection process will be described later. Server device 4 sends a pattern ID indicating the selected display pattern to terminal device 6 (step S5).

[0093] Terminal device 6 transmits information including the terminal ID and the received pattern ID via short-range wireless communication (step S6).

[0094] When the terminal device 6 that transmitted information including the terminal ID and pattern ID is within the receiving range of the display device 5, the display device 5 receives the information and detects the terminal ID and pattern ID contained in the information (step S7). The display device 5 executes the display information display process and displays the display information (step S8). Details of the display information display process will be described later. Thereafter, the operations of steps S2 to S8 are repeated.

[0095] When customer C makes a payment, accounting instruction information is entered into terminal device 6 (step S9). Upon receiving the accounting instruction information, terminal device 6 transmits the accounting information to accounting device 2 (step S10). At this time, terminal device 6 may also transmit the accounting information and transaction identification information to server device 4 in association. In this case, terminal device 6 codes the transaction identification information and displays it on display unit 62. Accounting device 2 can read the transaction identification information from terminal device 6, obtain the accounting information corresponding to the transaction identification information from server device 4, and execute the accounting process. Next, terminal device 6 clears the registration information registered in product information unit 6031 and member ID unit 6032 (step S11).

[0096] The accounting device 2 performs accounting processing based on the received accounting information (step S12). The accounting processing is the process for customer C to pay for the purchase, and includes processes related to cash payment, cashless payment, etc. Once the accounting processing is complete, the accounting device 2 transmits payment completion information to the server device 4 (step S13). The payment completion information includes customer C's member ID and accounting information.

[0097] The server device 4 updates the purchase information management file 413 based on the member ID and accounting information included in the received payment completion information (step S14). Then, the server device 4 clears the registration information related to the member ID included in the payment completion information from the information registered in the registration information unit 4031 (step S15).

[0098] Next, we will explain the display pattern selection process performed by the server device 4. Figure 16 is a flowchart showing the flow of the display pattern selection process by the control unit 40 of the server device 4.

[0099] First, the selection unit 4003 determines whether the acquisition unit 4001 has acquired the product code, terminal ID, and member ID from the terminal device 6 (step S21). If it has not acquired them (N in step S1), it returns to the process in step S21 and waits.

[0100] When the acquisition unit 4001 acquires the product code, terminal ID, and member ID from the terminal device 6 (step S21, Y), the selection unit 4003 registers the acquired information in the registration information unit 4031 (step S22) and determines whether the number of product codes corresponding to the terminal IDs acquired by the acquisition unit 4001 exceeds a predetermined number (step S23). More specifically, in the process of step S23, the selection unit 4003 refers to the registration information unit 4031 and determines whether the number of product codes registered corresponding to the terminal IDs acquired by the acquisition unit 4001 exceeds a threshold registered in the threshold file 414.

[0101] If the number of product codes corresponding to the terminal ID acquired by the acquisition unit 4001 exceeds a predetermined number (Y in step S23), the selection unit 4003 selects a display pattern based on the product codes acquired by the acquisition unit 4001 (step S24). Then, the control unit 40 terminates the display pattern selection process.

[0102] If the number of product codes corresponding to the terminal ID acquired by the acquisition unit 4001 is less than or equal to a predetermined number (N in step S23), the purchase information acquisition unit 4002 acquires purchase information (step S25). The purchase information acquisition unit 4002 reads the purchase information corresponding to the member ID acquired by the acquisition unit 4001 from the purchase information management file 413. Next, the selection unit 4003 selects a display pattern based on the purchase information acquired by the purchase information acquisition unit 4002 (step S26). Then, the control unit 40 terminates the display pattern selection process. After that, as shown in step S5 of Figure 15, the server device 4 transmits the pattern ID of the display pattern selected in the display pattern selection process to the terminal device 6.

[0103] Next, we will describe the information display processing performed by the display device 5. Figure 17 is a flowchart showing the flow of the information display processing performed by the control unit 50 of the display device 5.

[0104] The control unit 50 determines whether the detection unit 5001 has detected one or more pattern IDs and terminal IDs transmitted by the terminal device 6 (step S31). If the detection unit 5001 detects one or more pattern IDs and terminal IDs (Y in step S31), the extraction unit 5002 extracts the display pattern of the most frequent pattern ID among the pattern IDs associated with each of the terminal IDs detected by the detection unit 5001 from the display pattern management file 513 (step S32). If the detection unit 5001 has detected only one terminal ID, the extraction unit 5002 extracts the display pattern of the pattern ID associated with the detected terminal ID from the display pattern management file 513.

[0105] The display control unit 5003 displays the setting data stored in the setting data file 512 on the display unit 52 using the display pattern extracted by the extraction unit 5002 (step S33). If the detection unit 5001 does not detect the pattern ID or terminal ID in the process of step S31 (N in step S31), the extraction unit 5002 extracts a standard pattern from the display pattern management file 513 (step S34). Then, the control unit 50 proceeds to the process of step S33.

[0106] The display control unit 5003 determines whether a predetermined time has elapsed since the display in step S33 (step S35). The predetermined time is, for example, 10 seconds, but can be set arbitrarily.

[0107] If a predetermined time has elapsed (Y in step S35), the control unit 50 returns to the process in step S31, and if the predetermined time has not elapsed (N in step S35), it returns to the process in step S35 and waits. This allows the display device 5 to change the display pattern of product information at predetermined intervals.

[0108] In step S32, if data for the item highlighted by the display pattern corresponding to the most frequent pattern ID is not registered, the extraction unit 5002 extracts the standard pattern. For example, if the most frequent pattern ID indicates the new product information highlighting pattern, and data is not registered in the new product information item in the setting data file 512 (i.e., the product corresponding to the display device 5 is not a new product), the extraction unit 5002 extracts the standard pattern. In this case, the extraction unit 5002 may also extract the display pattern corresponding to the second most frequent pattern ID, or any other display pattern corresponding to the detected pattern ID.

[0109] As described above, according to the display system 3 of the first embodiment, the display device 5 can display product information in a display pattern that emphasizes items that are likely to be of high interest to customer C as they approach within a predetermined range. This makes it possible to display information in a way that is appealing to customer C.

[0110] Furthermore, according to the display system 3 described above, the display device 5 displays information based on customer C's past purchase information when the number of items purchased by customer C is less than or equal to a predetermined number, and displays information based on the purchased items when the number of items purchased by customer C exceeds a predetermined number. In other words, when the number of purchased items is small and it is difficult to estimate the items that customer C is likely to be interested in, the display device 5 displays information based on customer C's past purchase information. This allows the display system 3 to provide a display that is more appropriate to the items that customer C is interested in.

[0111] Furthermore, according to the display system 3 described above, if there are multiple terminal devices 6 located within a predetermined range, in other words, if there are multiple customers C near the display system 5, the display device 5 can highlight the items that are likely to be of interest to the most customers C.

[0112] (Second embodiment) Next, a second embodiment will be described. The second embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that the display device 5 receives and stores a pattern ID and a terminal ID from the server device 4, and the display device 5 detects the terminal ID transmitted by the terminal device 6 and displays product information based on the corresponding pattern ID. In the following, descriptions of configurations and functions similar to those of the first embodiment may be omitted. This is to avoid unnecessarily redundancy in the following description and to facilitate understanding by those skilled in the art.

[0113] The operation of the store system 1 in the second embodiment will now be described. Figure 18 is a sequence chart showing the flow of operation of the store system 1. Processes similar to those in the sequence chart of the first embodiment shown in Figure 15 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed explanations are omitted.

[0114] The processing from step S1 to step S4 is the same as the processing in the first embodiment. The server device 4 transmits the pattern ID of the display pattern selected in the display pattern selection process and the terminal ID received from the terminal device 6 to the display device 5 (step S41).

[0115] The display device 5 associates the pattern ID received from the server device 4 with the terminal ID and stores it in the RAM 503 (step S42). The terminal device 6 transmits the terminal ID (step S43). After the member ID is entered in step S1, the terminal device 6 periodically transmits the terminal ID.

[0116] The display device 5 detects the terminal ID transmitted by the terminal device 6 located within the receivable range (step S44). The display device 5 performs display information processing and displays information based on the detected terminal ID (step S45).

[0117] The subsequent steps S9 to S15 are the same as in the first embodiment. In the second embodiment, the accounting device 2 also transmits settlement completion information to the display device 5 (step S46). The settlement completion information includes the terminal ID included in the accounting information received by the accounting device 2 in step S10. The display device 5 clears the registration information (information stored in step S42) related to the terminal ID included in the received settlement completion information (step S47). Note that the display device 5 may also clear the registration information related to the terminal ID if a predetermined time has elapsed since it first received the terminal ID, even before receiving settlement completion information from the accounting device 2.

[0118] Next, the display information display process in the second embodiment will be described. Figure 19 is a flowchart showing the flow of the display information display process by the control unit 50 of the display device 5 in the second embodiment. Processes similar to those in the display information display process in the first embodiment shown in Figure 17 are denoted by the same reference numerals and their descriptions are omitted.

[0119] The control unit 50 determines whether the detection unit 5001 has detected one or more terminal IDs transmitted by the terminal device 6 (step S51). If the detection unit 5001 detects one or more terminal IDs (Y in step S51), the extraction unit 5002 reads out the pattern IDs corresponding to the one or more terminal IDs detected by the detection unit 5001 from the information stored in the RAM 503 that associates terminal IDs with pattern IDs (step S52). Other processing is the same as the product information generation processing in the first embodiment.

[0120] The second embodiment described above provides the same effects as the first embodiment. The display device 5 can display product information using a display pattern that emphasizes display items that are likely to be of high interest to the approaching customer C. In addition, the display system 3 can display items that are more suited to the interests of customer C. Furthermore, if there are multiple customers C near the display device 5, the display can emphasize the items that are likely to be of interest to the most customers C.

[0121] (Third embodiment) Next, a third embodiment will be described. In the third embodiment, the server device 4 grasps the position information of the terminal device 6 relative to the display device 5, and when it recognizes that the terminal device 6 is approaching the display device 5, the server device 4 outputs display data to the display device 5. The display data is data for displaying product information on the display device 5, and is generated based on setting data and display patterns. In the following description, explanations of configurations and functions similar to those in the first embodiment may be omitted.

[0122] In the third embodiment, a beacon device (not shown) that communicates with the terminal device 6 via short-range wireless communication is provided on each product display shelf A. Since multiple display devices 5 are provided on the product display shelf A, the beacon device is associated with each display device 5. The beacon device transmits a beacon ID that identifies itself. Beacon devices may also be provided on other locations besides the product display shelves A, in which case the server device 4 can recognize the location information of the terminal device 6 in more detail. The server device 4 may also recognize the location of the terminal device 6 using GPS (Global Positioning System) technology.

[0123] When terminal device 6 is located within a predetermined range from product display shelf A, i.e., within the range where the beacon ID can be received, it receives the beacon ID. Terminal device 6 transmits the received beacon ID and a terminal ID that identifies itself to server device 4.

[0124] The server device 4 identifies the display device 5 where the terminal device 6 is located based on the received beacon ID and terminal ID. Also, similar to the first embodiment, the server device 4 obtains information from the terminal device 6, including the product code of the purchased item, the terminal ID, and the member ID, and selects a display pattern. The server device 4 transmits the display data corresponding to the selected display pattern to the display device 5 where the terminal device 6 is located within a predetermined range. The display device 5 displays the received display data.

[0125] The server device 4 will now be described. Figure 20 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of the server device 4. In the third embodiment, the RAM 403 also includes a location information unit 4032 and a display data information unit 4033.

[0126] The location information unit 4032 manages terminal devices 6 located within a predetermined range of each display device 5. The location information unit 4032 is updated by the beacon ID and terminal ID that the server device 4 periodically receives from the terminal devices 6, and manages the terminal devices 6 located in each display device 5 in real time. If a terminal device 6 is not located within the receivable range of any of the display devices 5, the terminal device 6 transmits only its terminal ID. When the server device 4 receives only the terminal ID, it determines that the terminal device 6 identified by that terminal ID is not located in any of the display devices 5 and updates the location information unit 4032. Figure 21 shows the data structure of the location information unit 4032. Each piece of data registered in the location information unit 4032 is associated with a display device No. and a terminal ID.

[0127] The "Display Device No." field will contain the number that identifies display device 5. The "Terminal ID" field will contain the terminal ID that identifies terminal device 6.

[0128] The display data information unit 4033 manages the display data selected as suitable for each terminal device 6 at the present time. The display data information unit 4033 stores the selected display data and the terminal device 6 in association when the terminal device 6 approaches the display device 5. The information stored in the display data information unit 4033 is used to determine which display data is most numerous among the display data corresponding to each terminal device 6 when multiple terminal devices 6 are located in front of the display device 5. The display data information unit 4033 is updated each time display data corresponding to each terminal device 6 is selected. Figure 22 shows the data structure of the display data information unit 4033. Each data registered in the display data information unit 4033 is associated with a terminal ID and display data.

[0129] The terminal ID field registers the terminal ID that identifies terminal device 6. The display data field registers the display data that the display device 5 uses to display product information.

[0130] The memory unit 41 also stores a display data management file 417 and a beacon management file 418.

[0131] The display data management file 417 is a file that manages the display data to be displayed on each display device 5. Figure 23 shows the data structure of the display data management file 417. Each piece of data registered in the display data management file 417 is associated with the display device No., pattern ID, and information indicating the display data.

[0132] The "Display Device No." field contains a number that identifies display device 5. The "Pattern ID" field contains a pattern ID that identifies the display pattern. The "Display Data" field contains display data that display device 5 uses to display product information.

[0133] The beacon management file 418 is a file that manages the correspondence between beacon devices and display devices 5. Figure 24 shows the data structure of the beacon management file 418. Each piece of data registered in the beacon management file 418 is associated with information indicating the beacon ID, shelf number, and display device number.

[0134] The Beacon ID field registers the beacon ID that identifies the beacon device. The Shelf No. field registers the shelf number that identifies product display shelf A. The Display Device No. field registers the number that identifies display device 5.

[0135] Next, the main functional configuration of the control unit 40 of the server device 4 will be described. Figure 25 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the control unit 40 of the server device 4. The control unit 40 functions as an acquisition unit 4001, a purchase information acquisition unit 4002, a selection unit 4003, an output unit 4004, a specific unit 4005, and a display data setting unit 4006, with the CPU 401 operating according to the control program stored in the ROM 402 and the memory unit 41. Note that each of these functions may be configured with hardware such as dedicated circuits.

[0136] In addition to the functions of the first embodiment, the acquisition unit 4001 acquires location information from the terminal device 6, with the terminal ID and beacon ID associated. The functions of the purchase information acquisition unit 4002 and the selection unit 4003 are the same as in the first embodiment.

[0137] The identification unit 4005 identifies the display device 5 where the terminal device 6 identified by the terminal ID included in the location information is located, based on the location information acquired by the acquisition unit 4001. Specifically, the identification unit 4005 refers to the beacon management file 418 and reads the display device No. corresponding to the beacon ID included in the location information acquired by the acquisition unit 4001. The identification unit 4005 identifies the display device 5 identified by the read display device No. as the display device 5 where the terminal device 6 identified by the terminal ID acquired by the acquisition unit 4001 is located.

[0138] The display data setting unit 4006 sets the display data to be output to the display device 5 identified by the identification unit 4005. Specifically, the display data setting unit 4006 refers to the display data management file 417 and selects the display data corresponding to the display device No. identified by the identification unit 4005 and the pattern ID selected by the selection unit 4003. In other words, the display data setting unit 4006 selects display data that highlights items that are likely to be of interest to customer C as they approach the display device 5.

[0139] Then, the display data setting unit 4006 associates the terminal ID acquired by the acquisition unit 4001 with the selected display data and registers it in the display data information unit 4033. Subsequently, the display data setting unit 4006 extracts the terminal ID corresponding to the display device 5 identified by the identification unit 4005 from the location information unit 4032. In other words, the display data setting unit 4006 extracts customers C who are near the display device 5 identified by the identification unit 4005.

[0140] Furthermore, the display data setting unit 4006 reads the display data corresponding to the extracted terminal ID from the display data information unit 4033 and sets the most frequent display data as the display data to be output to the display device 5. In other words, the display data setting unit 4006 sets the display data that highlights the items that are most likely to be of interest to the most frequent customer C among the customers C located near the display device 5 identified by the identification unit 4005 as the display data to be output to the display device 5.

[0141] The output unit 4004 outputs the display data set by the display data setting unit 4006 to the display device 5 identified by the identification unit 4005.

[0142] The data output process for displaying data from the server device 4 based on the above configuration will now be explained. Figure 26 is a flowchart showing the flow of the data output process for displaying data from the server device 4.

[0143] The control unit 40 determines whether the acquisition unit 4001 has acquired the corresponding beacon ID and terminal ID from the terminal device 6 (step S61). If it has not acquired them (step S61, N), it returns to step S61 and waits. When the acquisition unit 4001 acquires the beacon ID and terminal ID (step S61, Y), the identification unit 4005 identifies the display device 5 where the terminal device 6 identified by the terminal ID is located, based on the acquired beacon ID (step S62).

[0144] The selection unit 4003 refers to the registration information unit 4031 and determines whether the number of product codes corresponding to the terminal ID acquired by the acquisition unit 4001 exceeds a predetermined number (step S63). If the number of product codes corresponding to the terminal ID acquired by the acquisition unit 4001 exceeds a predetermined number (Y in step S63), the selection unit 4003 selects a display pattern based on the product code registered in the registration information unit 4031 corresponding to that terminal ID (step S64).

[0145] The display data setting unit 4006 selects display data based on the selected display pattern and the display device 5 identified by the identification unit 4005 (step S65). In the process of step S63, if the number of product codes corresponding to the terminal ID acquired by the acquisition unit 4001 is less than or equal to a predetermined number (N in step S63), the purchase information acquisition unit 4002 acquires purchase information (step S66). Subsequently, the selection unit 4003 selects a display pattern based on the purchase information acquired by the purchase information acquisition unit 4002 (step S67).

[0146] Following the selection of display data, the display data setting unit 4006 associates the selected display data with the terminal ID acquired by the acquisition unit 4001 and registers it in the display data information unit 4033 (step 68). The display data setting unit 4006 extracts the terminal ID corresponding to the display device 5 identified by the identification unit 4005 from the location information unit 4032 (step S69). The display data setting unit 4006 reads the display data corresponding to the extracted terminal ID from the display data information unit 4033 and outputs the most frequent display data to the terminal device 6 identified by the terminal ID acquired by the acquisition unit 4001 (step S70). Then, the control unit 40 returns to the process of step S61.

[0147] As described above, the server device 4 of the third embodiment has the following configuration.

[0148] A server device 4 capable of communicating with a display device 5 that is provided for each displayed product and displays information about the corresponding product, comprising: a location information acquisition unit (acquisition unit 4001) that acquires location information indicating the location of a terminal device 6 that moves with the customer; a specification unit 4005 that identifies the display device 5 where the terminal device 6 is located based on the location information acquired by the location information acquisition unit (acquisition unit 4001); an acquisition unit 4001 that acquires terminal identification information (terminal ID) that identifies the terminal device 6 and product identification information (product code) that identifies the product that customer C intends to purchase from the terminal device 6; a selection unit 4003 that selects one of a plurality of predetermined display data based on the product identification information acquired by the acquisition unit 4001; and an output unit 4004 that outputs the display data selected by the selection unit 4003 to the display device 5 identified by the specification unit 4005.

[0149] As a result, the display system 3 equipped with the server device 4 of the third embodiment achieves the same effects as the first and second embodiments. In addition, according to the third embodiment, the display device 5 only needs to receive display data from the server device 4 and display it, thus reducing the processing load on the display device 5.

[0150] In addition, similar to the first embodiment, the server device 4 may select a display pattern based on the product identification information obtained from the terminal device 6 and output a pattern ID to the display device 5. In this case, the display device 5 stores the setting data in which the display items are defined and the display pattern, and displays the product information by displaying the setting data using the display pattern indicated by the received pattern ID.

[0151] In each of the above embodiments, the control programs executed by the server device 4, the display device 5, and the terminal device 6 may be provided by recording them on a computer-readable recording medium such as a CD-ROM. Alternatively, the control programs executed by each device in each of the above embodiments may be stored on a computer connected to a network such as the Internet and provided by downloading them via the network, or they may be provided via a network such as the Internet.

[0152] Although embodiments of the present invention have been described above, these embodiments are presented as examples only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. For example, in each embodiment, the display items were the same regardless of the display pattern (product name, price, place of origin, new product information, special information), but different display items may be used depending on the display pattern.

[0153] Furthermore, in each embodiment, the server device 4 selects a display pattern or display data based on customer C's past purchase information if the number of items purchased by customer C is less than or equal to a predetermined number. However, it is also possible to select a display pattern or display data based on customer C's past purchase information regardless of the number of items purchased by customer C. Moreover, it is also possible to select a display pattern or display data based on the purchased items regardless of the number of items purchased by customer C. In this case, the server device 4 selects a standard pattern or display data for the standard pattern when there are no purchased items.

[0154] Each of the above embodiments can be implemented 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 variations are included in the scope and spirit of the invention, as well as in the claims of the invention and its equivalents. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0155] 3 Display System 4 Server devices 5 Display device 6 Terminal devices 52 Display section 4001 Acquisition Unit (Customer Identification Information Acquisition Unit) 4002 Purchasing information acquisition department 4003 Selection Section 4004 Output Section 5001 Detection Unit 5002 Extraction part 5003 Display Control Unit [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]

[0156] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2014-203251

Claims

1. A display system comprising a display device provided for each displayed product to display information for the corresponding product, and a server device capable of communicating with the display device, The server device is An acquisition unit that acquires terminal identification information to identify the terminal device and product identification information to identify the product the customer intends to purchase from a terminal device that moves with the customer, Based on the product identification information acquired by the acquisition unit, a selection unit selects one of a predetermined number of display patterns, The system includes an output unit that outputs pattern identification information identifying the display pattern selected by the selection unit to a terminal device identified by the terminal identification information acquired by the acquisition unit, The aforementioned display device is A detection unit that detects pattern identification information output by terminal devices located within a predetermined range, A display control unit causes the display unit to display product information using a display pattern identified by the pattern identification information detected by the detection unit, A display system equipped with the following features.

2. The server device is A customer identification information acquisition unit that acquires customer identification information to identify a customer from the terminal device, A purchase information acquisition unit acquires past purchase information of a customer identified by the customer identification information acquired by the customer identification information acquisition unit, Furthermore, The selection unit selects the display pattern based on the product identification information acquired by the acquisition unit and the purchase information acquired by the purchase information acquisition unit. The display system according to claim 1.

3. The detection unit detects pattern identification information output by terminal devices located within a predetermined range and terminal identification information associated with said pattern identification information. When the detection unit detects multiple terminal identification pieces of information, the display control unit displays the product display information using the display pattern identified by the pattern identification piece that has the most pattern identification pieces corresponding to these terminal identification pieces of information. The display system according to claim 1 or 2.

4. A display system comprising a display device provided for each displayed product to display information for the corresponding product, and a server device capable of communicating with the display device, The server device is An acquisition unit that acquires terminal identification information to identify the terminal device and product identification information to identify the product the customer intends to purchase from a terminal device that moves with the customer, Based on the product identification information acquired by the acquisition unit, a selection unit selects one of a predetermined number of display patterns, The system includes an output unit that outputs to the display device the pattern identification information that identifies the display pattern selected by the selection unit and the terminal identification information acquired by the acquisition unit in association with each other. The aforementioned display device is A detection unit that detects terminal identification information of terminal devices located within a predetermined range, A display control unit causes the display unit to display product information using a display pattern identified by pattern identification information corresponding to the terminal identification information detected by the detection unit, A display system equipped with the following features.

5. An acquisition unit that acquires terminal identification information to identify the terminal device and product identification information to identify the product the customer intends to purchase from a terminal device that moves with the customer, Based on the product identification information acquired by the acquisition unit, a selection unit selects one of a predetermined number of display patterns for displaying information of a product, which is a display pattern provided for each product on display. An output unit outputs pattern identification information that identifies the display pattern selected by the selection unit to a terminal device identified by the terminal identification information acquired by the acquisition unit, A server device equipped with the following features.

6. A display device provided for each displayed product, which displays information for the corresponding product, A detection unit that detects pattern identification information output by terminal devices located within a predetermined range among terminal devices that move with the customer, An extraction unit extracts a display pattern identified by pattern identification information detected by the detection unit from a predetermined display pattern, The display control unit causes the display unit to display product information using the display pattern extracted by the extraction unit, A display device equipped with the following features.

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