Restaurant service system

Abstract

We provide a restaurant service system that can further improve the service provided to customers in restaurants. [Solution] The system comprises a store server 10 managed by the operator of the restaurant R, a camera 21 installed inside the restaurant R to capture video of the cooking process of the dishes served at the restaurant R, and multiple monitors 25 installed inside the restaurant R at or near the tables where customers are seated. The control means of the store server 10 causes the video based on the video data captured by the camera 21 to be displayed in real time on the multiple monitors 25.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a restaurant service system for supporting services provided to customers who visit a restaurant.

Background Art

[0002] When dining in a restaurant, if it is a counter seat, the process of cooking by the cook can be seen. On the other hand, at a table seat or private room far from the kitchen, from the time an order is placed until the food is served, especially when there is nothing particular to do, there were many customers who had difficulty passing the time. In this regard, the applicant of the present application feels that there is room for improvement in the service provided to customers who visit the restaurant.

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0003] Therefore, in view of the above situation, an object of the present invention is to provide a restaurant service system that can further improve the service provided to customers who visit a restaurant.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0004] To solve the above problems, the restaurant service system according to the present invention includes a store server managed by a restaurant operator, a camera installed at a position inside the restaurant for shooting a video of the cooking process of the dishes provided in the restaurant, and a plurality of monitors installed at or near the tables where customers are seated inside the restaurant, and is configured such that control means of the store server displays a video based on the video data captured by the camera on the plurality of monitors in real time.

[0005] In this system, videos based on video data captured by cameras installed within the restaurant are displayed on monitors placed at or near the tables where customers are seated. The cameras used to capture the video data are positioned to record the cooking process of the dishes served in the restaurant. Therefore, even if customers are seated far from the kitchen or in a place where the kitchen is not visible, they can watch the cooking process on the monitor. This prevents customers from feeling bored while waiting for their ordered food to arrive.

[0006] In addition, the video displayed on the monitor is real-time video, meaning it shows the cooking process taking place in the kitchen at that very moment. Therefore, even if customers are seated far from the kitchen or in a place where they cannot see the kitchen, they can still experience the cooking process with a sense of immediacy.

[0007] In addition to the above configuration, the restaurant service system according to the present invention, "An e-commerce server that provides an e-commerce site that accepts orders for products sold by the aforementioned restaurant operator via the internet, It is a portable terminal with a camera that can connect to the internet, and further comprises a user terminal used by customers of the aforementioned restaurant, A two-dimensional code containing the URL of the aforementioned online shopping site is displayed on a portion of the screen of each of the aforementioned monitors. The control means for the e-commerce server may be configured to display an input form on the monitor of the user terminal for entering information necessary to order a product when the user terminal, which has read the two-dimensional code with the attached camera, accesses the e-commerce site.

[0008] When customers enjoy a meal served at a restaurant and find it delicious, they may want to share the experience with relatives or acquaintances who were not present at the meal. Currently, it is possible to take out the same dishes served at restaurants, but only those living nearby, such as cohabiting relatives, are allowed to enjoy the takeout food.

[0009] Furthermore, even if a customer who has been served a meal at a restaurant wants to share the same dish with relatives or acquaintances who were not present at the meal, they cannot fulfill this wish until they bring those relatives or acquaintances to the restaurant again. If the relatives or acquaintances live far away, it can be difficult to bring them to the restaurant. In addition, even if customers know that the same products served at the restaurant can be purchased through an online shopping site, they may miss the opportunity to access the online shopping site and place an order.

[0010] In this configuration, customers can access an online shopping site and order products while inside a restaurant by scanning a QR code displayed on a monitor with the camera on their user terminal. Therefore, the moment a customer thinks, "I want someone to enjoy the same dish as me," that desire can be immediately fulfilled.

[0011] In addition to the above configuration, the restaurant service system according to the present invention, The two-dimensional code may be defined as including, as information, an identification code that identifies the restaurant where the monitor displaying the two-dimensional code is installed.

[0012] In this configuration, the QR code displayed on a monitor installed inside the restaurant contains an identification code that identifies the restaurant. Therefore, the e-commerce server can distinguish between orders placed by people who are not customers of the restaurant using a personal computer or smartphone to access the e-commerce site and order products (i.e., general mail-order orders) and orders placed by restaurant customers using the QR code displayed on the monitor to access the e-commerce site and order products. This allows restaurant operators to analyze how much displaying the QR code on the restaurant's monitor has contributed to mail-order sales of products. [Effects of the Invention]

[0013] As described above, the present invention provides a restaurant service system that can further improve the service provided to customers in restaurants. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0014] [Figure 1] This is a schematic diagram of a restaurant service system, which is one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] This diagram illustrates the display on a monitor screen installed inside a restaurant. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0015] The following describes a restaurant service system 1 (hereinafter sometimes simply referred to as "System 1"), which is one embodiment of the present invention, with reference to drawings. Here, we will use as an example the case where the restaurant R that employs System 1 is a restaurant that serves eel dishes on-site.

[0016] As shown in Figure 1, System 1 comprises a store server 10 managed by the operator of restaurant R, cameras 21, a distribution device 22, and multiple monitors 25 installed inside restaurant R, a company e-commerce server 30 that provides the company's own e-commerce site and is managed by the operator of restaurant R, and multiple user terminals 40, which are portable terminals equipped with cameras. The store server 10, the distribution device 22, the company e-commerce server 30, and the user terminals 40 are connected via the Internet N.

[0017] Furthermore, the Internet N is connected to multiple mall-type e-commerce servers 50 that provide shopping mall-type e-commerce sites (hereinafter referred to as "mall-type e-commerce sites") where various businesses set up shops or list products, and to multiple live streaming servers 60 that provide live streaming sites that distribute content in a live format.

[0018] Furthermore, "company-owned e-commerce site" and "mall-type e-commerce site" correspond to the "e-commerce site" of the present invention, and "company-owned e-commerce server 30" and "mall-type e-commerce server 50" correspond to the "e-commerce server" of the present invention.

[0019] The store server 10 is a computer that mainly comprises a storage device consisting of a main memory and an auxiliary storage device, a processor, and a communication device that communicates via the Internet N. The storage device of the store server 10 stores a program that makes the computer function as a control means. The control means of the store server 10 can be broadly divided into a distribution management means and an e-commerce management means.

[0020] The camera 21 is capable of shooting videos, and a plurality of them are fixedly arranged inside the restaurant R. The shooting targets of the plurality of cameras 21 include the cooking process of the dishes provided in the restaurant R. Here, an example is given where four cameras 21 are respectively arranged at positions where they shoot the "butchering" process of cutting open the eel body, the "grilling" process of skewering and grilling the butchered eel, the "sauce-making" process of making the sauce for grilled eel, and the "aquarium" where the eel, which is the raw material of the dish, is swimming. The camera 21 for shooting the "aquarium" can be an underwater camera. Each camera 21 may be equipped with a microphone, and in that case, the video data acquired by the camera 21 is accompanied by audio data.

[0021] The distribution device 22 is a device that, in addition to the same functions as a computer with the above configuration, has a function of encoding videos and a function of live-distributing videos to a live distribution site via the Internet N. In this embodiment, "LiveShell" (registered trademark) manufactured by Cerevo, Inc. is used as the distribution device 22. The distribution device 22 is connected to each of the plurality of cameras 21 by an HDMI cable 24 that transmits an image signal, an audio signal, and a control signal.

[0022] There are a plurality of large touch panel monitors 25, which are respectively arranged on the table seats in the restaurant R and the tables in the private rooms. Each monitor 25 is connected to the store server 10 by the same HDMI cable 24 via the distributor 23. These plurality of monitors 25 are output devices that display videos under the control of the control means of the store server 10, and are also input devices that input to the control means of the store server 10 by touching the buttons displayed on the screen 25m. The plurality of monitors 25 are extended monitors of the store server 10 itself. The store server 10 sets a non-overlapping coordinate system for each of the plurality of monitors 25, and stores in correspondence the coordinates of the buttons on each monitor 25 and the information input by touching the buttons.

[0023] The company's own e-commerce server 30 is a computer that mainly comprises a storage device consisting of a main memory and an auxiliary storage device, a processor, and a communication device that communicates via the Internet N. The company's own e-commerce server 30 is managed by the operator of restaurant R and provides the company's own e-commerce site that accepts orders for products via the Internet N. The products offered on this e-commerce site include the same products as the dishes served at restaurant R. The storage device of the company's own e-commerce server 30 stores a program that makes the computer function as a control means. The control means of the company's own e-commerce server 30 can be broadly divided into an e-commerce means and a video display means.

[0024] The user terminal 40 is a portable terminal with a camera, exemplified by smartphones and tablet devices, and comprises a storage device consisting of a main memory and an auxiliary storage device, a processor, a communication device that communicates via the internet N, a monitor that allows input by pressing the screen display with a finger or stylus pen, and a camera. The user terminal 40 also has an application installed that reads the information contained in a two-dimensional code Q captured by the attached camera and connects the user terminal 40 to a website identified by the URL contained in the read information.

[0025] Next, we will explain the processing in restaurant services performed using System 1 with the above configuration. These restaurant services can be broadly categorized into "video distribution within the restaurant," "video streaming to live streaming sites," "promotion of the use of the company's own online store within the restaurant," and "provision of information on product sales via mail order."

[0026] <Video streaming within restaurants> Video data acquired by multiple cameras 21 (four in this case) fixed inside the restaurant R is sent to a distribution device 22 via cable 24. The distribution device 22 has a function to switch the video data transmitted from the multiple cameras 21 at predetermined intervals to create a single continuous video data (hereinafter referred to as "switched video data"). The switched video data and the original video data transmitted from each of the multiple cameras 21 (hereinafter referred to as "original video data") are transmitted from the distribution device 22 to the store server 10 via cable 24 or via the internet N.

[0027] The distribution management means of the store server 10 stores the received video data in a storage device and, via the distributor 23, transmits the video data to each of the multiple monitors 25 via cables 24, causing the monitors 25 to display the video. By default, the video displayed on each monitor 25 is based on switching video data. That is, the monitors 25 placed on tables in the dining area or private rooms of the restaurant R display videos of "preparation," "grilling," "sauce making," and "fish tank," which switch at predetermined time intervals (for example, every 15 seconds). The video displayed on the monitors 25 is real-time video being captured by the camera 21 at that moment.

[0028] Each monitor 25 displays buttons 25a, 25b, 25c, and 25d for switching the display on screen 25m to the original video data for "preparation," "grilling," "sauce making," and "fish tank." For example, when a customer presses button 25b, the distribution management means of the store server 10 determines the coordinates of button 25b in the coordinate system of that monitor 25 and switches the video data sent to that monitor 25 to the original video data sent from camera 21 that films the "grilling" process. As a result, only the "grilling" video is continuously displayed on screen 25m on monitor 25. Also, when button 25e is pressed, the distribution management means determines the coordinates of button 25e in the coordinate system of that monitor 25 and switches the video data sent to that monitor 25 to the default switching video.

[0029] In this way, the monitors 25 placed on tables in the dining area and private rooms of the restaurant R display videos including the cooking process in the kitchen. This prevents customers seated far from the kitchen or in seats where the kitchen is not visible from being bored while waiting for their food. Furthermore, since the videos displayed on the monitors 25 are real-time, even customers seated in seats where the kitchen is not visible can watch the cooking process with a sense of realism.

[0030] <Video streaming to live streaming sites> The distribution device 22 transmits switched video data, created from original video data transmitted from multiple cameras 21, to multiple live streaming servers 60, each providing a live streaming site, via the Internet N. People accessing the live streaming site via the Internet N from a personal computer 91 or smartphone 92 can view live video footage of the restaurant R 24 hours a day. During times when the restaurant R is not performing "preparation" or "grilling" of eels, the switched video data can be created by switching between video data of the "sauce making" process, which is performed 24 hours a day, and video data of the "aquarium" showing the eels swimming.

[0031] Furthermore, the company's own e-commerce website, provided by its own e-commerce server 30, includes a company video distribution page that streams videos from inside the restaurant R. The distribution device 22 transmits switched video data to the company's e-commerce server 30 via the internet N, and the video display means of the company's e-commerce server 30, upon receiving this data, displays a video based on the switched video data on the company video distribution page. The entity transmitting the switched video data to the company's e-commerce server 30 via the internet N may be the store server 10, rather than the distribution device 22. People who access the company's e-commerce website via the internet N from a personal computer 91 or smartphone 92 can view live videos of the restaurant R at any time, 24 hours a day.

[0032] In this way, people who access live streaming sites or the company's own video streaming pages on its e-commerce site via the internet N can watch live videos of the restaurant R at any time. Therefore, it is possible to generate interest in the restaurant R and the food it serves among the general public who have an internet connection N. Furthermore, it can be expected that people who access the company's e-commerce site to purchase products via mail order will be inspired to actually visit the restaurant R and try the food after seeing the live videos of the restaurant R.

[0033] <Promoting the use of our own online store within restaurants> Each monitor 25 installed in restaurant R has an area r1 for displaying videos as described above, as well as an area r2 for displaying a two-dimensional code Q. The two-dimensional code Q contains information such as a restaurant identification code to identify the restaurant R where the monitor 25 is installed, and the URL of the company's online store.

[0034] If a customer who ate a meal at restaurant R found it delicious and was satisfied, they may want to share the meal with relatives or acquaintances who were not present at the meal. In this case, the customer uses the camera on their user terminal 40 to photograph the QR code Q displayed on the monitor 25. The user terminal 40 has an application installed that reads the QR code Q, and the QR code Q contains the URL information of the company's online store. Therefore, when the user terminal 40 photographs the QR code Q displayed on the monitor 25 with its attached camera, it connects to the company's online store identified by the URL information.

[0035] The mail-order service on the company's own e-commerce server 30, which provides the company's own e-commerce website, obtains the restaurant identification code contained in the two-dimensional code Q and displays detailed information of products that can be selected on the company's e-commerce website on the monitor 25 of the user terminal 40. When the user selects a product, the mail-order service displays an input form on the monitor 25 of the user terminal 40 for the user to enter the information necessary for the mail-order purchase. In this input form, the user enters product shipping address information to identify the shipping address, customer information to identify the person placing the order (which may be the same as the product shipping address information), and payment information for settling the price of the product.

[0036] The mail-order system, having obtained this information via an input form, associates this information with information identifying the ordered product, product price information, and restaurant identification code, and stores it in the mail-order server's storage device as an order acceptance database with an order number. The mail-order system then processes the payment of the product price based on the information in the order acceptance database and ships the ordered product to the shipping address specified in the shipping address information.

[0037] Furthermore, the e-commerce server's storage device stores multiple thank-you video data files that inform the customer (visitor) that their order has been received and express gratitude for their order. The e-commerce server 30's mail-order method, upon receiving an order via an input form, randomly displays one of the multiple thank-you video data files on the monitor 25 of the user terminal 40.

[0038] As described above, each monitor 25 installed inside restaurant R displays a two-dimensional code Q containing the URL of the company's online store. Therefore, customers who are satisfied with the food they receive at restaurant R can order the same items they ate in the restaurant from the company's online store right there and then. Traditionally, even if a customer who ate at restaurant R wanted to share the same meal with relatives or friends who were not present, they could not fulfill this wish until they brought those relatives or friends to restaurant R again. Furthermore, if the relatives or friends lived far away, it was difficult to bring them to restaurant R. Also, even if they knew that the same items as those served in restaurant R could be purchased from the online store, they sometimes missed the opportunity to access the online store and place an order.

[0039] In contrast, in this embodiment, customers can access the company's online store and order products while they are inside the restaurant R. Therefore, the moment a customer thinks, "I want someone to enjoy the same dish," that thought can be immediately fulfilled.

[0040] In addition, the two-dimensional code Q displayed on the monitor 25 installed inside restaurant R contains an identification code that identifies restaurant R, and each data item in the order acceptance database created by product orders placed by user terminals 40 that access the company's e-commerce site by reading this two-dimensional code Q is associated with the restaurant identification code. Therefore, the company's e-commerce server 30 can distinguish between orders placed by people who are not customers of restaurant R using a personal computer 91 or smartphone 92 to access the company's e-commerce site and order products, i.e., general mail-order orders, and orders placed by customers of restaurant R using the two-dimensional code Q displayed on the monitor 25 to access the company's e-commerce site and order products. This allows the restaurant operator to analyze how much the display of the two-dimensional code Q on the monitor 25 in restaurant R contributed to mail-order sales of products.

[0041] <Information on product sales via mail order> Each data entry in the order acceptance database includes, in addition to the information described above, the date and time when the mail-order service received the order. Furthermore, when the mail-order service on the company's own mail-order server 30 receives an order through its own mail-order website, it transmits the newly added order data to the order acceptance database to the store server 10 via the internet N. This data is tagged with an identification code indicating that the site that received the order is the company's own mail-order website. The mail-order management system on the store server 10 stores the received new order data in the store server 10's storage device as a mail-order history database, associating it with the identification code of the company's own mail-order website.

[0042] Furthermore, the operator of restaurant R sells its products via mail order not only through its own e-commerce site but also through multiple online marketplace sites. People who access these online marketplace sites via the internet N from a personal computer 91 or smartphone 92 can order products sold by the operator of restaurant R through these online marketplace sites.

[0043] When a mall-type e-commerce server 50, which provides each mall-type e-commerce site, receives an order for goods sold by the operator of a restaurant R, it adds an identification code that identifies the mall-type e-commerce site to new external order data, which consists of information similar to the new order data described above, and transmits it to the store server 10 via the internet N. The e-commerce management means of the store server 10 stores the received new external order data in the e-commerce history database described above, in association with the identification code that identifies the sending mall-type e-commerce site.

[0044] Furthermore, the e-commerce management system of the store server 10 displays e-commerce usage information on each of the multiple monitors 25 installed inside the restaurant R, based on data newly added to the e-commerce history database. The e-commerce usage information includes the date and time when the company's own e-commerce site or a mall-type e-commerce site accepted the order, the price information of the product, and the prefecture information, which is part of the customer's address. Each monitor 25 has an area r3 for displaying e-commerce usage information, in addition to the area r1 for displaying videos and the area r2 for displaying the two-dimensional code Q as described above. In this area r3, a message such as "On ○ / ○, a customer from ●●● (prefecture) placed an order for ¥▲▲▲▲ (product price)" is displayed moment by moment.

[0045] In this way, information that products sold by the operator of restaurant R are being ordered on online shopping sites (company's own online shopping site, marketplace-type online shopping site) is displayed moment by moment on monitor 25, which is seen by customers dining in restaurant R. As a result, customers can learn that the products sold by the operator of the restaurant R they are currently dining in are selling well, that is, that the products are well-regarded by general consumers. Furthermore, by seeing the online shopping information displayed on monitor 25, customers may be prompted to consider ordering products themselves through online shopping sites.

[0046] Furthermore, information regarding online shopping usage, that is, information regarding product orders received on the company's own online shopping site and information regarding product orders received on each marketplace-type online shopping site, can be configured to be transmitted from the store server 10 to the company's own online shopping server 30. The company's own video distribution page on the company's online shopping site provided by the company's own online shopping server 30 has an online shopping information display area that displays online shopping usage information, separate from the video display area that displays switching videos. The company's own online shopping server 30 displays switching videos in the video display area of ​​the company's video distribution page as described above, and displays the online shopping usage information received by the online shopping means in real time in the online shopping information display area. Alternatively, a dedicated page for displaying online shopping usage information can be set up on the company's online shopping site, separate from the company's video distribution page, and the online shopping means can display the received online shopping usage information on that dedicated page.

[0047] In this way, by displaying online shopping information on the company's own e-commerce site, people who access the company's e-commerce site via the internet N from a personal computer 91 or smartphone 92 can see in near real-time how products are being ordered on the e-commerce site (company's own e-commerce site, mall-type e-commerce site).

[0048] Although preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and various improvements and design changes are possible without departing from the spirit of the present invention, as shown below.

[0049] For example, in the above example, Figure 1 illustrates the case where the store server 10 is located inside the restaurant R, but the store server 10 may also be located outside the restaurant R.

[0050] Furthermore, the above example uses Figure 1 to illustrate the case where there is only one restaurant R using System 1. However, the system is not limited to this, and there may be multiple restaurants R using System 1, with multiple cameras 21, distribution devices 22, and multiple monitors 25 installed in each restaurant R. In this case, the store server 10 may be provided one per restaurant R, or one store server 10 may be provided for multiple restaurants R. In the latter case, the distribution management means of the store server 10 stores the video data transmitted from the distribution device 22 of each restaurant R with an identification code that identifies each restaurant R in a storage device, and displays the video related to the switched video data or original video data on the monitors 25 installed in each restaurant R based on the identification code that identifies each restaurant R.

[0051] Furthermore, while the above example illustrates a case where the two-dimensional code Q displayed on monitor 25 contains the URL of the company's own e-commerce site, it may also contain the URL of a mall-type e-commerce site. Alternatively, the monitor 25 may be configured to display multiple two-dimensional codes Q, each containing the URL of a different mall-type e-commerce site, and a two-dimensional code Q containing the URL of the company's own e-commerce site, with the names of each e-commerce site listed alongside it. When a customer selects one of these multiple two-dimensional codes Q and photographs it with the camera on the user terminal 40, the user terminal 40 connects to one of the e-commerce sites.

[0052] Furthermore, although the above example illustrates a case where the distribution device 22 receives video data from the camera 21 via cable 24, the distribution device 22 may also receive video data transmitted from the camera 21 via wireless communication. In addition, although the above example illustrates a case where the store server 10 receives both switched video data and original video data from the distribution device 22, the store server 10 may also be configured to receive only original video data from the distribution device 22 and create switched video data within the store server 10. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0053] 10 Store Servers 21 Cameras 25 monitors 25m screen (monitor screen) 30. In-house e-commerce server (e-commerce server) 40 User terminals 50 Mall-type e-commerce servers (e-commerce servers) N Internet Q 2D code

Claims

1. The store server managed by the restaurant operator, A camera is installed inside the restaurant in a position to film a video of the cooking process of the dishes served at the restaurant, The restaurant comprises, within its premises, multiple monitors installed at or near the tables where customers are seated, The control means for the store server causes the video based on the video data captured by the camera to be displayed in real time on multiple monitors. A restaurant service system characterized by the following features.

2. An e-commerce server that provides an online shopping site that accepts orders for products sold by the aforementioned restaurant operator via the internet, It is a portable terminal with a camera that can connect to the internet, and further comprises a user terminal used by customers of the aforementioned restaurant, A two-dimensional code containing the URL of the aforementioned online shopping site is displayed on a portion of the screen of each of the aforementioned monitors. The control means for the e-commerce server causes the user terminal, which has read the two-dimensional code with its attached camera, to access the e-commerce site, to display an input form on the user terminal's monitor for entering the information necessary to order a product. The restaurant service system according to feature 1.

3. The aforementioned two-dimensional code includes, as information, an identification code that identifies the restaurant where the monitor displaying the two-dimensional code is installed. The restaurant service system according to claim 2.

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