Product sales data processing system, program, monitoring device, and server device

Abstract

To enable an item sales data processing system in which customers themselves register items using mobile terminals to efficiently resolve inadequate item registration results.SOLUTION: An item sales data processing system for registering items based on item registration operation by a customer using a portable terminal device includes: acquisition control means for allowing a monitoring device used by a clerk to acquire registration defective item information concerning a defective item for which the registration result is defective when the registration result of the item based on the item registration operation is defective; display control means for displaying on the monitoring device a screen based on the registration defective item information acquired by the acquisition control means; and normal registration means for registering the registration defective item as a normal item in response to an input of registration complementary information to the displayed screen.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 14

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a product sales data processing system, a program, a monitoring device, and a server device. [Background technology]

[0002] 2. Description of the Related Art A system is known in which customers themselves register products using mobile terminals (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2018-147252 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In a product sales data processing system in which customers themselves use mobile terminals to register products, there are cases where the product registration results are insufficient. For products with insufficient registration results, the insufficient registration result state is resolved, for example, by an operation of a store clerk. It is preferable that such insufficient registration result state be resolved efficiently.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above circumstances, and aims to efficiently resolve insufficient product registration results in a product sales data processing system in which customers themselves register products using a mobile terminal. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] One aspect of the present invention for solving the above-mentioned problems is a product sales data processing system in which a customer registers a product based on a product registration operation using a mobile terminal device, the product sales data processing system comprising: an acquisition control means for causing a monitoring device used by a store clerk to acquire registered defective product information regarding the registered defective product for which the registration result is defective when the registration result of the product based on the product registration operation is defective; a display control means for causing the monitoring device to display a screen based on the registered defective product information acquired by the acquisition control means; and a normal registration means for performing normal registration by registering the registered defective product as a normal product in response to registration completion information being input into the displayed screen.

[0007] Furthermore, one aspect of the present invention is a program for causing a computer in a product sales data processing system in which a customer registers a product based on a product registration operation using a mobile terminal device to function as: an acquisition control means for causing a monitoring device used by a store clerk to acquire, when the registration result of the product based on the product registration operation is incorrect, registered incorrect product information regarding the registered incorrect product for which the registration result is incorrect; a display control means for displaying, on the monitoring device, a screen based on the registered incorrect product information acquired by the acquisition control means; and a normal registration means for performing a normal registration by registering the registered incorrect product as a normal product in response to registration completion information being input into the displayed screen.

[0008] Another aspect of the present invention is a monitoring device used by a store clerk in a product sales data processing system in which a customer registers a product based on a product registration operation using a mobile terminal device, the monitoring device comprising: an acquisition means for acquiring registered defective product information regarding a registered defective product for which the registration result based on the product registration operation is defective when the registration result of the product based on the product registration operation is defective; a display control means for displaying a screen based on the registered defective product information acquired by the acquisition means; and a normal registration means for performing normal registration by registering the registered defective product as a normal product in response to registration completion information being input into the displayed screen.

[0009] Also, one aspect of the present invention is a program for causing a computer, which is a monitoring device used by a store clerk in a product sales data processing system that registers products based on a product registration operation by a customer using a mobile terminal device, to function as an acquisition means for acquiring incomplete product information regarding an incompletely registered product whose registration result is incomplete when the registration result of the product based on the product registration operation is incomplete, a display control means for displaying a screen based on the incomplete product information acquired by the acquisition means, and a normal registration means for performing normal registration to register the incompletely registered product as a normal product in response to the input of registration completion information to the displayed screen.

[0010] Also, one aspect of the present invention is a server device provided in a product sales data processing system that registers products based on a product registration operation by a customer using a mobile terminal device, the server device including: an acquisition control means for causing a monitoring device used by a store clerk to acquire incomplete product information regarding an incompletely registered product whose registration result is incomplete when the registration result of the product based on the product registration operation is incomplete; a display control means for causing a monitoring device operated by the store clerk to display a screen based on the incomplete product information acquired by the acquisition control means; and a normal registration means for performing normal registration to register the incompletely registered product as a normal product in response to the input of registration completion information to the screen displayed on the monitoring device.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0011] [Figure 1] It is a diagram showing a configuration example of the shopping system in this embodiment. [Diagram 2] It is a diagram showing an installation example of the settlement device in this embodiment. [Diagram 3] It is a diagram showing an external appearance example of the settlement device in this embodiment. [Figure 4] It is a diagram showing a configuration example of the settlement device in this embodiment. [Diagram 5] It is a diagram showing a configuration example of the customer terminal device in this embodiment. [Figure 6]1 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a transaction management device in this embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a monitoring device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8] 3A to 3C are diagrams illustrating an example of customer information, store information, and cart information according to the present embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a definition of a reserved product in the present embodiment. [Figure 10] A sequence diagram showing an example of processing procedures executed by a customer terminal device, a settlement device, and a transaction management device in this embodiment in response to the accounting of one transaction in self-service operation. [Figure 11] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a screen of a shopping application in the present embodiment. [Figure 12] 13A to 13C are diagrams showing an example of a registered product presentation screen and a screen displayed on a settlement device in this embodiment. [Figure 13] 11A to 11C are diagrams showing examples of a call-on-hold release guidance screen, a call-on-hold release waiting screen, a call-on-hold release confirmation screen, and a product registration screen in the present embodiment. [Figure 14] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a product information input screen in the present embodiment. [Figure 15] 11 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing procedure executed by the customer terminal device, the transaction management device, and the monitoring device in this embodiment in relation to releasing the reservation of an unspecified commodity. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0012] <Embodiment> [Example of shopping system configuration] Fig. 1 shows an example of the configuration of a shopping system (an example of a product sales data processing system) according to this embodiment. The shopping system in the figure corresponds to accounting (customer terminal-compatible accounting) in which, for example, a customer uses a customer terminal device 50 to register the product to be purchased while taking it from a product shelf, and the same customer also uses a payment device 40 to settle the payment for the registered product. The accounting here refers to a procedure carried out in response to one transaction, including the registration of the product and the settlement of the registered product. The shopping system of this embodiment includes a management device 10, a transaction management device 60, a settlement device 40, a customer terminal device 50, a monitoring device 80, and a credit card settlement server 70.

[0013] The management device 10, settlement device 40, and monitoring device 80 are installed in a store and are communicatively connected via a LAN 19 (which may be wired or wireless). The management device 10 is a business terminal used by store staff for store management and the like, and is capable of communicating with the transaction management device 60.

[0014] The monitoring device 80 is a business terminal that monitors the status of transactions carried out by customers using the customer terminal device 50 in the store, and is capable of communicating with the transaction management device 60. Although four settlement devices 40 are illustrated in FIG. 1, the number of settlement devices 40 within one store is not particularly limited.

[0015] The customer terminal device 50 is operated by customers (such as shoppers who are members of the store, hereinafter also referred to simply as customers). In addition to typical communication and imaging functions (camera), the customer terminal device 50 has a recognition function that scans barcodes attached to products to read product codes, that is, recognizes barcodes attached to products. Note that the recognition function of the customer terminal device 50 only needs to be able to read product codes, and does not need to be able to recognize which product the read product code belongs to. In other words, the customer terminal device 50 only needs to be able to read a product code from a barcode that exists as an object in an image captured by the imaging function (an image acquired as a through image).

[0016] Such a customer terminal device 50 may be a smartphone, a tablet terminal, or the like owned by a customer. A shopping application having a function of registering products in accordance with the shopping system of this embodiment is installed in the smartphone, tablet terminal, or the like serving as the customer terminal device 50.

[0017] Furthermore, the customer terminal device 50 may be, for example, a terminal loaned from a store to a customer. An application having a function of registering products in accordance with the shopping system of this embodiment is also installed in the customer terminal device 50 loaned from the store to a customer. The customer terminal device 50 loaned from the store to a customer may be one that is held by the customer or may be one that is attached to a shopping cart and used by the customer.

[0018] The customer terminal device 50 also captures an image (e.g., releases the shutter) of the product (e.g., the peripheral portion with a barcode attached) and generates a captured image (image data). The customer terminal device 50 may capture an image by releasing the shutter in response to an operation by the customer who is the operator, but in this embodiment, it is preferable that the customer terminal device 50 captures an image by releasing the shutter at its own discretion.

[0019] In addition, the customer terminal device 50 may be equipped with an image recognition technology that extracts feature points from an image (through image, captured image) and recognizes an imaged subject (object, etc.). For example, the customer terminal device 50 may use the image recognition technology to identify (estimate) an imaged product.

[0020] The settlement device 40 is a settlement device capable of at least cash payment as a settlement method. The settlement device 40 is configured to be able to communicate with the transaction management device 60. The settlement device 40 may be configured to be able to communicate with the transaction management device 60, for example, via the management device 10.

[0021] The transaction management device 60 manages transactions carried out in accordance with the shopping system of this embodiment.

[0022] The credit card payment server 70 executes payment processing corresponding to the credit card in response to a credit card payment request transmitted from the settlement device 40, the customer terminal device 50, etc.

[0023] [About the payment device] Fig. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the installation of the settlement device 40. Fig. 2(A) is a perspective view of the settlement device 40 etc. as seen from the customer side. Fig. 2(B) is a perspective view of the settlement device 40 etc. as seen from the store clerk side. As shown in Fig. 2(A), a counter is placed on the right side of the settlement device 40 as seen from the customer side.

[0024] Fig. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the appearance of the settlement device 40. Fig. 3(A) is a perspective view of the settlement device 40 as seen from the customer side. Fig. 3(B) is a perspective view of the settlement device 40 as seen from the store clerk side. Fig. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the settlement device 40. In Fig. 3 and Fig. 4, the same parts are given the same reference numerals.

[0025] An example of the configuration of settlement device 40 shown in Fig. 4 will be described below with reference to Fig. 3. Settlement device 40 includes a CPU 401, a ROM 402, a RAM 403, a hard disk 404, a customer display unit 405, a customer scanner unit 406, a card payment unit 408, a change machine 409, a store clerk display unit 410, a key operation unit 411, a store clerk scanner unit 412, a printing unit 413, an audio output unit 414, and a communication unit 415. These can communicate with each other via a bus.

[0026] The CPU 401 is a central processing unit, and controls the operation of the settlement device 40 by reading and executing programs stored in the ROM 402 . The ROM 402 is a read-only memory, and stores various types of information used by the CPU 401, including programs.

[0027] The RAM 403 is a read / write memory and stores various information, such as information read from the ROM 402 or the hard disk 404, information acquired from the outside, and information generated during processing.

[0028] The hard disk 404 stores various information. For example, the hard disk 404 may store programs executed by the CPU 401 instead of the ROM 402. Also, instead of the RAM 403, the hard disk 404 may store information read from the ROM 402, information acquired from the outside, information generated during processing, and the like.

[0029] The customer-side display unit 405 is a touch display for customers, which displays various information to customers and accepts various inputs from customers. Customer-side scanner unit 406 is a scanner unit for customers, and for example, scans a code (for example, a code other than a barcode, such as a barcode or a two-dimensional code) attached to a product and reads the product code. Customer-side scanner unit 406 may also scan a code (barcode, two-dimensional code, etc.) printed on a bill (registered trademark) and read information required for settlement. Customer-side scanner unit 406 may also scan a code (two-dimensional code, barcode, etc.) displayed on the display unit of customer terminal device 50 and read information required for settlement.

[0030] Although the customer-side scanner unit 406 is used when a customer registers a product, the customer may register the product by other methods. For example, if a preset key (a button for ordering the product) corresponding to the product is displayed on the customer-side display unit 405, the customer may operate (press) the preset key to register the product.

[0031] The card payment unit 408 is a payment mechanism that uses various cards (credit cards, prepaid cards such as transportation cards, etc.). The card payment unit 408 of this embodiment includes a card recognition unit (reading unit), a display unit, and an operation unit, but it is sufficient that the card payment unit 408 includes at least the card recognition unit. The card recognition unit may also recognize various cards (e.g., membership cards, point cards, etc.) that are not directly used for payment (settlement).

[0032] The change machine 409 (cash settlement unit) is a cash settlement mechanism, which has an input port for banknotes and coins, and an output port for banknotes and coins, calculates the amount of money inserted into the input port, calculates the change amount, which is the difference between the input amount and the purchase amount, and outputs the change from the output port. The change machine 409 faces the customer and is operated by the customer. When banknotes or coins are inserted into the input port, they are detected by a sensor (detecting that they have been inserted, detecting the number of coins by denomination, etc.).

[0033] That is, the change machine 409 is used when the price of registered products is settled with cash (money) in the settlement device 40. The change machine 409 has a banknote insertion port for inserting banknotes, a coin insertion port for inserting coins, a banknote discharge port for discharging banknotes, a coin discharge port for discharging coins, a counting unit for counting the inserted or discharged money, a money transport mechanism between the insertion port or discharge port and the storage unit, the above-mentioned sensor, etc. The banknote insertion port and the coin insertion port are also referred to as deposit insertion ports. The banknote discharge port and the coin discharge port are also referred to as change discharge ports. The banknote insertion port and the banknote discharge port may be a common port, and the coin insertion port and the coin discharge port may be a common port.

[0034] The change machine 409 also counts the coins replenished during the closing process and stores them in a storage unit. The change machine 409 also counts the coins to be dispensed during the closing process and discharges them from a change discharge port. The closing process is a process of adjusting the amount of money stored in the change machine 409 (cash on hand / cash on hand) to a reference amount after the store is closed or before the store is opened.

[0035] The store clerk's display unit 410 is a touch display for the store clerk, which displays various information to the store clerk and receives various inputs from the store clerk. The key operation unit 411 is made up of various keys (buttons) and receives various inputs from the store clerk. The store clerk scanner unit 412 is a scanner unit for store clerks, and for example, scans a barcode attached to a product and reads the product code. The store clerk scanner unit 412 also scans a barcode attached to the name tag of the store clerk and reads the store clerk code.

[0036] Although the store clerk's scanner unit 412 is used when the store clerk registers a product, the store clerk may register the product by other methods. For example, if a key corresponding to a product (e.g., a key corresponding to a sports newspaper) is arranged on the key operation unit 411, the store clerk may operate (press) that key to register the product. Also, if a preset key corresponding to a product is displayed on the store clerk's display unit 410, the store clerk may operate that preset key to register the product.

[0037] The printing unit 413 prints and issues various media (receipts, bills, etc.). The printing unit 413 can freely rotate to change its orientation (direction of the media issuing port) from the clerk side to the customer side and from the customer side to the clerk side. The orientation of the printing unit 413 may be changed manually, or may be changed automatically (mechanically controlled, etc.) in response to, for example, a transition (switching) of the operation mode described below. The correctness of the orientation of the printing unit 413 may be detected by a sensor or the like.

[0038] The audio output unit 414 outputs audio. For example, the audio output unit 414 outputs audio guidance and the like. The communication unit 415 executes communication with other devices (other settlement devices 40 and the management device 10).

[0039] In addition, the settlement device 40 of this embodiment can be switched between a total of four operating modes: a customer terminal-responsive settlement mode, which is set to perform settlement processing under customer terminal-responsive accounting, and three accounting modes (first to third accounting modes) corresponding to three different patterns of accounting (product registration, settlement). The first payment mode is an operating mode in which the store clerk performs operations on the payment device 40 corresponding to product registration and operations corresponding to payment. The second payment mode is an operating mode in which the store clerk performs operations on the payment device 40 corresponding to product registration, and the customer performs operations on the same payment device 40 corresponding to payment. The third payment mode is an operating mode in which the customer performs operations on the payment device 40 corresponding to product registration and operations corresponding to payment. As a result, in a store that has introduced the shopping system of this embodiment, some of the multiple payment devices 40 can be set to customer terminal compatible payment mode to support customer terminal compatible payment, and the other payment devices 40 can be set to, for example, the first or second payment mode so that a store clerk can handle payments in consultation with customers. Note that the other payment devices 40 may also include those set to the third payment mode.

[0040] [Example of customer terminal device configuration] 5 shows an example of the configuration of the customer terminal device 50. The customer terminal device 50 in the figure includes a CPU 501, a storage unit 502, a RAM 503, a display unit 504, an operation unit 505, an imaging unit 506, and a network-compatible communication unit 507. The CPU 501 is a central processing unit, and controls the operation of the customer terminal device 50 by reading and executing programs stored in the storage unit 502 . The storage unit 502 is an auxiliary storage device for the CPU 501, and stores various types of information used by the CPU 501, including programs. The RAM 503 is a main storage device for the CPU 501 . The display unit 504 displays an image according to the display control of the CPU 501. The display unit 504 may be configured as a touch panel that allows operations to be performed on the screen. The operation unit 505 collectively indicates various operators provided on the customer terminal device 50 and various input devices connected to the customer terminal device 50 . The imaging unit 506 captures images under the control of the CPU 401. Furthermore, the imaging unit 506 of this embodiment can also function as a part that reads two-dimensional codes in a code reader that processes the two-dimensional codes. The network-compatible communication unit 507 is a unit that wirelessly communicates via a network. The network-compatible communication unit 507 enables the customer terminal device 50 to communicate with the transaction management device 60.

[0041] [Example of transaction management device configuration] 6 shows an example of the configuration of transaction management device 60. Transaction management device 60 in the figure comprises a CPU 601, a storage unit 602, a RAM 603, and a network-compatible communication unit 604. The CPU 601 is a central processing unit, and controls the operation of the transaction management device 60 by reading and executing programs stored in the memory unit 602 . The storage unit 602 is an auxiliary storage device for the CPU 601, and stores various types of information used by the CPU 501, including programs. The RAM 603 is a main storage device for the CPU 601 . The network compatible communication unit 604 is a part that performs communication via a network.

[0042] The memory unit 602 of the transaction management device 60 stores customer information, store information, product master (product information), and cart information.

[0043] [Example of monitoring device configuration] 7 shows an example of the configuration of a monitoring device 80. The monitoring device 80 in the figure includes a CPU 801, a storage unit 802, a RAM 803, an in-store communication unit 804, a network-compatible communication unit 805, a display unit 806, and an operation unit 807. The CPU 801 is a central processing unit, and controls the operation of the monitoring device 80 by reading and executing programs stored in the storage unit 802 . The storage unit 602 is an auxiliary storage device for the CPU 801, and stores various types of information used by the CPU 801, including programs. The RAM 803 is the main storage device of the CPU 801 . The in-store communication unit 804 communicates with terminals within the store, such as the settlement device 40 and the management device 10, via the LAN 19. The network-compatible communication unit 805 is a unit that communicates with the outside via a network. In the case of the monitoring device 80, the network-compatible communication unit 805 can communicate with the transaction management device 60 on the cloud. The display unit 806 displays images under the control of the CPU 801. The display unit 806 may be configured as a touch panel. The operation unit 807 collectively indicates the operators provided in the monitoring device 80 and the input devices connected to the monitoring device 80 .

[0044] [Information stored in the transaction management device] The customer information stored in the memory unit 602 is information for managing individual customers. The transaction management device 60 generates customer information when a customer is registered (a customer's registration may be considered to have been completed when the customer information of that customer is stored). The transaction management device 60 also updates the customer information as appropriate based on cart information, etc. The transaction management device 60 may update the customer information, for example, by referring to the cart information at a specified time every day.

[0045] 8(A) shows an example of customer information stored in the memory unit 602 of the transaction management device 60. The customer information in this figure includes customer identification information, customer name, customer registration date, cancellation information, customer rank, number of points, etc. The customer identification information is identification information that uniquely identifies a customer. The customer identification information may be application identification information that is uniquely assigned to each installed shopping application when the shopping application of this embodiment is installed. The application identification information may be, for example, a number that is uniquely (for example, sequentially) assigned to each installed shopping application. Alternatively, the application identification information may be terminal identification information that is unique to the customer terminal device 50 in which the shopping application is installed. The terminal identification information may be, for example, a telephone number assigned to a customer who is the user of the customer terminal device 50, or hardware identification information that is uniquely assigned to the hardware of the customer terminal device 50, such as a MAC (Media Access Control) address. The customer name is the customer's name or nickname, etc. The customer registration date is the date and time when the customer was registered. Cancellation information is information regarding the cancellation of registered products after registration. The customer rank is a rank according to the customer's purchasing history. When generating customer information for a new customer, the customer identification information, customer name, and customer registration date are generated, but since this is before the start of actual trading (product registration), other information (cancellation information, etc.) is not generated.

[0046] The transaction management device 60 generates and stores customer identification information, for example, when registering a customer (for example, when the customer terminal device 50 downloads or installs a shopping application to use a shopping service provided by the transaction management device 60 from an external device (for example, a specified server that provides all applications, the transaction management device 60 itself)). In addition, for example, when registering a customer, the transaction management device 60 acquires information entered into the name field of a registration form (input form) using the customer terminal device 50, and stores it as the customer name. In addition, the transaction management device 60 acquires, for example, the current date and time when registering the customer, and stores it as the customer registration date.

[0047] In addition, instead of or in addition to storing the customer information in its own memory unit, the transaction management device 60 may store some or all of the customer information in another device (such as a file server accessible to the transaction management device 60).

[0048] 8(B) shows an example of store information stored in the memory unit 602 of the transaction management device 60. The store information in the figure includes store identification information, store name (branch name), store identification information 1, and store identification information 2. The store identification information is identification information that uniquely identifies a store. The store identification information shown in Fig. 8(B) is composed of a store (trade name) or company code and a branch code. The store name is the name of the store. The store name shown in Fig. 8(B) is composed of the store (trade name) or company and the branch name. The store identification information 1 is information on a two-dimensional code (QR code (registered trademark) or the like) for identifying a store where a transaction takes place (a store where a product is bought and sold). The store identification information 2 is store location information (GPS information) for identifying the store where the transaction is to be carried out. In the example shown in FIG. 8(B), the store identification information and the store specifying information 1 are different, but the store identification information and the store specifying information 1 may be the same.

[0049] The transaction management device 60 may obtain and store store information from an external source (such as a server (not shown) at a headquarters that manages each store). The transaction management device 60 may store some or all of the store information in another device (such as a file server accessible by the transaction management device 60) instead of or in addition to storing the store information in its own memory.

[0050] Cart information is information for managing individual transactions. The transaction management device 60 generates the cart information at the start of a transaction. In addition, the transaction management device 60 updates the cart information as the transaction progresses (each time a product is registered) (the storage of a product in the cart information may be interpreted as the registration of that product).

[0051] FIG. 8(C) is an example of cart information stored in the memory unit 602 of the transaction management device 60. The cart information in the figure includes cart identification information, transaction start date and time, transaction end date and time, customer identification information, product information in the cart (registered product information, reserved product information), cancellation information, and the like.

[0052] The cart identification information is identification information that uniquely identifies the cart information. For example, the cart identification information includes store identification information, a date, and a serial number (for example, a serial number for each store and each date). The transaction start date and time is the date and time when the transaction starts. The transaction start date and time may be, for example, the date and time when the cart information is generated. The transaction start date and time may be the date and time when the first item of product is registered (the date and time when the registered product information (registered product 1) in FIG. 8(C) is stored). The date and time when the cart information is generated and the date and time when the first item of product is registered may both be stored separately.

[0053] The transaction end date and time is the end date and time of the transaction. For example, the transaction end date and time may be the settlement date and time. The customer identification information is customer identification information that identifies the customer of the transaction. When the cart information is generated, the cart identification information, transaction start date and time, and customer identification information are generated, but since this is before the start of the actual transaction (product registration), other information (transaction end date and time, etc.) is not generated. The settlement date and time may be the settlement start date and time or the settlement end date and time. Both the settlement start date and time and the settlement end date and time may be stored separately as the transaction end date and time.

[0054] Registered product information (total) is information that is updated each time a product is registered. Registered product information (total) includes the number of products (number of products), estimated subtotal amount (e.g., the subtotal amount before discounts, etc. are reflected), subtotal amount, etc. Registered product information (registered product 1) is the registration information for one product item. Registered product information (registered product 2) is the registration information for two products. In the example shown in Figure 8 (C), registered product information (registered product 3) to registered product information (registered product 5) are omitted from the illustration. Registered product information (N; N is an integer) includes the product code, product name (product name), price, etc.

[0055] The registered product information (N) may include the registration date and time of the Nth item of product. In other words, the transaction management device 60 may store the registration date and time of the registered product as the registered product information. The registration date and time of each product may also be used as a basis for determining whether or not a service such as a time service should be applied and the effect of the application.

[0056] The reserved product information (total) is updated each time a reserved product is registered. A reserved product is a product that was not registered properly due to a certain reason and is registered in a temporarily reserved state. The reserved product information (total) includes the number of reserved products (number of products), the number of non-file reserved products, the number of unreadable reserved products (requiring confirmation of unauthorized operation), and the like.

[0057] NON-FILE refers to a product whose barcode or product code was successfully scanned in the store (the product code was read), but the product code is not stored as product information in the product master (a product whose product information is not registered).

[0058] A read NG refers to a failure to scan the product code at the store (the product code could not be read), or a product whose product code has not been scanned at the store. In other words, a read NG refers to a timeout process when it is possible to determine that a product has been imaged for a certain period of time using image recognition technology but has not been able to be recognized as a barcode, or a product that has been timed out. For example, if the barcode cannot be correctly acquired (recognized) despite the customer performing an operation to have the barcode read due to wrinkles in the package, smudges or dirt on the barcode print, or the barcode being printed on a transparent film, it will be determined that the barcode cannot be read.

[0059] Reserved Product Information (Reserved Product 1) is information on reserved product 1. Reserved Product Information (Reserved Product 2) is information on reserved product 2. Reserved Product Information (Reserved Product 3) is information on reserved product 3.

[0060] The reserved product information (reserved product N; N is an integer) includes the reserved product type (information indicating whether the reserved product is NON-FILE or cannot be read) and image data (image data captured when reading was NG). For example, if the Nth item is a reserved product due to NON-FILE, the reserved product information (reserved product N) includes the reserved product type "1 (NON-FILE)", product code, and image data. Also, if the Nth item is a reserved product due to reading being NG, the reserved product information (reserved product N) includes the reserved product type "2 (cannot be read)" and image data.

[0061] 9 shows an example of reserved product definition corresponding to cart information in this embodiment. In the figure, an example is shown in which reserved products are classified into eight categories. Classification numbers "1" to "8" are assigned to each of the eight reserved product classifications. The classification of the reserved product with classification number 1 is “NON-FILE” as explained in FIG. The classification of the reserved product with classification number 2 is “reading not allowed” as explained in FIG.

[0062] The classification of the reserved product with classification number 3 is "pseudo scan input." A reserved product with "pseudo scan input" is a product for which the customer has attempted to have the customer terminal device 50 read the product's code, but the customer terminal device 50 has not been able to read the code properly.

[0063] As a specific example, a situation where a product is brought into the imaging range of the imaging unit 506 but the product code is not brought into the imaging range of the imaging unit 506 corresponds to a "pseudo scan input". Additionally, a "pseudo scan insertion" situation corresponds to a situation in which the product is brought into the imaging range of the imaging unit 506, but an image of a part that does not have a code is captured. Additionally, "pseudo scan insertion" refers to a situation in which a product is brought into the imaging range of imaging unit 506 with the code portion hidden by a finger or the like. In addition, a "pseudo scan input" situation occurs when the code on a product is captured by the imaging unit 506, but the product is passed through the imaging range of the imaging unit 506 at a speed that prevents the customer terminal device 50 from reading the code.

[0064] The classification of the reserved product with classification number 4 is “non-scan-inserted.” A reserved product with the “non-scan-inserted” classification is a product that was added to the shopping cart without performing an operation to position the product within the imaging range of imaging unit 506. This non-scanning insertion can occur, for example, when the customer terminal device 50 is fixedly attached to a shopping cart and is configured to be able to capture an image of the inside of a shopping basket placed in the shopping cart. For example, when the customer terminal device 50 determines based on the captured image that a product has been placed in the shopping cart even though the product's code has not been scanned, it can determine that a non-scanning insertion has occurred.

[0065] The classification of reserved items with classification number 5 is "age verification items." "Age verification items" are items such as alcohol and tobacco that require a store clerk to verify the customer's age before selling them.

[0066] The classification of reserved goods with classification number 6 is "pharmaceuticals." "Pharmaceuticals" are goods that require a qualified person, such as a pharmacist, to confirm with the purchaser.

[0067] The classification of reserved items with classification number 7 is "anti-theft tag items." "Anti-theft tag items" are items that have anti-theft tags attached and require a store clerk to remove the anti-theft tag from the item when it is sold.

[0068] The classification of the reserved product with classification number 8 is a "cancelled product." A "cancelled product" is a product that was once registered but was cancelled by a customer's cancellation operation on the customer terminal device 50. A "cancelled product" is taken from the customer by a store clerk at the time of payment, for example.

[0069] In this embodiment, a reserved product that falls into any of the four classifications of "NON-FILE", "Read NG", "Pseudo-scan input", and "Non-scan input" of classification numbers 1 to 4 among classification numbers 1 to 7 is an unspecified product. An unspecified product is, for example, a product whose registration result is incomplete because it has not been specified which of the products registered in the product master it is.

[0070] The product master is stored, for example, in the management device 10. The product master stores product information for each product sold in the store. The product information for one product includes a number of predetermined information items, including a product code and a product name. Transaction management device 60 stores the product master data acquired from management device 10. Transaction management device 60 uses the stored product master data for processes related to product registration, etc.

[0071] For the reserved item corresponding to the classification number 1 "NON-FILE", the item code is acquired by code scanning in response to the item registration operation, but the item information corresponding to the acquired item code is not registered in the item master. Therefore, it is not specified which of the items registered in the item master the reserved item corresponding to the classification number 1 "NON-FILE" is. Specifically, the customer terminal device 50 may transmit the item code acquired by code scanning to the transaction management device 60, and the transaction management device 60 may compare the transmitted item code with the item code of the item registered in the item master stored in the transaction management device 60. If it is determined as a result of the comparison that the same item code as the transmitted item code does not exist in the item master, the transaction management device 60 may treat the item as a reserved item corresponding to the classification number 1 "NON-FILE" and notify the customer terminal device 50 of the fact. For pending products that fall into one of the three categories of classification numbers 2 to 4, "Read NG", "Pseudo scan input", and "Non-scan input", the product code has failed to be acquired as a result of the code scan in response to the product registration operation. Therefore, it is not possible to identify which of the products registered in the product master the pending products that fall into one of the three categories of classification numbers 2 to 4, "Read NG", "Pseudo scan input", and "Non-scan input", are. Such unspecified products are products that can be released from their status as reserved products (reserved status) by a store clerk operating the monitoring device 80 as described below, and can be registered normally.

[0072] In addition, instead of or in addition to storing the cart information in its own memory, the transaction management device 60 may store some or all of the cart information in another device (such as a file server accessible by the transaction management device 60).

[0073] [Example of basic processing procedure for self-operation] The sequence diagram in Fig. 10 shows an example of a processing procedure executed by the customer terminal device 50, the settlement device 40, and the transaction management device 60 in response to the accounting of one transaction in a self-service operation. Specifically, the processing in Fig. 10 shows an example of the processing of the customer terminal device 50, the settlement device 40, and the transaction management device 60 from when a customer registers a product to be purchased from among products displayed in the store, until the settlement of the registered product is completed.

[0074] Step S1: The customer terminal device 50 acquires information for identifying a store (store identification information). For example, a two-dimensional code for identifying the store may be displayed near the entrance of the store (the two-dimensional code may be output on a display screen, a medium on which the two-dimensional code is printed may be attached, etc.), and a customer who visits the store may scan (read) the two-dimensional code with the customer terminal device 50, thereby allowing the customer terminal device 50 to acquire the store identification information. When a customer who visits the store starts a shopping application, a screen instructing the customer to scan the two-dimensional code may be displayed as a start-up screen, or when a customer who visits the store scans the two-dimensional code with the customer terminal device 50, the shopping application may be started, and a screen informing the customer that the transaction management device 60 is currently connected may be displayed as a start-up screen.

[0075] Also, for example, since a store is identified by its location, a customer who visits the store may obtain location information (GPS information) at the store using the customer terminal device 50 (i.e., the store's location information may be obtained as store identification information). When a customer who visits the store starts a shopping application, location information may be obtained and a screen may be displayed as a start-up screen informing the customer that the application is currently connected to the transaction management device 60. If multiple stores are detected from the location information and one cannot be identified, a selection screen may be displayed to allow the customer to select. Alternatively, a mode may be switched to forcefully obtain a two-dimensional code.

[0076] 11(A) shows an example of a start-up screen of a shopping application displayed on the display unit 504 of the customer terminal device 50. The start-up screen in the figure displays the store name. This store name is displayed based on the store-specific information acquired in step S1. When a customer wishes to start registering a product for shopping, the customer operates a transaction start button BT10 arranged on the start-up screen. In response to the operation of the transaction start instruction button BT10, the customer terminal device 50 transmits a transaction start request including the acquired store specific information and customer identification information to the transaction management device 60. The transaction start request may be transmitted in response to the customer's operation on the customer terminal device 50 as described above, or may be transmitted in response to the acquisition of store specific information without receiving any particular operation. Regarding the customer identification information, the information entered in the name field of the registration form using the customer terminal device 50 during customer registration (when downloading or installing a shopping application on the customer terminal device 50) may be stored in the customer information of the transaction management device 60, but may also be stored in the memory of the customer terminal device 50 in addition to the transaction management device 60. When a store is identified (when the product registration initial screen described below is acquired), the store name, the services being offered (flyer information distributed on that day), and available coupon information may be displayed on a screen (the product registration initial screen or a screen other than the product registration initial screen). The service and coupon information may be acquired from the transaction management device 60 as screen information, for example.

[0077] In addition, the destination information (address of the transaction management device 60) may also be obtained when registering the customer (when downloading or installing the shopping application to the customer terminal device 50) and stored in the memory of the customer terminal device 50. In addition to the store-specific information, the destination information may also be converted into a two-dimensional code, and by scanning the two-dimensional code with the customer terminal device 50, the customer terminal device 50 may obtain the destination information along with the store-specific information.

[0078] Step S2: The transaction management device 60, which has received the customer identification information and store identification information as a transaction start request from the customer terminal device 50, generates cart information for the transaction. Note that in the initial state in which the cart information is generated, the cart identification information, transaction start date and time, and customer identification information are stored, but since this is before the start of the actual transaction (product registration), other information (transaction end date and time, product information (registered product information, reserved product information), etc.) is not stored.

[0079] As described above, the transaction management device 60 stores store information such as that shown in Figure 8 (B), so when it receives store identification information (it also receives customer identification information) as a transaction start request from the customer terminal device 50, if the received store identification information is a two-dimensional code, it acquires the store identification information by referring to store identification information 1, and if the received store identification information is location information (GPS information), it acquires the store identification information by referring to store identification information 2. Note that if the store identification information received from the customer terminal device 50 is store identification information converted into a two-dimensional code, the transaction management device 60 need only acquire it as is.

[0080] In other words, when the transaction management device 60 receives customer identification information and store identification information from the customer terminal device 50 as a transaction start request, it acquires the store identification information from the store identification information received from the customer terminal device 50, and further acquires the current date, issues (assigns) a serial number, combines the store identification information with the current date and serial number, and stores the combined information as cart identification information in the cart information. Also, when the transaction management device 60 receives store identification information and customer identification information from the customer terminal device 50 as a transaction start request, it acquires the current date and time, and stores the current date and time as the transaction start date and time (generation date and time) in the cart information. Also, when the transaction management device 60 receives store identification information and customer identification information from the customer terminal device 50 as a transaction start request, it stores the customer identification information received from the customer terminal device 50 as customer identification information in the cart information.

[0081] Step S3: The transaction management device 60, which has generated the cart information for the transaction, generates product registration initial screen information (screen information of the product registration screen, which is the initial screen), and transmits it to the customer terminal device 50. Specifically, the transaction management device 60, for example, generates product registration initial screen information, and transmits the generated product registration initial screen information to the customer terminal device 50 together with the cart identification information.

[0082] Step S4: The customer terminal device 50, which has received the cart identification information and the product registration initial screen information from the transaction management device 60, stores the cart identification information and displays the registration screen on the display unit. Specifically, the customer terminal device 50 displays the product registration initial screen as shown in FIG. 11(B), for example.

[0083] Step S5: The customer terminal device 50 scans the barcode attached to the product by the customer's operation, and reads the product code. In the figure, it is assumed that the barcode has been successfully scanned. Steps S5 to S9 are repeatedly executed every time the barcode attached to the product is scanned.

[0084] The customer terminal device 50 that has acquired the barcode transmits to the transaction management device 60 the cart identification information and product registration information including the product code obtained by scanning.

[0085] Step S6: The transaction management device 60 receives the product registration information (cart identification information and product code) from the customer terminal device 50 and identifies the cart information of the transaction from the cart identification information included in the received product registration information.

[0086] Step S7: The transaction management device 60 updates the product data in the identified cart information. Specifically, if the received product registration information contains a product code for the Nth item, the transaction management device 60 stores the product code as the product code of the registered product information (registered product N) in the identified cart information, obtains the product name and price corresponding to the product code from the product information, and stores them as the product and price of the registered product information (registered product N). The transaction management device 60 also updates the registered product information (total) in the identified cart information.

[0087] Step S8: After updating the product data in the cart information, the transaction management device 60 generates product registration update screen information (screen information of the product registration screen, which is an update screen to which the registered product has been added) and transmits it to the customer terminal device 50. Specifically, the transaction management device 60 generates product registration update screen information such that the customer terminal device 50 displays a product registration update screen to which a list item of the currently registered product has been added to the registered product list, as shown in Fig. 11(C), for example, and transmits the generated product registration update screen information to the customer terminal device 50 together with the cart identification information.

[0088] The product registration screen (product registration update screen) shown in FIG. 11(C) is displayed on the customer terminal device 50 after "XX bread" is registered as the third product item. In other words, when "XX yogurt" is stored in the cart information as the first item, the transaction management device 60 generates product registration update screen information such that "XX yogurt" is displayed on the customer terminal device 50 and transmits the generated product registration update screen information to the customer terminal device 50 together with the cart identification information; when "XX chocolate" is stored in the cart as the second item, the transaction management device 60 generates product registration update screen information such that "XX yogurt" and "XX chocolate" are displayed on the customer terminal device 50 and transmits the generated product registration update screen information to the customer terminal device 50 together with the cart identification information; and when "XX bread" is stored in the cart information as the third item, the transaction management device 60 generates product registration update screen information such that "XX yogurt", "XX chocolate" and "XX bread" are displayed on the customer terminal device 50 as shown in FIG. 11(C), and transmits the generated product registration update screen information to the customer terminal device 50 together with the cart identification information.

[0089] In response to the registration of one product, a registered product display screen WD1 may be displayed to display the currently registered product, as shown in Fig. 12(A), for example. In addition, in the registered product display screen WD1 shown in the same figure, in response to the target product being available for eating in, a "Yes" button BT1 and a "No" button BT2 are displayed to confirm with the customer whether or not they would like to eat in. In this case, the price of the product is calculated so that the consumption tax rate for the target product is different when the "Yes" button BT1 is operated and when the "No" button BT2 is operated.

[0090] Step S9: The customer terminal device 50, which has received the cart identification information and product registration update screen information from the transaction management device 60, adds the product to the registration screen. Specifically, the customer terminal device 50 displays a product registration update screen such as that shown in Fig. 11(C). As described above, the product registration screen (product registration update screen) shown in Fig. 11(C) is displayed on the customer terminal device 50 after "XX bread" is registered as the third product item.

[0091] Step S10: The customer terminal device 50 accepts a payment instruction operation as an operation by the customer, for example, a touch of the "Proceed to Checkout" button shown in FIG.

[0092] Step S11: The customer terminal device 50 that has accepted the settlement transition instruction operation generates a two-dimensional code. That is, the customer terminal device 50 converts information required for executing the settlement process for the items purchased by the customer terminal device 50 (e.g., cart identification information) into a two-dimensional code. The customer terminal device 50 that has generated the two-dimensional code displays the generated two-dimensional code on the display unit. For example, a code display screen with a two-dimensional code arranged as shown in FIG. 11(D) is displayed on the display unit.

[0093] Step S12: The settlement device 40 scans (reads) the two-dimensional code displayed on the display unit of the customer terminal device 50. For example, the settlement device 40 scans the two-dimensional code displayed on the display unit of the customer terminal device 50 that is directed by the customer within the recognition range of the customer-side scanner unit 406.

[0094] Step S13: The settlement device 40, which has read the two-dimensional code displayed on the display unit of the customer terminal device 50, requests the calculation of the subtotal amount from the transaction management device 60. For example, the settlement device 40 transmits a calculation request (subtotal calculation request information) requesting the calculation of the subtotal amount to the transaction management device 60 together with the cart identification information obtained from the two-dimensional code.

[0095] Step S14: The transaction management device 60, which has received the cart identification information and the sub-calculation output request information from the customer terminal device 50, identifies the cart information of the transaction from the cart identification information.

[0096] Step S15: After identifying the cart, the transaction management device 60 calculates the subtotal amount using information such as the price in the registered product information included in the cart information corresponding to the identified cart information.

[0097] Step S16: After calculating the subtotal, the transaction management device 60 updates the cart information (storing the subtotal (calculated subtotal)), and transmits the subtotal information indicating the calculated subtotal to the settlement device 40 together with the cart identification information.

[0098] Step S17: The settlement device 40, which has received the cart identification information and the subtotal information from the transaction management device 60, displays the subtotal amount on the customer side display unit 405, for example, as shown in FIG. 12(B).

[0099] Step S18: The settlement device 40, which has displayed the subtotal on the customer display unit 405, executes the payment (settlement). Specifically, the settlement device 40 accepts the selection of the payment type. In the case of cash, it accepts the deposit, calculates the amount of change, and, if there is change, dispenses the change and issues a receipt. In addition, when the settlement is completed, the settlement device 40 sends settlement completion information together with the cart information to the transaction management device 60, and the transaction management device 60 stores the transaction end date and time (settlement date and time) for that cart.

[0100] Note that after scanning a product, the customer terminal device 50 transmits the product code to the transaction management device 60 (S5). However, for products scanned within the store (the store where the product registration initial screen was displayed when the customer entered the store) other than the scanned product (for example, products scanned after moving to another store), the product code may not be transmitted. For example, the customer terminal device 50 acquires and stores location information (GPS information) when entering the store (or when the product registration initial screen is displayed). Also, when scanning an individual product, the customer terminal device 50 acquires location information and compares the location information acquired at the time of product scanning with the location information acquired when entering the store (or when the product registration initial screen is displayed). Then, when the two match (or substantially match), the customer terminal device 50 may permit the transmission of the product code of the product to the transaction management device 60, and when they do not match (or substantially match), prohibit the transmission of the product code of the product to the transaction management device 60. This can prevent inappropriate product registration (for example, product registration for a cart generated in another store, etc.).

[0101] When the transmission of the product code is prohibited as described above, the settlement device 40 may display an error message (for example, "Registration is not possible because it is not within Store XX") on the customer display unit 405 after scanning the product. Also, the settlement device 40 may display the above message on the store clerk display unit 410 instead of or in addition to the customer display unit 405.

[0102] The settlement device 40 reads the two-dimensional code displayed on the display of the customer terminal device 50 and then requests the transaction management device 60 to calculate the subtotal amount (S13), but may not request calculation of the subtotal amount for products other than the product scanned in the store (for example, products scanned in other stores). For example, the settlement device 40 refers to the store identification information of the store (it may store and refer to the store identification information of the store in its own settlement device 40, or may refer to the store identification information stored in another accessible device), and when it reads the two-dimensional code displayed on the display of the customer terminal device 50, it compares the cart identification information obtained from the two-dimensional code with the store identification information of the store. The settlement device 40 may permit the request to calculate the subtotal amount if the store identification information included in the cart identification information includes the store identification information of the store, and may prohibit the request to calculate the subtotal amount if the store identification information does not include the store identification information of the store. This makes it possible to prevent inappropriate payments (for example, payment for products registered at other stores, etc.).

[0103] When the settlement device 40 prohibits the request for the subtotal amount as described above, after reading the two-dimensional code, the settlement device 40 may display an error message (e.g., "Settlement cannot be completed because the transaction includes products not from the XXX store") on the customer-side display unit 405. The settlement device 40 may also display the above message on the store clerk-side display unit 410 instead of or in addition to the message on the customer-side display unit 405.

[0104] In the example of the processing procedure in Fig. 10, the transaction management device 60 calculates the subtotal amount. However, for example, the settlement device 40 may acquire cart information from the transaction management device 60 and calculate the subtotal amount based on the acquired cart information. Alternatively, the transaction management device 60 may transmit cart information to the management device 10 and request calculation of the subtotal amount, the management device 10 may calculate the subtotal amount using the received cart information, and the calculated subtotal amount may be transmitted to the settlement device 40 via the transaction management device 60.

[0105] During the settlement process, the transaction management device 60 may check the cancellation status of the customer's products based on the customer information and cart information of the customer, and determine whether or not to issue a warning against fraud. If it is determined that a warning should be issued, the transaction management device 60 may, for example, cause the settlement device 40 to issue a warning notification.

[0106] Furthermore, during checkout processing, the transaction management device 60 may determine whether or not the product information included in the cart information includes any reserved products, and if so, may request the checkout device 40 to provide instructions to correct the reserved products. Upon receiving a request to provide instructions to correct the reserved products, the checkout device 40 displays a message to notify the user that there are reserved products, as shown in Fig. 12(C). Upon confirming the message, the store clerk may perform an operation to release (correct) the reserved products, such as entering a price corresponding to the reserved products or canceling the reserved products.

[0107] [About remote release of hold] The release of the reserved state of the reserved item (removal of the reserved item) is performed by a store clerk operating the settlement device 40 that has displayed a display notifying the user that there is a reserved item, as shown in Fig. 12(C). However, in this case, the store clerk needs to go to each settlement device 40 that is notifying the user that there is a reserved item. Therefore, in the shopping system of this embodiment, the store clerk is allowed to operate the monitoring device 80 to release the pending items of unspecified items included in the pending items registered in the abnormal transaction. That is, in this embodiment, even if a store clerk does not go to the settlement device 40, the monitoring device 80 can be used to perform a remote operation to release the hold state of an unspecified product (hold release remote operation). By enabling such remote hold release operation, it becomes unnecessary to release held items that correspond to unspecified items at the settlement device 40. This allows the hold release of held items to be performed at a stage prior to settlement at the settlement device 40, making it possible to efficiently release held items. In addition, since the hold release operation can be distributed between the settlement device 40 and the monitoring device 80, it is possible to shorten the total waiting time for holding release at the settlement device 40, and it is also possible to improve the utilization efficiency of the settlement device 40.

[0108] The flow of the hold release remote operation in this embodiment will be described below. In the following description, an operation in which a customer has the customer terminal device 50 scan (read) a code (e.g., a barcode) attached to a product in order to register the product is also referred to as a product registration operation. The customer terminal device 50 has a code scanning function that extracts a code from an image captured by the imaging unit 506 and acquires code information. The customer terminal device 50 can acquire the product code by scanning the code attached to the product.

[0109] A customer performs a product registration operation by scanning a code attached to a product that the customer wishes to purchase at the sales floor of the store with the customer terminal device 50. When the product is registered as a result of the product registration operation, the product registration screen is updated so that a list item for the currently registered product is added to the registered product list, as shown in Fig. 11(C).

[0110] In addition, when the customer terminal device 50 of this embodiment determines that a product is an unspecified product among the held products as a result of performing a product registration operation for the product, it displays a hold release guide screen. The hold release guide screen is a screen that notifies the customer that the product that was the subject of the current product registration operation has been treated as an unspecified product, and allows the customer to specify (select) whether or not to request a hold release remote operation to release the unspecified product from hold.

[0111] In the following, first, an example will be described in which, as a result of a product registration operation, the product to be registered is determined to be an unspecified product that corresponds to "NON-FILE" of classification number 1.

[0112] 13A shows an example of the on-hold release notification screen WD51. The on-hold release notification screen WD51 in the figure is an example displayed in a window format arranged so as to be superimposed on the product registration screen. The hold release guidance screen WD51 in the same figure displays a message informing the customer that the product that is the subject of the current product registration operation has been registered as an unspecified product in the held products, and informing the customer that a remote hold release operation can be requested. Furthermore, on the hold release guidance screen WD51, an operation request button BT51 and an operation-free declaration button BT52 are arranged. The operation request button BT51 is a button that a customer operates when he / she requests a hold release remote operation on the spot. The operation-free declaration button BT52 is a button that a customer operates when he / she does not request a hold release remote operation on the spot, but instead wants a store clerk to release the hold when making payment at the payment device 40.

[0113] In addition, the product registration screen displayed in the background of the hold release guidance screen WD51 in the figure has been updated to reflect the results of the current product registration operation. That is, the product list item at the bottom of the product registration screen is displayed as "Reserved Product: NON-FILE". This display of the list item indicates that the product has been registered as a reserved product that corresponds to classification number 1 "NON-FILE" as a result of the current product registration operation. Furthermore, in the case of a reserved product that corresponds to classification number 1 "NON-FILE", no product information associated with the acquired product code has been acquired, and therefore no price information has been acquired either. For this reason, the price is not displayed in the product list item at the bottom of the product registration screen.

[0114] In this case, the customer decides to request a hold release remote operation on the spot, and so operates the operation request button BT51. In response to the operation request button BT51 being operated, the customer terminal device 50 transmits operation request information to the transaction management device 60. The operation request information includes cart identification information and reserved product reference information. If the product to be registered this time is an unspecified product with classification number 1, "NON-FILE," the reserved product reference information includes the product code acquired by the customer terminal device 50 by scanning the code, and the captured image captured by the imaging unit 506 when the code is being scanned. If the product that is the subject of the current product registration operation is determined to be an unidentified product with classification numbers 2 to 4, either "NG to read," "pseudo scan input," or "non-scan input," the pending product reference information will include the image captured by the imaging unit 506 when the code is being scanned, but will not include the product code.

[0115] The transaction management device 60 transfers the received operation request information to the monitoring device 80. At this time, the transaction management device 60 transmits to the monitoring device 80 the operation request information including the product information registered as an unspecified product in response to the current product registration operation.

[0116] When the customer terminal device 50 transmits the operation request information to the monitoring device 80 via the transaction management device 60 as described above, it displays a hold release waiting screen WD52 instead of the hold release guidance screen WD51. 13B shows an example of the on-hold release waiting screen WD52. The on-hold release waiting screen WD52 in the figure is an example of a window format that is superimposed on the product registration screen, similar to the on-hold release guide screen WD51. The hold release waiting screen WD52 in the same figure displays a message informing the customer that the hold release operation is currently being performed and to wait until the hold release operation for the unidentified item is completed.

[0117] Furthermore, the monitoring device 80 that has received the operation request information displays a product information input screen on the display unit 806. The store clerk in charge of monitoring using the monitoring device 80 can understand from the display of the product information input screen that a customer has requested remote operation to release the hold.

[0118] Prior to displaying the product information input screen, the monitoring device 80 may display on the display unit 806 a hold release operation confirmation screen for notifying the customer that a hold release remote operation has been requested by the customer and for allowing the customer to declare whether or not to perform the hold release remote operation in response to the request. The declaration operation for declaring whether or not to perform the hold release remote operation may be performed by operating either a button for declaring that the hold release remote operation will be performed or a button for declaring that the hold release remote operation will not be performed. When the store clerk performs an operation on the hold release operation confirmation screen to declare that he / she will perform the hold release remote operation, the display on display unit 806 is changed to the product information input screen. Also, when the store clerk performs an operation on the hold release operation confirmation screen to declare that he / she will not perform the hold release remote operation, the display on display unit 806 is returned to the predetermined screen before the hold release operation confirmation screen was displayed.

[0119] 14(A) shows an example of a product information input screen displayed on display unit 806. The product information input screen in the figure is arranged with a product code input area AR30-1, a search button BT31, a product name input area AR30-2, a selling price input area AR30-3, a product type input area AR30-4, a warning type input area AR30-5, a confirm button BT32, a delete button BT33, and a scan status image area AR31.

[0120] In addition, when there is no particular distinction between the product code input area AR30-1, product name input area AR30-2, selling price input area AR30-3, product type input area AR30-4, and warning type input area AR30-5, they will be referred to as input area AR30.

[0121] The product code input area AR30-1 is an input area in which the product code of the unspecified product to be released from reservation is input. The search button BT31 is a button that is operated when searching for a product registered in the product master when inputting a product code in the product code input area AR30-1. The product name input area AR30-2 is an input area where the product name is input. The selling price input area AR30-3 is an input area where the selling price is input. The product type input area AR30-4 is an input area where the product type is input. The warning type input area AR30-5 is an input area in which the warning type is input. The confirmation button BT32 is a button operated to instruct the display of an input information confirmation screen for confirming the contents of the information input in each of the input areas AR30 when releasing a hold call. The delete button BT33 is a button that is operated when deleting the registration of an unspecified product that has been subject to hold release as a hold product.

[0122] The scan status image area AR31 is an area where a scan status image is displayed. The scan status image is an image captured by the imaging unit 506 when the code of the unspecified product that is the subject of hold release is scanned by the customer terminal device 50 in response to the customer's product registration operation. The content of such a scan status image indicates the status of the unspecified product that is the subject of hold release when the product code is scanned by the customer terminal device 50. In addition, in the scan status image area AR31, for example, a plurality of scan status images captured at different timings may be displayed. In addition, the scan status image may be a moving image or a time lapse image of still images captured at regular intervals.

[0123] When the unspecified product is "NON-FILE" with classification number 1, the product code is successfully acquired as a result of scanning the code according to the product registration operation. However, the product information associated with the acquired product code is not acquired. For this reason, in the initial display state of the product information input screen, the product code has already been entered into the product code input area AR30-1, but no information has been entered into the remaining product name input area AR30-2, selling price input area AR30-3, product type input area AR30-4, and warning type input area AR30-5.

[0124] The clerk then performs an operation of inputting information corresponding to the unspecified product to be released from the hold into each of the input areas AR30 where information has not been input. At this time, the clerk can determine what kind of product the unspecified product to be released from the hold is by looking at the scan information image displayed in the scan status image area AR31. This allows the clerk to determine what kind of information should be input into each of the product name input area AR30-2, the selling price input area AR30-3, the product type input area AR30-4, and the warning type input area AR30-5. When determining what information to input into each of the input areas AR30, the clerk may refer to, for example, a product book or the like that lists product information available in the store. The store clerk then performs an operation to input the specified information into each of the product name input area AR30-2, selling price input area AR30-3, product type input area AR30-4, and warning type input area AR30-5. As a result, as shown in Fig. 14(A), a state is obtained in which information about the unspecified product that is the subject of the hold release is input into all of the input areas, the product code input area AR30-1, product name input area AR30-2, selling price input area AR30-3, product type input area AR30-4, and warning type input area AR30-5.

[0125] When all the input areas AR30 are filled with information as described above, the store clerk operates the confirmation button BT32. In response to the operation of the confirmation button BT32, although not shown in the figure, an input information confirmation screen is displayed on the display unit 806. On the input information confirmation screen, the content of the information entered in each input area AR30 on the merchandise information input screen is shown, and an execution button for instructing the execution of hold cancellation is arranged. After the store clerk checks the content of the information shown on the merchandise information input screen, the store clerk operates the execution button. In response to the operation of the execution button, the monitoring device 80 transmits a hold cancellation request including the information (simple merchandise information) entered in the input area AR30 to the transaction management device 60.

[0126] When the transaction management device 60 receives the hold cancellation request, it replaces the hold merchandise information of the hold merchandise targeted for this hold cancellation stored in the cart information with the registered merchandise information including the simple merchandise information included in the received hold cancellation request. As a result, the hold status of the hold merchandise as an unspecified merchandise is released and it is treated as being normally registered.

[0127] When the transaction management device 60 releases the hold status of the hold merchandise as an unspecified merchandise and performs normal registration (normal registration) as described above, it transmits a hold cancellation completion notice to the customer terminal device 50. The hold cancellation completion notice includes the information of the merchandise registration update screen changed to a mode indicating that the relevant list item, which indicated that it was a hold merchandise, has been normally registered by this hold cancellation.

[0128] When the customer terminal device 50 receives the hold cancellation completion notice, first, it displays a hold cancellation confirmation screen WD53 instead of the hold cancellation standby screen WD52 that has been displayed so far. FIG. 13(C) shows an example of the hold cancellation confirmation screen WD53. On the hold cancellation confirmation screen WD53 in the figure, a message notifying the customer that the hold cancellation remote operation has been completed and the hold has been cancelled, and a confirmation button BT53 are arranged. The customer can see that the hold release confirmation screen WD53 is displayed and can understand that the hold release of the current unspecified held item has been completed. The customer operates the confirmation button BT53 to confirm that the hold release has been completed.

[0129] In response to the operation of the confirmation button BT53, the customer terminal device 50 erases the hold release confirmation screen WD53. In addition, the customer terminal device 50 updates the display of the product registration screen by using the information on the product registration update screen included in the hold release completion notification.

[0130] Fig. 13(D) shows the product registration screen updated after the hold release confirmation screen WD53 has been deleted. In the product registration screen of Fig. 13(A) to Fig. 13(D), the bottom list item shown as "Reserved product: NON-FILE" in the product registration screens of Fig. 13(A) to Fig. 13(D) has changed to show the product name such as "XX bread" and the price (selling price). Furthermore, the bottom list item of the product registration screen of Fig. 13(D) shows, for example, "Released hold", indicating that the product corresponding to that list item has been properly registered by being released from hold.

[0131] In the case of the mode in which the hold release standby screen WD52 is displayed as shown in Fig. 13(B), the hold release standby screen WD52 once displayed is not erased until the hold release remote operation is completed. In this case, even if the customer still wants to register a product, the customer cannot perform the product registration operation while the hold release standby screen WD52 is displayed and must wait. Therefore, in response to the operation request button BT51 (FIG. 13A) on the hold release guidance screen WD51 being operated, the customer terminal device 50 may transition to the following display instead of displaying the hold release waiting screen WD52. That is, in response to the operation request button BT51 being operated, the customer terminal device 50 may operate the hold release guidance screen WD51 to return to the product registration screen. Then, in the product registration screen, the list item of the held product that is the subject of the request for the hold release remote operation is displayed in a predetermined manner indicating that the hold release remote operation is waiting for completion. Then, in response to the completion of the hold release remote operation, a notification that the hold release remote operation has been completed and the hold of the held product has been released is performed in a predetermined manner on the product registration screen. The notification that the hold has been released may be, for example, a pop-up window showing a message notifying that the hold has been released according to FIG. 13(C). The notification that the hold has been released may be performed by using a sound output, vibration, or the like in addition to the display. In this way, by making the product registration screen appear after the operation request button BT51 is operated, the customer can perform product registration operation even while the hold release remote operation is being performed.

[0132] In addition, when the customer sees the hold release guidance screen WD51 displayed as in Figure 13 (A), they will request that the hold be released when they make payment at the settlement device 40. If the customer decides not to request remote operation to release the hold at this stage, they will operate the no operation required declaration button BT52. When the no operation required declaration button BT52 is operated, the customer terminal device 50 erases the hold release guide screen WD51 and returns to the state where the product registration screen is displayed. In this case, the customer terminal device 50 does not transmit operation request information, etc. to the transaction management device 60. Also, in this case, the list item of the corresponding held product on the product registration screen displayed after the hold release guide screen WD51 is erased maintains the display indicating that it is the held product before the no operation required declaration button BT52 was operated.

[0133] Furthermore, when the store clerk using the monitoring device 80 determines that the hold release remote operation is to delete the registration of the held item as an unspecified item, the store clerk operates the delete button BT33 on the item information input screen. When the delete button BT33 is operated, the monitoring device 80 transmits a hold release request to the transaction management device 60 to instruct the deletion of the registration as a held item. In this case, the transaction management device 60 deletes the held item information of the held item to be released from the cart information in response to receiving the hold release request. As a result, the held item as an unspecified item is treated as having its registration deleted, and is released from hold. In this case, the transaction management device 60 will include information from the product registration update screen in which the corresponding list item indicating that the product was on hold has been deleted in the hold release completion notification that it sends to the customer terminal device 50 in response to the hold release.

[0134] There are also cases where a customer may wish to cancel the reservation of a reserved product by deleting the registration at their own discretion. One example is when a customer mistakenly has the customer terminal device 50 read the code of a product that they did not intend to purchase, but ends up returning the product to the shelf. Therefore, the deletion of the registration of the reserved product as an unspecified product may be specified, for example, by the customer when requesting the remote operation to release the reserved product. In this case, for example, on the hold release guide screen WD51, the customer may be allowed to select either changing to a normal registration or deleting the registration as the hold release, and then perform the operation to request the remote operation to release the reserved product.

[0135] Next, we will explain an example in which a customer performs a product registration operation using the customer terminal device 50, and the product to be registered is determined to be an unspecified product that falls into any of the categories of “read NG,” “pseudo scan input,” or “non-scan input” with classification numbers 2 to 4. In this case, the customer terminal device 50 also displays the hold release guide screen WD51 as shown in Fig. 13(A). However, in this case, on the product registration screen displayed in the background of the hold release guide screen WD51, the bottom product list item showing the result of the current product registration operation displays, for example, "Reserved product: NON-FILE" instead of "Reserved product: Code cannot be read", indicating that the product code reading by the product registration operation has failed. Also in this case, with the hold release guide screen WD51 displayed, the customer operates either the operation request button BT51 or the operation-free declaration button BT52 depending on his / her own judgment as to whether or not to request a hold release remote operation. When the operation request button BT51 is operated, in response to the hold release remote operation performed by the store clerk at the monitoring device 80, the display on the display unit 504 of the customer terminal device 50 transitions as shown in Fig. 13(B) and Fig. 13(C). Then, in response to the customer operating the confirmation button BT53 on the hold release confirmation screen WD53 displayed as shown in Fig. 13(C), a product registration screen reflecting the current hold release is displayed as shown in Fig. 13(D).

[0136] In this case, the product information input screen displayed by the monitoring device 80 in response to receiving a hold release remote operation request may be the same as that shown in Fig. 14(A). However, if the unidentified product corresponds to any of "read NG", "pseudo scan input", and "non-scan input" of classification numbers 2 to 4, the product code has not been acquired by the product registration operation. Therefore, in the initial display state of the product information input screen, information is not entered in the product name input area AR30-2, selling price input area AR30-3, product type input area AR30-4, warning type input area AR30-5, and also in the product code input area AR30-1.

[0137] In this case, if the store clerk wishes to normally register the product as a hold release by remote hold release operation, the store clerk performs an operation to input information into each input area AR30 on the product information input screen. In this case, the store clerk can also determine what kind of product it is by looking at the scan status image displayed in the scan status image area AR31. After inputting information into each input area AR30, the store clerk operates the confirmation button BT32 to display the input information confirmation screen, and performs an instruction operation to execute hold release on the displayed input information confirmation screen. As a result, the hold is released for the unspecified product, and normal registration is performed. If the unidentified product falls under any of the classification numbers 2 to 4, "read NG", "pseudo scan input", or "non-scan input", the store clerk may input the product name, etc., as understood from the scan status image displayed in the scan status image area AR31, as a search key (search condition), and operate the search button BT31, for example, to execute a search. In this case, the monitoring device 80 accesses the product master stored in, for example, the transaction management device 60 or the management device 10, and searches for a product that matches the input search key. The store clerk performs an operation to identify the relevant product from among the searched products. The monitoring device 80 can obtain product information of the identified product from the product master, and input information into each input area AR30 using the obtained product information.

[0138] Also, even if the unspecified product corresponds to "NON-FILE" of classification number 1, it may be possible to search for the product for normal registration. However, the reason why the unspecified product is determined to be "NON-FILE" is that there is no corresponding product information in the product master stored in the transaction management device 60. For this reason, when the unspecified product is "NON-FILE", there is no point in accessing the product master of the transaction management device 60 to search for the product, as in the case of unspecified products that are "NG to read", "pseudo-scan input", or "non-scan input". However, although the corresponding product information is registered in the product master of the store's store controller (which may be the management device 10, for example) or in a product master database installed outside the store, such as the headquarters of an affiliated store (store chain), the registration of this product information may not be reflected in the product master of the transaction management device 60. Therefore, if the unidentified product corresponds to "NON-FILE", the monitoring device 80 may be configured to, in response to operation of the search button BT31, access the product master stored in the store controller or a product master database outside the store, and search for product information of the product that corresponds to the input search key.

[0139] Furthermore, when the store clerk cancels the registration of an unspecified product by remotely operating the hold release, the store clerk operates the delete button BT33 on the product information input screen.

[0140] Next, with reference to FIG. 14(B), another example of the product information input screen displayed on the monitoring device 80 will be described. The product information input screen in the same figure is arranged with an input area AR40 (product code input area AR40-1, product type input area AR40-2, warning type input area AR40-3, product name input area AR40-4, selling price (selling value) input area AR40-5, quantity unit input area AR40-6, tax-exempt flag input area AR40-7, special sale setting input area AR40-8, tax information input area AR40-9), a scan status image area AR41, a search button BT41, a confirmation button BT42, and a delete button BT43. In such a product information input screen, simple product information such as product code, product type, warning type, product name, selling price, quantity unit, tax exemption flag, special sale setting, and tax information are entered in each input area AR40. In the product information input screen of FIG. 14(B), information regarding, for example, tax exemption, consumption tax, special sales, etc. can also be input as simplified product information, so that settings such as tax exemption, consumption tax, special sales, etc. can be made at the stage of releasing the hold on an unspecified product and registering it normally.

[0141] The state in which a product is registered in the cart information as a reserved product is an incomplete state in which the product cannot proceed to the checkout stage as is, and the product must be remedied by changing the registration to a normal one or deleting the registration before proceeding to the checkout stage. In this embodiment, by enabling remote operation of canceling the reserved item at the monitoring device 80, the registration of the reserved item can be cancelled even at a stage before settlement is performed at the settlement device 40. Also, for example, it becomes possible to distribute the release of the reserved item between the monitoring device 80 and the settlement device 40. This allows the reserved item to be released efficiently.

[0142] Furthermore, the information items as simplified product information to be inputted into the product information input screen during the hold release remote operation are considered to be a part of the information items included in the product information stored in the product master. The information items included in the product master include, for example, medium category, small category, cost, standard retail price, size, weight, specifications, content volume, registration date and time, update date and time, etc., in addition to the product code, product name, selling price, product type, warning type, quantity unit, tax exemption flag, sale setting, and tax information corresponding to input area AR30 in Fig. 14(A) and input area AR40 in Fig. 14(B). For example, medium category and small category are information that may be necessary for product management in a store, but do not necessarily need to be used in transactions. In other words, the information items included in the product master include information that does not necessarily need to be used in transactions.

[0143] Therefore, in this embodiment, the information items to be input in the input areas AR30 and AR40 on the product information input screen on which the hold release remote operation is performed are limited to information items required to enable the transaction. This eliminates the need for the store clerk to input more information than necessary when remotely performing the hold release operation, thereby improving the efficiency of releasing unspecified products from hold.

[0144] It is not necessary to input information items corresponding to all input areas (AR30, AR40) arranged on the product information input screen. In addition, in response to input of information items that can identify the classification of a product, such as a product name or a product type, on the product information input screen, for information items that are no longer required to be input or that cannot be input based on the corresponding classification among the remaining input areas that have not been input, the state of the corresponding input area may be changed to indicate this.

[0145] [Example of processing procedure] An example of a processing procedure executed by the customer terminal device 50, the transaction management device 60, and the monitoring device 80 in relation to releasing the hold of an unspecified product will be described with reference to the flowchart of Fig. 15. In correspondence with Fig. 9, the processing in this figure shows the process of steps S5 to S11 more specifically as including processing corresponding to an unspecified product.

[0146] First, an example of a processing procedure executed by the customer terminal device 50 will be described. Step S101: While displaying the product registration screen, the customer terminal device 50 waits for a code scan to be performed in response to the product registration operation, and, in response to the product registration operation being performed, determines whether or not the reading of the product code (acquisition of the product code) by the code scan has been completed successfully.

[0147] Step S102: If the customer terminal device 50 has successfully read the product code, the customer terminal device 50 transmits to the transaction management device 60 product registration information including the read product code and cart identification information.

[0148] Step S103: The customer terminal device 50 receives the registration completion notification transmitted from the transaction management device 60 in response to the transmission of the product registration information in step S102. The customer terminal device 50 uses the information on the product registration update screen contained in the received registration completion notification to update the product registration screen, for example, as illustrated in FIG. 11(C) and the like.

[0149] Products that have been registered by the transaction management device 60 in response to the registration completion notification received in step S103 include products that have been successfully registered in response to reading of the product code, as well as reserved products, such as "NON-FILE" with classification number 1, "age verification products" with classification numbers 5 to 7, "pharmaceuticals," and "anti-theft tag products." If the product to be registered this time is a reserved product (unspecified product) as "NON-FILE" with classification number 1, a product list indicating that the product is reserved as "NON-FILE" is added to the product registration screen after updating in step S103.

[0150] Step S104: The customer terminal device 50 judges whether the registration result in response to the current product registration operation is a registration as a reserved product of classification number 1, "NON-FILE". If it is determined that the classification number 1 is a registration of a reserved product "NON-FILE", the process proceeds to step S108. If it is determined that the classification number 1 is not a registration of a reserved product "NON-FILE", the process proceeds to step S114.

[0151] Step S105: If the reading of the product code is not completed normally in step S101, the product to be registered by this product registration operation will be an unidentified product with either "Read NG", "Pseudo scan input", or "Non-scan input" of classification numbers 2 to 4. Therefore, in this case, the customer terminal device 50 performs a classification determination as to which classification of "Read NG", "Pseudo scan input", or "Non-scan input" the unidentified product to be registered falls into, corresponding to classification numbers 2 to 4.

[0152] Customer terminal device 50 is configured to detect failure in reading the product code based on a captured image obtained by having imaging unit 506 capture an image when reading the product code in step S101. If failure in reading the product code is detected, it is determined in step S101 that reading of the product code was not completed normally.

[0153] Then, the customer terminal device 50 performs a determination in step S105 as follows, depending on the detected state of failure in reading the product code. First, when the customer terminal device 50 detects that the entire barcode of a product has been captured in the captured image, but that the reading of the barcode has not been completed successfully (successful) and a certain period of time has passed, it determines that the product code has been classified as "Read NG" under classification number 2.

[0154] In addition, when the customer terminal device 50 detects that the product code has not been read properly, that is, the product is recognized in the captured image but the barcode cannot be recognized at all and therefore the barcode reading was not completed successfully, it determines that the product is classified as a "pseudo scan input" under classification number 3. Alternatively, if the customer terminal device 50 detects that the product code reading was not completed successfully because only a portion of the product's barcode could be recognized in the captured image, it will determine that the item is classified as a "pseudo scan input" under classification number 3. Alternatively, if the customer terminal device 50 detects that the product's barcode was recognized in the captured image but the product was moving too quickly and the barcode reading was not completed successfully, it will determine that the item is classified as a "pseudo scan input" under classification number 3.

[0155] In addition, when a product code cannot be read, which is classified as classification number 3 "pseudo scan insertion," there is a possibility that fraud is being committed in which a customer simply pretends to scan the product's barcode and places the product in their shopping cart.

[0156] In addition, if the customer terminal device 50 is attached to a shopping cart so as to capture an image of the inside of the shopping cart, it can capture an image of the contents of the shopping cart placed in the shopping cart. When the customer terminal device 50 detects a failure to read the product code, indicating that a new product has been added to the shopping cart even though no attempt to read the product barcode is recognized in the captured image, it determines that the product is classified as "non-scanned input" under classification number 4.

[0157] For example, a customer may move an already registered product within the shopping cart in order to organize the contents of the shopping cart. The customer terminal device 50 may be configured to distinguish between such a product movement and the additional insertion of a new product corresponding to a product code failure as a "non-scan insertion" based on the captured image. When a product code cannot be read, which is classified as a "non-scan insertion," there is a possibility that fraudulent activity is being committed, where a customer places the product in their shopping cart without having the customer terminal device 50 read the product's barcode.

[0158] Step S106: The customer terminal device 50 transmits the product registration information corresponding to the classification determined in step S105 to the transaction management device 60. The product registration information transmitted in step S106 does not include a product code. In addition, the product registration information transmitted in step S106 may include information indicating the classification determined in step S105.

[0159] Step S107: The customer terminal device 50 receives the registration completion notice sent from the transaction management device 60 in response to the sending of the product registration information in step S106. The customer terminal device 50 updates the product registration screen using the product registration update screen information included in the received registration completion notice. In the updated product registration screen, a product list is added that indicates, for example, that the product is a reserved product (unspecified product) that corresponds to any one of classification numbers 2 to 4.

[0160] Step S108: After the processing of step S107, or if it is determined in step S104 that the item is registered as a held item of classification number 1, "NON-FILE", the customer terminal device 50 displays the hold release guidance screen WD51 (Figure 13 (A)) on the display unit 504.

[0161] Step S109: The customer terminal device 50 judges whether or not the operation request button BT51 arranged on the on-hold release guide screen WD51 has been operated.

[0162] Step S110: When the operation request button BT51 is operated, the customer terminal device 50 transmits operation request information to the transaction management device 60. Step S111: The customer terminal device 50 also displays a call-on-hold release standby screen WD52 in place of the call-on-hold release guide screen WD51.

[0163] Step S112: While the on-hold release waiting screen WD52 is displayed, the customer terminal device 50 waits for the on-hold release completion notice sent from the transaction management device 60 to be received. When the on-hold release completion notice is received, the customer terminal device 50 displays the on-hold release confirmation screen WD53 instead of the on-hold release waiting screen WD52.

[0164] Step S113: The hold release confirmation screen WD53 displayed in step S112 is erased in response to the customer's operation of the confirmation button BT53. When the hold release waiting screen WD52 is erased, the customer terminal device 50 updates the product registration screen using the product registration update screen information included in the hold release completion notification received in step S112. When the target product is normally registered as a hold release, the product list of the target product that was indicated as a hold product on the updated product registration screen changes to a state indicating that it has been normally registered. Also, when the registration of the target product that was in a hold state as a hold release is deleted, the product list of the target product that was indicated as a hold product on the updated product registration screen changes to a state in which it has been deleted.

[0165] Step S114: After the processing of step S113, or if it is determined in step S104 that the item is not registered as a pending item of classification number 1 "NON-FILE", or if it is determined in step S109 that the no operation required declaration button BT52 on the pending release guidance screen WD51 has been operated, the customer terminal device 50 determines whether or not a settlement transition instruction operation has been performed while the item registration screen is displayed. If the settlement transition instruction operation is not performed, the process returns to step S101.

[0166] Step S115: When the payment transition instruction operation is performed, the customer terminal device 50 converts the cart identification information into a two-dimensional code, for example, and displays the generated two-dimensional code on the display unit 504, for example, using a code display screen as shown in FIG. 11(D).

[0167] Next, an example of a processing procedure executed by the transaction management device 60 will be described. Step S201: The transaction management device 60 determines whether or not the product registration information transmitted from the customer terminal device 50 in step S102 has been received.

[0168] Step S202: When the transaction management device 60 receives the product registration information, it identifies the cart information indicated by the cart identification information included in the received product registration information. Step S203: The transaction management device 60 updates the cart information identified in step S202. That is, the transaction management device 60 adds the product information in the cart (registered product information or reserved product information) based on the product code included in the product registration information received in response to step S201 to the identified cart information. This causes the product to be registered in the cart information.

[0169] In addition to the normally registered products, the update of the cart information in step S202 registers reserved products that do not fall under classification numbers 2 to 4 ("read NG", "pseudo scan input", "non-scan input"). In other words, the update of the cart information in step S202 registers reserved products whose product codes have been read successfully. The reserved products whose product codes have been read successfully are "NON-FILE" with classification number 1, "age verification product" with classification number 5, "pharmaceutical products" with classification number 6, and "anti-theft tag product" with classification number 7. In addition, although the "cancelled product" with classification number 8 is not reflected in the process in the figure, in response to a cancellation operation being performed on the customer terminal device 50, the transaction management device 60 updates the reserved product information of the corresponding product in the cart information so that the corresponding product is managed as a canceled product.

[0170] Step S204: After the process of step S203, the transaction management device 60 transmits a registration completion notice to the customer terminal device 50.

[0171] Step S205: After the processing of step S204, or if it is determined in step S201 that the product registration information has not been received, the transaction management device 60 determines whether or not the product registration information of a reserved product (unspecified product) corresponding to any of the classification numbers 2 to 4 ("Read NG", "Pseudo scan input", "Non-scan input") transmitted from the customer terminal device 50 in step S106 has been received. If the product registration information has not been received, the process returns to step S201.

[0172] Step S206: When the product registration information is received, the transaction management device 60 identifies the cart information indicated by the cart identification information included in the received product registration information. Step S207: The transaction management device 60 updates the cart information identified in step S206. In this case, the transaction management device 60 adds the reserved product information including the classification number included in the product registration information received in response to step S205 to the identified cart information. This registers one reserved product corresponding to a reserved product (unspecified product) corresponding to any of classification numbers 2 to 4 ("NG for reading", "pseudo-scan input", "non-scan input") in the cart information. Step S208: After the processing of step S207, the transaction management device 60 transmits a registration completion notice to the customer terminal device 50.

[0173] Step S209: After the process of step S208, the transaction management device 60 judges whether or not the operation request information transmitted from the customer terminal device 50 in step S110 has been received. If it is judged that the operation request information has not been received, the process returns to step S201.

[0174] Step S210: When it is determined in step S209 that the operation request information has been received, the transaction management device 60 transfers the received operation request information to the monitoring device 80. At this time, the transaction management device 60 is configured to include in the operation request information the reserved product information that was added to the cart information when updating the cart information in step S207.

[0175] Step S211: In response to the operation request information transmitted in step S210, the monitoring device 80 transmits a hold release request (cart information update request) in response to the completion of the hold release remote operation. The transaction management device 60 updates the cart information in response to receiving the hold release request. That is, when the hold release request includes simplified product information, the transaction management device 60 generates registered product information using the simplified product information. The transaction management device 60 replaces the held product information added when updating the cart information in step S207 with the generated registered product information. As a result, the held product as an unspecified product is normally registered and released from hold. Furthermore, if the hold release request instructs the deletion of the registration of the corresponding held item, the transaction management device 60 deletes from the cart information the held item information that was added when the cart information was updated in step S207. As a result, the held item as an unspecified item is released from the hold by canceling its registration.

[0176] Step S212: In response to the hold release being performed by updating the cart information in step S211, the transaction management device 60 transmits a hold release completion notice to the customer terminal device 50.

[0177] Next, an example of a process performed by the monitoring device 80 will be described. Step S301: The monitoring device 80 waits to receive the operation request information transmitted from the transaction management device 60 in step S210.

[0178] Step S302: When the operation request information is received, the monitoring device 80 causes the display unit 806 to display a product information input screen.

[0179] Step S303: The store clerk performs a normal registration operation or a registration deletion operation as a hold release remote operation on the displayed product information input screen. The normal registration operation is an operation of inputting information in the input area AR30 (AR40) and instructing execution of hold release on the input information confirmation screen displayed by operating the confirmation button BT32 (BT42). The registration deletion operation is an operation on the delete button BT33 (BT43). The monitoring device 80 accepts the remote operation for releasing the on-hold call, which is performed as described above.

[0180] Step S304: The monitoring device 80 transmits a hold release request to the transaction management device 60 in response to completion of the hold release remote operation. If a normal registration operation is performed as the hold release remote operation, the hold release request includes simplified product information based on the information entered in the input area AR30 (AR40). If a registration deletion operation is performed as the hold release remote operation, the hold release request has content instructing deletion of the registration of the corresponding held product.

[0181] <Modification> Modifications of the present embodiment will be described below. The modifications described below may be combined with the above embodiment and other modifications as appropriate.

[0182] [First Modification] In the above embodiment, the reserved items that are the subject of the remote release operation are deemed to fall into one of four categories of unspecified items: "NON-FILE," "NG to read," "pseudo-scan input," and "non-scan input." In this modified example, the hold release remote operation may be performed for predetermined held products that fall into categories other than the above four categories. As an example, for "age verification products," the hold may be released and the product may be registered normally when the store clerk is able to confirm that the customer is of an age to sell the product, for example, based on the customer's membership information or a face image of the customer sent from the customer terminal device 50.

[0183] [Second modified example] In the above embodiment, the product information input screen is displayed on the monitoring device 80 in response to the operation request information being transmitted from the customer terminal device 50, and the store clerk remotely operates to release the hold. However, there are cases where operation request information is transmitted from multiple different customer terminal devices 50 at almost the same time. Therefore, the monitoring device 80 may be configured to be able to display a list of customers (operation request list) corresponding to each customer terminal device 50 that has transmitted operation request information. The store clerk may select one list item from among the list items presented in the operation request list, and perform a hold release remote operation according to the operation request information corresponding to the selected list item. In addition, the list items in the operation request list may be sortable according to a predetermined sorting criterion. For example, the list items in the operation request list may be sortable based on the order of receipt of the operation request information, the order of the number of registered pending products, etc.

[0184] [Third Modification] Furthermore, a list of customers corresponding to transactions in which reserved products are registered (list of customers holding reserved products) may be displayed in the monitoring device 80. In this case, for example, based on past transaction history, list items of customers for whom reserved products are registered frequently may be displayed in a different manner from other list items so that this fact can be understood. In addition, the list items of the pending product customer list may be sortable according to a predetermined sorting criterion. For example, the list items of the pending product customer list may be sortable according to the number of products registered at the present time. Furthermore, the list items in the list of customers who have reserved goods may be sorted according to the distance between the current location of the corresponding customer for each list item and the settlement device 40. The current location of the customer is obtained by acquiring the current location of the customer terminal device 50. The monitoring device 80 can acquire location information measured by the customer terminal device 50 using a positioning function corresponding to its own GPS or the like, for example, via the transaction management device 60. Also, the location information of the customer terminal device 50 can be acquired by, for example, providing beacons at predetermined positions in the store that communicate with the customer terminal device 50 to acquire terminal identification information, and the monitoring device 80 associating the location information received from the beacons with the location of the beacons that transmitted the location information. Furthermore, the list items in the list of customers who have reserved products may be sorted in order of the credit level of the customer corresponding to each list item. For example, the transaction management device 60 stores credit level information that sets a credit level for each customer based on the customer's past transaction history, etc. The monitoring device 80 can obtain the credit level of the customer corresponding to each list item from the credit level information stored in the transaction management device 60.

[0185] [Fourth Modification] In the above embodiment, when a customer performs an operation to request a hold release remote operation on the customer terminal device 50 (operation of the operation request button BT51), a product information input screen for normal registration of the target held product is displayed on the monitoring device 80. That is, in the above embodiment, in response to a customer performing an operation to request a hold release remote operation, a store clerk is allowed to perform the hold release remote operation to release the held product. However, even if the customer does not perform an operation to request the hold release remote operation, a store clerk may perform the hold release remote operation to release the held item. For example, the result of registering a reserved product as "NON-FILE" occurs due to a store-side error in which the corresponding product information was not registered in the product master. Therefore, for example, when a reserved product is registered as "NON-FILE", the customer terminal device 50 may transmit operation request information to the transaction management device 60 even if the customer does not perform an operation to request a remote operation to release the reserved product. In response to receiving the operation request information, the transaction management device 60 can display a product information input screen corresponding to the reserved product registered as being "NON-FILE". As a result, when a reserved product is registered as "NON-FILE", the store clerk can operate the monitoring device 80 to perform normal registration without the customer having to perform an operation to request a remote operation to release the reserved product (request normal registration). In this case, the customer is less likely to feel dissatisfied because they do not have to take the trouble to perform an operation to request normal registration when it is a store defect.

[0186] In addition, in such a case where a store clerk is able to perform a remote hold release operation to release a held item without a request from a customer, even if the customer terminal device 50 sends operation request information, it does not have to display the hold release guidance screen WD51 or the hold release waiting screen WD52 as shown in Figures 13(A) and 13(B). However, in this case, if the hold release confirmation screen WD53 shown in Figure 13(C) were to be displayed in response to the store clerk completing the release of the held item by remotely operating the hold release, the customer would be notified of the completion of the hold release abruptly, which could easily cause confusion, for example. In this case, it is preferable to display a message on the hold release confirmation screen WD53 that lets the customer understand that the hold release was performed remotely by a store clerk, even though the customer did not request it, such as, for example, "The previous item was not registered correctly, so a store clerk handled it remotely."

[0187] [Fifth Modification] The monitoring device 80 in the above embodiment may be, for example, a terminal installed in the back room of a store, or may be a mobile terminal carried by a store clerk.

[0188] [Sixth Modification] In the above embodiment, the monitoring device 80 is configured to receive the operation request information sent by the customer terminal device 50 via the transaction management device 60, thereby acquiring the product information contained in the operation request information. That is, the monitoring device 80 in the above embodiment is configured to passively acquire the product information. However, the monitoring device 80 may be configured to actively acquire the product information by inquiring about the product information from the transaction management device 60 at a predetermined timing, for example, at regular intervals. In this case, the transaction management device 60 may transmit to the monitoring device, in response to an inquiry from the monitoring device 80, the product information that it has received from the customer terminal device 50 and stored therein. Alternatively, the transaction management device 60 may cause the customer terminal device 50 to transmit the product information in response to an inquiry from the monitoring device 80, and transfer the received product information to the monitoring device. Also, the product information may be transmitted and received between the customer terminal device 50 and the monitoring device 80 without the transaction management device 60 acting as an intermediary.

[0189] [Seventh Variation] In the above embodiment, a part of the processing executed by the customer terminal device 50 may be executed by, for example, the transaction management device 60, the monitoring device 80, the settlement device 40, the management device 10, other higher-level devices in the store, or a server device on the cloud. Similarly, a part of the processing executed by each of the transaction management device 60, the monitoring device 80, the settlement device 40, the management device 10, etc. may be executed by other devices. As one of the above-mentioned aspects, the shopping system of the present embodiment may be provided with a thin client system configuration. As an example, the transaction management device 60 or another server may be configured as a thin client-compatible server (e.g., a cloud server), and the customer terminal device 50, the monitoring device 80, etc. may function as thin clients. Furthermore, the transaction management device 60, the monitoring device 80, the management device 10, etc. may be configured to be distributed across multiple computer devices or servers.

[0190] <Overview of the embodiment> [Technical field] The present invention relates to a product sales data processing system. [Background technology] 2. Description of the Related Art A system is known in which customers themselves register products using mobile terminals (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art document] [Patent documents] [Patent Document 1] JP 2018-147252 A [Summary of the Invention] [Problem to be solved by the invention] In a product sales data processing system in which customers themselves use mobile terminals to register products, there are cases where the product registration results are insufficient. For products with insufficient registration results, the insufficient registration result state is resolved, for example, by an operation of a store clerk. It is preferable that such insufficient registration result state be resolved efficiently. The present invention has been made in consideration of the above circumstances, and aims to efficiently resolve insufficient product registration results in a product sales data processing system in which customers themselves register products using a mobile terminal.

[0191] [Means for solving the problem] (1) As described above, one aspect of this embodiment is a product sales data processing system in which a customer registers a product based on a product registration operation using a mobile terminal device (e.g., customer terminal device 50), and when the registration result of the product based on the product registration operation is defective (e.g., when the product is registered as a reserved product), the product sales data processing system includes: an acquisition control means for causing a monitoring device used by a store clerk (e.g., monitoring device 80) to acquire registered defective product information (e.g., operation request information (including cart identification information and reserved product reference information), S210) regarding the registered defective product (e.g., the reserved product) for which the registration result was defective; a display control means for causing the monitoring device to display a screen (e.g., a product information input screen) based on the registered defective product information acquired by the acquisition control means; and a normal registration means for performing normal registration to register the registered defective product as a normal product in response to entry of registration complement information (e.g., simplified product information to be entered in input area AR30 (AR40)) on the displayed screen.

[0192] According to the above configuration, when a reserved product is registered as a result of a product registration operation, a store clerk can perform a remote release operation on the monitoring device 80 to release the product from the reserved state. This allows the product to be released from the registration as a reserved product even before settlement is performed at the settlement device 40. It also makes it possible to distribute the release of reserved products between the monitoring device 80 and the settlement device 40, for example. This allows the release of reserved products (an example of resolving a state in which product registration results are insufficient) to be performed efficiently.

[0193] (2) One aspect of this embodiment is the product sales data processing system described in (1), wherein the improperly registered product is a product (e.g., a pending product classified as “NON-FILE”) whose product information associated with a product code acquired by the mobile terminal device in response to the product registration operation does not exist in a product information database (e.g., a product master) used to manage products in a store, and the display control means displays the screen presenting a predetermined portion of the information items included in the product information as input items for the registration complement information (e.g., input area AR30 (AR40)), and the normal registration means normally registers the improperly registered product based on the product code and the information entered in the input items.

[0194] According to the above configuration, as a remote hold release operation for a held item classified as "NON-FILE," by inputting specified information items other than the item code obtained by the item registration operation into the item information input screen, the information necessary for item registration is supplemented, and the item can be released from hold as if it had been registered normally.

[0195] (3) One aspect of this embodiment is a product sales data processing system as described in (1) or (2), wherein the improperly registered product is a product for which a product code is to be acquired when, as a result of the product registration operation in which the mobile terminal device captures an image of a product code, the mobile terminal device is unable to acquire a product code from the captured image, and the display control means presents the captured image as an image of the product that is to be successfully registered to show to a user (e.g., a store clerk), and displays the screen on which a predetermined portion of information items included in product information stored in a product information database used for managing products in the store are presented as input items for the registration completion information, and the normal registration means normally registers the improperly registered product based on the information entered into the input items.

[0196] According to the above configuration, by inputting specified information items into the product information input screen as a remote operation for releasing a hold on a held product classified as "unreadable," "pseudo-scan input," or "non-scan input," the information necessary for product registration is supplemented, making it possible to release the hold as a normal registration.

[0197] (4) One aspect of this embodiment is a product sales data processing system described in any one of (1) to (3), wherein the display control means controls the monitoring device to display a list of customers whose product registration results based on the product registration operation include the product that is not registered.

[0198] According to the above configuration, the store clerk can use the monitoring device 80 to grasp the situation of customers who are registering reserved items in the store.

[0199] (5) One aspect of this embodiment is a product sales data processing system as described in any one of (1) to (4), comprising a notification control means for controlling the mobile terminal device to display a message informing a customer that the insufficient registration result can be resolved by a store clerk's operation on the monitoring device when the product registration result based on the product registration operation is insufficient.

[0200] According to the above configuration, the customer is notified that the on-hold call release remote operation is possible, and can then have the store clerk carry out the on-hold call release remote operation.

[0201] (6) One aspect of this embodiment is a product sales data processing system as described in any one of (1) to (5), wherein the acquisition control means, when a product registration result based on the product registration operation is unsuccessful, causes a monitoring device used by a store clerk to acquire the unsuccessfully registered product information, even if the acquisition control means does not accept an operation by a customer requesting normal registration (e.g., an operation on the operation request button BT51).

[0202] According to the above configuration, even if the customer does not perform the operation to request normal registration, the store clerk can release the product that has been registered as a reserved product. This configuration is effective in that, for example, in the case of a "NON-FILE" product that has been registered as a reserved product due to a store error, normal registration can be performed without requiring the customer to perform the operation to request normal registration.

[0203] (7) One aspect of this embodiment is a program for causing a computer in a product sales data processing system in which a customer registers a product based on a product registration operation using a mobile terminal device to function as: an acquisition control means for causing a monitoring device used by a store clerk to acquire, when the registration result of the product based on the product registration operation is defective, registered defective product information regarding the registered defective product for which the registration result is defective; a display control means for displaying, on the monitoring device, a screen based on the registered defective product information acquired by the acquisition control means; and a normal registration means for performing normal registration by registering the registered defective product as a normal product in response to registration completion information being input into the displayed screen.

[0204] (8) One aspect of this embodiment is a monitoring device used by a store clerk in a product sales data processing system in which a customer registers a product based on a product registration operation using a mobile terminal device, the monitoring device comprising: an acquisition means for acquiring registered defective product information regarding a registered defective product for which the registration result based on the product registration operation is defective when the registration result of the product based on the product registration operation is defective; a display control means for displaying a screen based on the registered defective product information acquired by the acquisition means; and a normal registration means for performing normal registration by registering the registered defective product as a normal product in response to registration completion information being input into the displayed screen.

[0205] (9) One aspect of this embodiment is a program for causing a computer used as a monitoring device by a store clerk in a product sales data processing system in which a customer registers a product based on a product registration operation using a mobile terminal device to function as: an acquisition means for acquiring registered defective product information regarding a registered defective product for which the registration result based on the product registration operation is defective when the registration result of the product based on the product registration operation is defective; a display control means for displaying a screen based on the registered defective product information acquired by the acquisition means; and a normal registration means for performing normal registration by registering the registered defective product as a normal product in response to registration completion information being input into the displayed screen.

[0206] (10) One aspect of this embodiment is a server device (e.g., transaction management device 60) provided in a product sales data processing system in which a customer registers a product based on a product registration operation using a mobile terminal device, the server device including: an acquisition control means for causing a monitoring device used by a store clerk to acquire registered defective product information regarding the registered defective product for which the registration result is defective when the registration result of the product based on the product registration operation is defective; a display control means for causing the monitoring device operated by the store clerk to display a screen based on the registered defective product information acquired by the acquisition control means; and a normal registration means for performing normal registration by registering the registered defective product as a normal product in response to registration completion information being input into the screen displayed on the monitoring device.

[0207] In addition, a program for realizing the functions of the above-mentioned management device 10, settlement device 40, customer terminal device 50, transaction management device 60, monitoring device 80, etc. in each of the above embodiments may be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium, and the program recorded on the recording medium may be read into a computer system and executed to perform processing as the above-mentioned management device 10, settlement device 40, customer terminal device 50, transaction management device 60, monitoring device 80, etc. Here, "reading a program recorded on a recording medium into a computer system and executing it" includes installing the program into a computer system. The "computer system" here includes hardware such as an OS and peripheral devices. In addition, the "computer system" may include multiple computer devices connected via a network including a communication line such as the Internet, a WAN, a LAN, or a dedicated line. In addition, the "computer-readable recording medium" refers to a portable medium such as a flexible disk, an optical magnetic disk, a ROM, a CD-ROM, etc., and a storage device such as a hard disk built into a computer system. In this way, the recording medium storing the program may be a non-transient recording medium such as a CD-ROM. The recording medium also includes a recording medium provided inside or outside the distribution server and accessible to distribute the program. The code of the program stored in the distribution server's recording medium may be different from the code of the program in a format executable by the terminal device. In other words, the format in which the program is stored in the distribution server does not matter as long as it can be downloaded from the distribution server and installed in a format executable by the terminal device. The program may be divided into multiple parts, downloaded at different times, and then combined in the terminal device, or each of the divided programs may be distributed by a different distribution server. Furthermore, the "computer-readable recording medium" includes a memory that holds the program for a certain period of time, such as a volatile memory (RAM) in a computer system that becomes a server or a client when the program is transmitted via a network. The program may be for realizing part of the above-mentioned functions.Furthermore, the above-mentioned functions may be realized in combination with a program already recorded in the computer system, that is, a so-called differential file (differential program). [Explanation of symbols]

[0208] 10 management device, 40 settlement device, 50 customer terminal device, 60 transaction management device, 70 credit card settlement server, 80 monitoring device

Claims

1. A product registration means for registering a product based on a product registration operation performed by a customer using a terminal device; a display control means for displaying a screen relating to a registered defective product that has been registered in a defective manner by the product registration means; a normal registration means for performing a normal registration of the registered defective product as a normal product in response to the input of the registration complementary information, The insufficiently registered product is a product whose product information associated with the product code acquired by the terminal device in response to the product registration operation does not exist in a product information database used for product management in the store, The display control means displays, on the screen related to the registered defective product, an image of the corresponding registered defective product when it was registered by the product registration means. Product sales data processing system.

2. The display control means displays the screen on which a predetermined part of information items included in the product information is presented as input items for the registration complementary information, The normal registration means performs normal registration of the defective registered product based on the product code and the information entered in the input field.

2. The product sales data processing system according to claim 1.

3. The unsuccessfully registered product is a product for which a product code is to be acquired when the terminal device is unable to acquire a product code from a captured image as a result of the product registration operation in which the terminal device captures an image of the product code, the display control means displays the captured image as an image showing to a user a product that is a target of successful registration, and displays the screen on which a predetermined part of information items included in product information stored in a product information database used for managing products in a store is presented as input items for the registration complementary information; The normal registration means performs normal registration of the defective registered product based on the information input in the input item.

3. A product sales data processing system according to claim 1 or 2. Management system.

4. The product registration method further comprises: a notification control means for controlling the terminal device to display a message informing a customer that the insufficient registration result can be resolved by a store clerk's operation when the product registration result based on the product registration operation is insufficient. A product sales data processing system according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

5. A computer in a product sales data processing system, a product registration means for registering a product based on a product registration operation performed by a customer using a terminal device; a display control means for displaying a screen relating to a registered defective product whose registration result by the product registration means is unsuccessful; A normal registration means for performing normal registration of the registered defective product as a normal product in response to the input of the registration complementary information. A program for causing the device to function as a The insufficiently registered product is a product whose product information associated with the product code acquired by the terminal device in response to the product registration operation does not exist in a product information database used for product management in the store, The display control means displays, on the screen related to the registered defective product, an image of the corresponding registered defective product when it was registered by the product registration means. program.

Images