Shelf device equipped with a mobile camera for product photography, unmanned vending system, and sales management system for unmanned stores

Abstract

Provided is an unattended vending system that can improve the accuracy of identifying removed products by accurately photographing the area where products have been removed and / or replenished using a small number of cameras. **Solution**: The unattended vending system includes a weight sensor that senses whether a product has been removed or replenished for each of a plurality of storage areas on a storage board where products to be sold are placed, a camera for photographing the products on the storage board, a moving device that moves the camera to change the photographing area, a control unit that controls the moving device so that the camera moves to the storage area sensed by the weight sensor, and a product identification unit that identifies the product that has been removed or replenished based on the image of the storage area photographed by the camera. In the unattended vending system, the camera is moved to the area where the removal or replenishment of the product is sensed by the weight sensor and the area is photographed. Since the camera photographs a narrow area, the resolution of the photographed image is increased.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an unmanned vending system and a shelf device used therefor, and more particularly to an unmanned vending system having a function of automatically recognizing and settling a product purchased by a purchaser, a shelf device used therefor, and a sales management system for an unmanned store including the same.

Background Art

[0002] An unmanned vending place has the advantage that no store clerk is required for sales and settlement operations, and its use is increasingly expanding. In order for products to be sold normally at an unmanned vending place, it is most important to accurately grasp the products purchased by users. Unlike a vending machine that sells only a few types of products, an unmanned vending place sells many types of products, and it must be applicable to a situation where the products for sale are changed at any time. Therefore, when a user takes out a product placed on a shelf at an unmanned vending place, a technology for automatically identifying what the product is needs to be applied. When the taken-out product is identified, the unmanned vending place checks the price of the product recorded in the database and proceeds with the settlement process for the purchase price for the taken-out purchaser.

[0003] One of the methods used for identifying the taken-out product is a method using a weight sensor and a camera.

[0004] The weight sensor is installed on the shelf where the product is placed and senses the weight of the shelf. When the weight of the shelf changes, for example, when the weight of the shelf decreases by 100 g, it can be determined that a product having a weight of 100 g among the products placed on the shelf has been taken out by the user. The processor in the unmanned vending place queries the product database in which the weight for each product is recorded and grasps what the product corresponding to the changed weight is.

[0005] The camera photographs the shelf on which the products are placed. In particular, the camera photographs the products on the shelf after the weight has changed. The products currently on the shelf are recognized from the captured image, and the products taken out and the replenished products are identified by comparison with a database that records the current state of the shelf.

[0006] A method of using only one of a weight sensor and a camera for product identification may be adopted. However, a method of using both a weight sensor and a camera together is common for the accuracy of product identification. Either the weight sensor or the camera may be configured to perform the main function of product identification, and the other may perform an auxiliary function.

[0007] In such a conventional method, usually, a plurality of cameras are installed in one unmanned sales outlet. When one camera photographs so as to include all the shelves in the unmanned sales outlet, the resolution of the captured image is low, and the taken-out products may not be accurately identified. Also, in this case, since a large number of products are included in one image, the amount of calculation in the process of comparing both images before and after weight change detection increases, and the possibility of error in the comparison result also increases. Also, when using only one camera, in order to secure a wide shooting area, the camera must be installed at a position a certain distance or more in front of the unmanned sales outlet. In this case, there is a problem that the products are blocked by the purchasers and the camera cannot photograph the products. Due to such various problems, it is inevitable to install a large number of cameras in the unmanned sales outlet. Therefore, the manufacturing cost of the unmanned sales outlet increases due to the installation of a large number of cameras.

[0008] As a method of reducing the number of cameras as much as possible while improving the accuracy of product identification using the captured image, a method of installing one camera for each layer of the shelves arranged in a multi-layer structure is used. However, even in such a method, for example, when the length of the shelf is long and the shooting area covered by one camera is wide, the possibility of error in product identification increases. Summary of the Invention Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0009] The present invention has been devised to solve the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to accurately photograph an area where a product has been taken out and / or replenished by using a small number of cameras, thereby providing a unmanned sales system capable of enhancing the accuracy of identifying the taken-out product.

[0010] Another object of the present invention is to provide a shelf device usable for such an unmanned sales system.

[0011] Still another object of the present invention is to provide a sales management system for an unmanned store that implements unmanned sales using such an unmanned sales system.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0012] To achieve the above object, the present invention provides a sensing means for sensing whether the product has been taken out and / or replenished for each of a plurality of storage areas on a storage board on which products to be sold are placed, a camera for photographing the product on the storage board, a driving means for driving the camera so that a photographing area of the camera is changed, a control unit for controlling the driving means to change the photographing area of the camera so that the camera photographs the storage area in which the taking out and / or replenishment of the product has been sensed by the sensing means, and a product identification unit for identifying the taken-out and / or replenished product based on an image photographed by the camera, and presents an unmanned sales system characterized by including these components.

[0013] The sensing means may be configured to include a plurality of weight sensors installed in each of the plurality of storage areas.

[0014] The sensing means may be configured to include an operation sensor that senses the operation of taking in and out the product by a purchaser in each of the plurality of storage areas.

[0015] The driving means may be configured to include a moving device that moves the camera. The moving device may be configured to include a guide rail and a moving motor that moves the camera along the guide rail.

[0016] The moving device may be horizontally arranged along the storage plate. Preferably, the moving device is arranged along the edge of the tip of the storage plate.

[0017] The moving device may be installed on the upper surface of the storage plate or may be installed on the lower surface of the storage plate.

[0018] Preferably, a plurality of the storage plates are arranged so as to form layers in the vertical direction, and a plurality of the cameras and a plurality of the moving devices are provided corresponding to each of the plurality of storage plates.

[0019] A shielding member may be installed at the tip of the storage plate to shield the camera and the moving device so that they are not exposed in front of the storage plate.

[0020] As another example, preferably, a plurality of the storage plates are arranged so as to form layers in the vertical direction, and the moving devices are arranged in the vertical direction. At this time, a pair of the moving devices may be respectively provided at positions adjacent to both side ends of the storage plate.

[0021] The driving means may be configured to include an angle changing unit that changes the shooting angle of the camera. The driving means may further be configured to include a zoom driving unit that controls the shooting range so that the camera performs zoom-in and zoom-out shooting according to the distance between the camera and the storage area.

[0022] The driving means may be configured to include an articulated robot having the camera installed at its end.

[0023] According to another aspect of the present invention, a sales management system for a unmanned store including such an unmanned vending system is provided.

[0024] The sales management system for unmanned stores may further include a specifying means for specifying each user located in the store, and associating the product confirmed to have been taken out from the storage board by the unmanned sales system with the user confirmed by using the specifying means at the time of taking out the product, and a purchase confirmation unit for confirming the user as the purchaser of the taken-out product.

[0025] The specifying means may include a user device including either a user-owned mobile terminal held by the user or a tag handed to the user located in the store, and a position detector for detecting the position of the user device in the store.

[0026] According to still another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a shelf device including a storage board on which products to be sold are placed, a sensing means for sensing whether the products have been taken out and / or replenished for each of a plurality of storage areas on the storage board, a camera for photographing the products on the storage board, a driving means for driving the camera so that the photographing area of the camera is changed, and a control unit for controlling the driving means to change the photographing area of the camera so that the camera photographs the storage area in which the taking out and / or replenishment of the products has been sensed by the sensing means.

[0027] The driving means includes a moving device for moving the camera. The moving device includes a guide rail and a moving motor for moving the camera along the guide rail.

[0028] The shelf device of the present invention may further include a communication unit for transmitting an image photographed by the camera to an external processor that performs an operation of identifying the product.

[0029] The shelf device of the present invention may further include a product identification unit for identifying the taken-out and / or replenished product based on the image photographed by the camera.

Advantages of the Invention

[0030] According to the present invention, in an unmanned vending system, a camera moves to an area where the removal and / or replenishment of a product is detected by a sensing means such as a weight sensor, and an image of the area is obtained by taking a picture of the area. Since the camera takes pictures of a narrow area, the resolution of the captured image is increased. Therefore, the accuracy of the operation of identifying the product removed or replenished using the captured image is improved.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0031]

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Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0032] Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the drawings.

[0033] FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of an unmanned vending system according to the present invention. The unmanned vending system of the present invention includes a sensing means 10, a camera 20, a driving means 30, a control unit 40, and a product identification unit 50.

[0034] The sensing means 10 senses the taking out and / or replenishment of the products placed in each of a plurality of storage areas on the storage board on which the products to be sold are placed. As will be described later, the sensing means 10 is composed of a weight sensor or a motion sensor. The camera 20 photographs the products placed on the storage board. The driving means 30 drives the camera so that the photographing area of the camera 20 is changed. The control unit 40 controls the driving means 30 to change the photographing area of the camera so that the camera photographs the storage area in which the taking out and / or replenishment of the product is sensed by the sensing means 10. The product identification unit 50 identifies the taken out and / or replenished product based on the sensing result by the sensing means 10 and the image photographed by the camera 20.

[0035] In addition to the illustrated components, the unmanned vending system of the present invention also includes additional components necessary for unmanned vending, such as a settlement unit for the user to settle the purchase price for the taken out and confirmed products. Such additional components do not correspond to the technical features of the present invention, and detailed illustration and description thereof are omitted.

[0036] FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically showing the unmanned vending system according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a view of the uppermost shelf in FIG. 2 as seen from above.

[0037] The unmanned vending system includes a frame F that provides a space for incorporating and displaying the product P to be sold. A plurality of storage boards S are installed inside the frame F. The product P to be sold is placed on each storage board S.

[0038] The storage boards S are arranged in layers in the vertical direction. The internal space of the frame F is partitioned into a plurality of layers in the vertical direction by the storage boards S arranged in a layered structure. In FIG. 2, the internal space is partitioned into three layers. The space on each storage board S is partitioned into a plurality of parts in the horizontal direction. In FIG. 2, the space on each storage board S is partitioned into four regions. As a result, the internal space of the frame F is partitioned into a total of twelve storage regions. In FIG. 2, each storage region is denoted in the order of A1, A2, A3, A4, A5,... from the upper left end region.

[0039] A weight sensor 12 is installed at the lower part of the storage board S as the sensing means 10 in FIG. 1. The weight sensors 12 are arranged corresponding to each of the partitioned storage regions. Each weight sensor 12 senses the weight of the product P in the corresponding storage region. When the product P is taken out or replenished in any one storage region, the weight change in that storage region is sensed by the weight sensor 12.

[0040] In this embodiment, the weight sensor 12 is exemplified as the sensing means 10, but the sensing means 10 may be composed of motion sensors. A motion sensor is a sensor that senses the movement of an object or a person. For example, when a purchaser touches the product P to take it out, the movement of the hand is sensed. By installing motion sensors corresponding to each storage region, the taking-in and taking-out operations of the product by the purchaser are sensed in each of the plurality of storage regions.

[0041] A moving device 32 is installed on each storage board S as the driving means 30 in FIG. 1. A camera 20 is placed on each moving device 32, and each moving device 32 moves each camera 20.

[0042] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the moving devices installed on the shelves of FIGS. 2 and 3.

[0043] The moving device 32 includes a long bar-shaped guide rail 32a, a moving belt 32b installed on the guide rail 32a on which the camera 20 is placed, a moving motor 32d that drives the moving belt 32b to move the camera 20 along the guide rail 32a, and a roller 32c for transmitting the rotational motion of the moving motor 32d to the moving belt 32b. The camera 20 on the moving belt 32b moves along the guide rail 32a by the rotational drive of the moving motor 32d. The moving direction of the camera 20 is controlled by the rotational direction of the moving motor 32d, and the moving distance of the camera 20 is controlled by the amount of rotation of the moving motor 32d. The moving motor 32d is composed of a servo motor or a stepping motor, and can accurately control the moving position of the camera 20.

[0044] As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the moving device 32 is arranged such that its longitudinal direction, that is, the longitudinal direction of the guide rail 32a, extends horizontally along the storage plate S. The guide rail 32a of the moving device 32 is configured such that its longitudinal section occupies substantially the entire horizontal area of one storage plate S. Therefore, the position of the camera 20 moved by the moving device 32 can be set to correspond to any one of the storage areas A1, A2, A3, A4 within one storage plate S as shown in FIG. 3.

[0045] As described above, the control unit 40 controls the moving device 32 so that the camera 20 moves to any one position in the storage areas A1, A2, A3, A4. At this time, the control unit 40 controls the camera 20 to move to the storage area where a weight change is detected by the weight sensor 12. Therefore, the product P displayed in the storage area where the weight has changed is photographed by the camera 20, and an image thereof is obtained. FIG. 2 shows the state where the camera 20 has moved to the A1 storage area, and FIG. 3 shows the state where the camera 20 has moved to the A3 storage area. As an example, the camera 20 waits in the A1 storage area as shown in FIG. 2, and when a weight change is detected in the A3 storage area, it moves to the A3 storage area as shown in FIG. 3. The camera 20 photographs the product P in the moved A3 storage area.

[0046] The product identification unit 50 identifies the product P taken out and / or replenished based on the weight change sensed by the weight sensor 12 and the image captured by the camera 20. Similar to that in a conventional unattended store, for the identification of the taken-out product P, only one of the weight sensor 12 and the camera 20 may be used, both the weight sensor 12 and the camera 20 may be used, and either one of the weight sensor 12 and the camera 20 may be responsible for the main function of recognizing the product P, and the other may be responsible for the auxiliary function. In the present invention, the identification of the taken-out product P using the camera 20 is adopted as the main identification method or at least together with or as a method to complement the identification by the weight sensor 12. The identification using the camera 20 is performed by comparing each image captured by the camera 20 before and after the weight sensor 12 senses the change in weight, extracting the image of the taken-out product P, and comparing this with the image of the product P stored in the database to confirm which product P has been taken out. As described above, in the present invention, a motion sensor may be used as the sensing means 10. Since the motion sensor only senses the movement of things and people, in this case, the sensing of the motion sensor only functions to sense the storage area that becomes the target position of the movement of the camera 20, and only the camera 20 is used for the identification of the taken-out product P.

[0047] On the one hand, in addition to detecting a decrease in weight, the weight sensor 12 can also detect an increase in weight. In this case as well, the camera 20 moves to the storage area where the weight has changed and takes a picture. An increase in weight occurs, for example, when a purchaser tries to take out product P for purchase but changes their mind and returns product P to the storage plate S. In this case, by moving the camera 10 to the storage area and taking a picture of product P, it is possible to identify product P that was returned after being taken out. Therefore, it can be processed as a product that was ultimately not purchased with respect to product P that the purchaser recognized as something they bought. On the other hand, when returning the taken-out product P in this way, due to the purchaser's carelessness, it may happen that product P is placed not in the storage area before taking it out but in another storage area. Also in this case, by moving the camera 20 to the storage area where product P is placed and taking a picture, even if the returned product P is a different product from the one originally placed in that storage area, the returned product P can be identified. When the returned product P is placed among other products in the storage area, instead of the returned product itself being photographed by the camera 20, other products originally placed in that storage area may be photographed. In this case, since the product corresponding to the weight change detected by the weight sensor 12 is queried and identified from the database, the unmanned sales system can identify the product returned in the storage area. For all these various cases, in the present invention, the method of moving the camera 20 to the storage area where the weight change is detected and taking a picture can be usefully utilized.

[0048] Figure 5 is a side view of Figure 3. As shown in Figure 5, the moving device 32 is arranged along the tip edge of the storage plate S, and the camera 20 is arranged to photograph the rear. Generally, the same product P is arranged side by side in the front-rear direction of the storage plate S in one storage area. Among the products P arranged side by side, only the product P arranged at the tip is exposed so that almost the entire area can be photographed. Therefore, it is preferable to arrange the camera 20 as shown in Figure 5 to photograph the product P at the tip.

[0049] A shielding member 60 is installed at the tip of the storage plate S. The shielding member 60 has a function of shielding the camera 20 and the moving device 32 so that they are not exposed in front of the storage plate S. The shielding member 60 has a panel portion that shields the front of the storage plate S, and this panel may be used as a display panel on which information and prices regarding the product P displayed in the storage area are displayed, for example. The moving device 32 and the camera 20 are not exposed to the outside by the shielding member 60 and are protected from external impacts.

[0050] In FIG. 5, the moving device 32, the camera 20, and the shielding member 60 are installed on the upper surface of the storage plate S. According to such a configuration, the camera 20 photographs the product P on the storage plate S on which the camera 20 is mounted.

[0051] FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a modification of FIG. 5. In FIG. 6, different from FIG. 5, the moving device 32, the camera 20, and the shielding member 60 are installed on the lower surface of the storage plate S. According to such a configuration, the camera 20 photographs the product P on the storage plate arranged below, rather than on the storage plate S on which the camera 20 is mounted, that is, the product P in the lower layer. According to such a method, the distance between the camera 20 and the product P to be photographed is slightly farther than in the case of FIG. 5, and it is easy to secure a photographing area. Also, the camera 20 can photograph not only the tip of the storage area but also the middle part or the rear end area. Therefore, for example, even when the returned product P is placed in the middle part or the rear end of the storage area, it can be photographed so that the returned product P is included in the photographed image. Also, since the product P is not blocked by the shielding member 60, the moving device 32, and the camera 20, it is easy for the purchaser to visually confirm the entire part of the product P.

[0052] FIG. 7 is a diagram schematically showing an unmanned vending system according to a second embodiment of the present invention. In the present embodiment and the following embodiments, the same reference numerals are used for substantially the same components as those in the above-described embodiments.

[0053] In this embodiment, the moving device 32 is arranged to extend vertically on the right side within the frame F. As a result, the camera 20 moves vertically along the guide rail 32a. A plurality of storage plates S are arranged in layers vertically within the frame F. In this embodiment, one storage plate S has one storage area. As in the above-described first embodiment, the area on one storage plate S can be divided into a plurality of sections to form a plurality of storage areas, or as in this embodiment, the entire area on one storage plate S can form one storage area. One weight sensor 12 is installed on each storage plate S. The camera 20 moves vertically by the moving device 32 so as to photograph the storage area of the storage plate S in which a change in weight is detected by the weight sensor 12.

[0054] The configuration of this embodiment is suitable for application to an unmanned vending system having a frame F structure with a relatively narrow horizontal width. In this case, a clear imaging image can be obtained for the entire area on the storage plate S even with only one camera 20. Therefore, if configured as shown in FIG. 7, the product P taken out in each layer of the multi-layer structure can be accurately identified even by a single camera 20.

[0055] FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a modification of FIG. 7. In FIG. 8, the moving device 32 is arranged vertically as in FIG. 7, but a pair of moving devices 32 are respectively arranged at positions adjacent to both side ends of the storage plate S within the frame F. In FIG. 8, the space on each storage plate S is divided into two on the left and right in the horizontal direction, and thereby each layer is divided into a left storage area and a right storage area. Two weight sensors 12 are also installed in each layer so as to correspond to the left storage area and the right storage area respectively. The left and right cameras 20 are respectively in charge of the left storage area and the right storage area.

[0056] Such a method is suitable when it is difficult to photograph the entire one layer with only one camera 20 because the width of the frame F is slightly larger than that in the case of FIG. 7, or when it is necessary to divide the area of each layer into two storage areas and display different products P respectively.

[0057] FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a third embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing the driving means of FIG. 9.

[0058] In the above-described first and second embodiments, the moving device 32 is provided as the driving means 30, and the camera 20 is configured to move along the guide rail 32a. In contrast, in the present embodiment, the driving means 30 includes an angle changing unit 35 that changes the photographing angle of the camera 20.

[0059] As shown in FIG. 9, in the present embodiment, the camera 20 is installed outside the frame F of the unmanned vending system at a certain distance, preferably at the zenith. Thereby, the camera 20 can photograph the areas on all the storage plates S within the frame F. However, in the present embodiment, the camera 20 is not configured such that its photographing area includes the entire area within the frame F, but is configured to include one storage area within the frame F. Then, the change in the photographing area of the camera 20 is made by changing the photographing angle of the camera 20 by the angle changing unit 35. For example, as shown in FIG. 9, the camera 20 is controlled to photograph the A11 storage area or the A12 storage area by changing the photographing angle. The photographing angle of the camera 20 is changed so that photographing is performed on the storage area where the weight sensor 12 senses a change in weight, as in the above-described embodiments.

[0060] In FIG. 9, the angle changing unit 35 is shown as changing the angle in the vertical direction, but the angle changing unit 35 can also have a configuration that changes the angle in the horizontal direction, or can have a configuration that changes the angle in both the vertical and horizontal directions. The angle changing unit 35 can adopt a well-known mechanical configuration that rotates the camera 20 to change the photographing angle, and its specific illustration and description are omitted. Two or more angle changing units 35 and cameras 20 of the present embodiment may be provided as necessary.

[0061] Preferably, in this embodiment, the driving means 30 further includes a zoom driving unit 36. The zoom driving unit 36 has a function of controlling the shooting range so that the camera 20 performs zoom-in and zoom-out shooting according to the distance between the camera 20 and the storage area. When changing the angle of the camera 20 as in this embodiment, the distance between the shooting target camera 20 and the storage area is different for each storage area. In FIG. 9, compared with the case of shooting a storage area relatively close to the camera 20 like the A11 area, when shooting a storage area relatively far from the camera 20 like the A12 area, it is preferable that the camera 20 is controlled to perform zoom-in shooting. Therefore, when changing the angle of the camera 20 to the storage area where the weight change is detected by the weight sensor 12, the zoom driving unit 36 adjusts the degree of zoom-in and zoom-out of the camera according to the storage area, so that the image of the product P in the storage area can be ensured to be clearer. The degree of zoom-in and zoom-out may be preset to different values for each storage area. For example, in the example of FIG. 9, taking the shooting of the A11 storage area as the basic value, it may be preset to zoom in 1.5 times when shooting the A12 storage area.

[0062] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

[0063] In this embodiment, the driving means 30 is constituted by an articulated robot 80. The articulated robot 80 includes a plurality of arms 81, a rotation shaft 82 that rotatably connects each arm 81, and a plurality of rotation motors (not shown) that control the rotation position around the rotation shaft 82 of each arm 81. When installing the camera 20 at the end of such an articulated robot 80, the position of the camera 20 can be freely set and moved by controlling the articulated robot 80. Therefore, by moving the position of the camera 20 using the articulated robot 80 so that the storage area detected by the weight sensor 12 is set as the shooting area of the camera 20, the product P in the storage area can be easily photographed.

[0064] The unmanned vending system according to the above-described embodiment of the present invention is applicable to vending management systems for various forms of unmanned stores.

[0065] FIG. 12 is a diagram schematically showing an unmanned store into which the unmanned vending system of the present invention has been introduced. In FIG. 12, reference numeral C denotes the unmanned vending system of the present invention, and T1 to T5 are tags adopted as an example of user devices 122 constituting specific means 120 as described later. FIG. 12 shows a state in which five purchasers each holding tags T1 to T5 have entered a store in which a plurality of unmanned vending systems C of the present invention are installed.

[0066] FIG. 13 is a block diagram of the sales management system of the present invention applied to the unmanned store of FIG. 12. The sales management system of the present invention includes an unmanned vending system C having the configuration of the present invention as described above, specific means 120 for respectively identifying users located in the store, and a purchase confirmation unit 130 for confirming a user who has entered the store and taken out a product as a purchaser of the product.

[0067] The specific means 120 is means for respectively identifying users located in the store, and includes, for example, user devices 122 owned by users in the store and a position detector 124 for detecting the positions of the user devices 122. Here, "identifying" means that the position detector 124 detects the position of the user device 122 in the store.

[0068] As an example, the user device 122 may be a mobile terminal owned by the user. When the mobile terminal is adopted as the user device 122, the position detector 124 can identify the user together with the position of the user device 122 in the store, and a separate payment unit (not shown) can automatically proceed with the payment process for the purchase price with respect to the mobile terminal.

[0069] As another example, the user device 122 may be a tag that is respectively handed to users entering the store. When the tag is adopted as the user device 122, although the identity of the user cannot be specified, the position of the tag within the store can be specified by the position detector 124. The tag is, for example, prepared at the entrance of the store, and the user picks up the tag when located in the store and carries it within the store. This tag provides a means for the position detector 124 to confirm the position of the tag within the store using, for example, RFID. A number of RFID readers are installed within the store as the position detectors 124 that can grasp the position of each tag. Depending on the type of tag, a UWB (Ultra Wide Band) reader may be used as the position detector 124. The user always carries the tag when moving within the store, and thereby, as shown in FIG. 12, the positions of each of the tags T1 to T5 within the store are confirmed by the position detector 124.

[0070] When the purchase confirmation unit 130 confirms that the product P has been taken out from the storage board S by the unmanned sales system C, it associates the taken-out product P with the specific user device 122, thereby identifying the user of the user device 122 as the purchaser of the product P. At this time, the specific user device 122 is the user device 122 whose position detected by the position detector 124 is confirmed to be the closest to the product P taken out at the time of taking out the product P. For example, when the T3 tag is confirmed as the tag at the position closest to the storage area of the currently taken-out product P, the purchase confirmation unit 130 associates the T3 tag with the taken-out product P, and thereby the holder of the T3 tag is recorded as the purchaser. When the user exits the store, the tag they are carrying is submitted to the unmanned payment system provided on the exit side of the store. The unmanned payment system can confirm the breakdown of the taken-out product P associated with the tag by the purchase confirmation unit 130, and based on this, conducts the payment for the purchase amount with the user.

[0071] On the other hand, as another example of the specific means 120, a user position identification device that tracks the current position of a user in a store based on an image of the user may be used. This method is a method of photographing all the people moving in the store, tracking the movement route in real time, identifying the user who has taken the taken-out product P after confirming the user who has performed the taking-out action, and then identifying the confirmed user as the purchaser. At this time, the identity of the user is confirmed, for example, by the identity with the image of the user's face. Although this method has the disadvantage that a large amount of video processing operations must be performed for identifying the purchaser, since it does not mediate through another user device 122, there is an advantage that the convenience of the user is increased.

[0072] As described above, in the embodiments of the present invention, an unmanned vending system installed in an unmanned store and a vending management system for an unmanned store using such a system have been described. The present invention presents a plan to manufacture only the shelf device as an independent object in the overall configuration of such an unmanned vending system.

[0073] FIG. 14 is a block diagram showing the shelf device of the present invention.

[0074] The shelf device of the present invention is configured by taking a part of the overall configuration of the vending management system for an unmanned store shown in FIG. 1 as the shelf device. The shelf device includes a sensing means 10, a camera 20, a driving means 30, and a control unit 40. Of course, the shelf device of the present invention also includes a storage board S on which products to be sold are displayed. Each of these components is the same as that described with reference to FIG. 1, and the specific description thereof is omitted, and the description of the configuration of FIG. 1 is incorporated into the description of the shelf device of the present invention. Among the components of FIG. 14, the same elements as those in FIG. 1 are given the same reference numerals as in FIG. 1.

[0075] In addition, the detailed configurations and modifications of each component as already described with reference to FIG. 1 may be equally applied to the shelf device of the present invention. When manufacturing the shelf device as an independent product, among the configurations of the above-described unmanned sales system, the configuration corresponding to the first embodiment of the present invention described with reference to FIGS. 2 to 6, that is, the guide rail 32a is horizontally arranged at the tip of the storage board S, and the camera 20 is horizontally moved by the movement motor 32d at the edge of the tip of the storage board S is suitable.

[0076] In this way, by manufacturing only the shelf device as an independent product, the function of the sales management system for unmanned stores of the present invention can be realized by replacing only the storage board provided for product display in the existing store with the shelf device of the present invention. That is, the sales management system for unmanned stores having the configuration as shown in FIG. 1 includes a configuration in which a plurality of such shelf devices are arranged in multiple layers, and other configurations such as, for example, a frame or a door. With such a modularized shelf device, the work of remodeling an existing store into an unmanned store can be easily and inexpensively carried out.

[0077] Different from FIG. 1, the shelf device of FIG. 14 includes a communication unit 57, and this communication unit 57 provides means for communicating with an external processor 59 provided separately from the shelf device. The external processor 59 has the same function as the product identification unit 50 shown in FIG. 1, that is, it is configured to perform the operation of identifying a product by an image outside the shelf device. The image captured by the camera 20 is transmitted to the external processor 59 through the communication unit 57, and the external processor 59 identifies the product taken out / replenished using the received image. The external processor 59 may be implemented by a computer or a processor separately provided in the store, or may be implemented by another server or computer connected through a communication network at a long distance.

[0078] On the other hand, the shelf device may be configured in a manner that includes the product identification unit 50 instead of the communication unit 57. That is, by including the configuration of the product identification unit 50 shown in FIG. 1 within the shelf device, it may be possible to complete the identification of products with only the shelf device without another external processor 59. However, even in this case, the sales management system provided in the store should require the information of the identified products. Therefore, it is preferable that the communication unit 57 is provided for the purpose of transmitting the information of the products whose identification has been completed by the product identification unit 50 to the sales management system.

[0079] The present invention has been described with reference to the embodiments shown in the drawings, but these are merely exemplary, and those having ordinary knowledge in the relevant technical field should understand that various modifications and equivalent other embodiments are possible. Therefore, the true technical protection scope of the present invention should be determined by the technical idea in the claims.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0080] 10 Sensing means 12 Weight sensor 20 Camera 30 Driving means 32 Moving device 32a Guide rail 32b Moving belt 32c Roller 32d Moving motor 35 Angle changing unit 36 Zoom driving unit 40 Control unit 50 Product identification unit 57 Communication unit 59 External processor 60 Shielding member 80 Multi-joint robot 81 Arm 82 Rotation axis 100 Sales management system 120 Specifying means 122 User equipment 124 Position detector 130 Purchase confirmation section A1, A2, A3, A4, A5, A11, A12 Storage areas C Unattended vending system F Frame P Product S Storage board T1, T2, T3, T4, T5 Tags

Claims

1. Sensing means for sensing whether the product has been taken out and / or replenished for each of a plurality of storage areas on a storage board on which the products to be sold are placed; A camera for photographing the products on the storage board; Driving means for driving the camera so that the photographing area of the camera is changed; A control unit that controls the driving means to change the photographing area of the camera so that the camera photographs the storage area in which the taking out and / or replenishment of the product is sensed by the sensing means; A product identification unit that identifies the product that has been taken out and / or replenished based on the image photographed by the camera; An unmanned vending system, characterized by including the above.

2. The unmanned vending system according to claim 1, wherein the sensing means includes a plurality of weight sensors installed in each of the plurality of storage areas.

3. The unmanned vending system according to claim 1, wherein the sensing means includes motion sensors that sense the putting in and taking out operations of the product by the purchaser in each of the plurality of storage areas.

4. The unmanned vending system according to claim 1, wherein the driving means includes a moving device that moves the camera.

5. The moving device A guide rail; A moving motor that moves the camera along the guide rail; The unmanned vending system according to claim 4, characterized by including the above.

6. The unmanned vending system according to claim 5, wherein the moving device is arranged horizontally along the storage board.

7. The unmanned vending system according to claim 6, wherein the moving device is arranged along the tip edge of the storage board.

8. The unmanned vending system according to claim 7, wherein the moving device is installed on the upper surface of the storage board.

9. The unmanned vending system according to claim 7, wherein the moving device is installed on the lower surface of the storage board.

10. A plurality of the storage boards are arranged so as to form layers in the vertical direction, The unmanned vending system according to claim 6, characterized in that a plurality of the cameras and a plurality of the moving devices are provided corresponding to each of the plurality of storage boards.

11. The unmanned vending system according to claim 7, wherein a shielding member is installed at the tip of the storage plate to shield the camera and the moving device so that they are not exposed in front of the storage plate.

12. A plurality of the storage plates are arranged so as to form layers in the vertical direction, The unmanned vending system according to claim 5, wherein the moving device is arranged in the vertical direction.

13. The unmanned vending system according to claim 12, wherein a pair of the moving devices are respectively provided at positions adjacent to both end portions of the storage plate.

14. The unmanned vending system according to claim 1, wherein the driving means includes an angle changing unit for changing the shooting angle of the camera.

15. The unmanned vending system according to claim 14, wherein the driving means further includes a zoom driving unit for controlling the shooting range so that the camera performs zoom-in and zoom-out shooting according to the distance between the camera and the storage area.

16. The unmanned vending system according to claim 1, wherein the driving means includes an articulated robot having the camera installed at its end portion.

17. A sales management system for an unmanned store, comprising the unmanned vending system according to any one of claims 1 to 16.

18. Identification means for identifying users located in the store respectively, A purchase confirmation unit that associates the product confirmed to be taken out from the storage plate by the unmanned vending system with the user confirmed by using the identification means at the time of taking out the product, and confirms the user as the purchaser of the taken-out product, The sales management system for an unmanned store according to claim 17, further comprising.

19. The identification means is A user device including either a user-owned mobile terminal held by the user or a tag handed to the user located in the store, A position detector for detecting the position of the user device in the store, The sales management system for an unmanned store according to claim 18, characterized by including.

20. A storage plate on which products to be sold are placed, Sensing means for sensing whether the products have been taken out and / or replenished for each of a plurality of storage areas on the storage plate, A camera for photographing the products on the storage plate, driving means for driving the camera so that the shooting area of the camera is changed; a control unit that controls the driving means to change the shooting area of the camera so that the camera shoots the storage area in which the taking out and / or replenishment of the product is detected by the sensing means; A shelf device, characterized by comprising the above.

21. The shelf device according to claim 20, wherein the driving means includes a moving device for moving the camera.

22. The moving device is a guide rail; a moving motor for moving the camera along the guide rail; The shelf device according to claim 21, characterized by comprising the above.

23. The shelf device according to claim 20, further comprising a communication unit for transmitting an image captured by the camera to an external processor that performs an operation of identifying the product.

24. The shelf device according to claim 20, further comprising a product identification unit for identifying the product taken out and / or replenished based on an image captured by the camera.

Images