JP6929025B2 - Advertising system - Google Patents

Description

The embodiment described in this specification relates to a technique for transmitting product information to a customer who shop at a store.

When a shopper visits a store, there is a system that prints an advertisement for a product that suits the shopper's taste or a product that is expected to be purchased at a later date on a sheet and provides the shopper with the advertisement.

This system generates an advertisement image for a shopper based on the purchase history information of the shopper and special price information such as selling a product at a lower price than usual. The advertisement image is generated by batch processing at a predetermined date and time, and when the shopper visits the store at a later date, the advertisement image is printed according to the request from the shopper.

As mentioned above, this system prints the advertising image when the shopper visits the store at a later date. If the period from the purchase of the product by the shopper to the arrival at a later date is long, the shopper's taste may change, the sales period may end, or the product may be out of stock / discontinued. If the past advertisement image is printed in such a situation, the output content may become obsolete and the advertisement may not be the advertisement desired by the shopper.

The embodiment aims to provide a technique for maintaining a new advertisement without obsolete output content.

The advertisement providing system of the embodiment is an advertisement system that provides advertisement image data to shoppers, and includes a generation unit, an image forming device, and a data control unit. The generation unit acquires the first information which is the information about the product recommended to the shopper, and generates the advertisement image data of the product recommended to the shopper based on the first information. The image forming apparatus prints the advertisement image data. The data control unit stores the advertisement image data generated by the generation unit in one or more storage units, and is already defined in advance when receiving an instruction to print the advertisement image data from the image forming apparatus. If it is in the state of 1, the advertisement image data cannot be provided to the shopper.

It is a figure which shows the system configuration example of 1st Embodiment. It is a figure which showed the internal configuration example of an intermediate server. It is a figure which showed the internal configuration example of the file storage server. It is a figure which shows the structural example of the data used in embodiment. It is a figure which shows the example of the data composition after a shopper purchases a product. It is a figure which shows the data structure example after the recommendation information is acquired and the print file is generated. It is a flowchart which shows the operation example of the intermediate server of 1st Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the operation example at the time of data deletion of the file storage server of 1st Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the operation example at the time of printing of the file storage server of 1st Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the system configuration example of 2nd Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the operation example at the time of data deletion of the file storage server of 2nd Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the operation example of the intermediate server of 2nd Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the operation example at the time of file update of the file storage server of 3rd Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the operation example of the intermediate server of 3rd Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the system configuration example of 4th Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the operation example of the intermediate server of 4th Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the operation example of the integrated inventory management server of 4th Embodiment. This is an example of an inventory list of each store owned by the integrated inventory management server of the fourth embodiment. It is a figure which shows an example of the advertisement image data to be printed.

The system of the embodiment has a server that generates a print file for printing advertisement information (hereinafter, referred to as a print file for advertisement, a print file, or simply a file), and a file storage server that stores the file. .. Further, the system of the embodiment has a product recommendation server that stores and manages data related to recommended products, which is used when generating a file.

The system of the embodiment deletes a print file that has passed a certain period of time. Alternatively, depending on the inventory status of the product, the print file for advertisement is deleted or a part of the print file is updated. Although the print file is deleted or updated for a certain period of time, the purchase history record of the shopper is accessed, the frequency of the shopper's visit is calculated, and the file is saved based on the frequency. It may be implemented to set the period.

Hereinafter, each embodiment will be described.

(First Embodiment)
FIG. 1 shows an example of a system configuration of the first embodiment. The advertisement providing system 100 of the first embodiment includes a product recommendation server 1, a POS terminal 2, an intermediate server 3, a printer 4, a product master server 5, and a file storage server 6. Data is transmitted and received to and from each other via the network 91.

The product recommendation server 1 is a server that receives and stores a shopper's visit date and time and a list of purchased products, and records and manages identification information of recommended recommended products based on the information. Further, the product recommendation server 1 returns the identification information of the recommended product and the like to the sender in accordance with the request from each server. The product recommendation server 1 stores the identification information of the purchased product and the identification information of the recommended product in association with the identification information of the shopper (referred to as the shopper ID). The recommended product is derived based on the purchase history of the shopper, special price information, etc. according to the known technology. In this example, the identification information of the purchased product and the identification information of the recommended product are the JAN (Japanese Article Number) code of each product. The product recommendation server 1 stores a program for executing the above operation in the storage.

The POS terminal 2 is a terminal having a function of registering a product purchased by a shopper and making a payment for the product. The POS terminal 2 registers and setstles the products purchased by the shopper, and further transmits a list of the registered purchased products to the intermediate server 3 and other servers.

The intermediate server 3 is connected to the product recommendation server 1 and the POS terminal 2 via the network 91, and transmits the purchased product list sent from the POS terminal 2 to the product recommendation server 1. Further, the intermediate server 3 receives the list of the identification information of the recommended products transmitted from the product recommendation server 1, generates a print file according to the process described later, and transmits the print file to the file storage server 6.

The file storage server 6 receives the print file for advertisement from the intermediate server 3 and stores the print file. The file storage server 6 then receives the request from the printer 4 and transmits the print file to the printer 4. This allows shoppers to obtain advertising sheets. The file storage server 6 also has a function of deleting a file that has been generated for a certain period of time.

The printer 4 receives the print file from the file storage server 6 and executes the printing. The printer 4 has a display operation unit 41 that accepts the operations of the shopper and the clerk and displays a guidance screen for the shopper and the clerk to operate such as the operation method. The printer 4 also has a card reader 42 that reads a shopper's membership card or the like. The printer 4 transmits the shopper ID read by the card reader 42 to the file storage server 6, receives and prints an advertisement print file associated with the shopper ID.

The printer 4 can provide an advertisement sheet to a shopper who has not registered as a member. In this case, when the printer 4 acquires the identification information (referred to as the transaction ID) given for each transaction from the user via the display operation unit 41, the printer 4 transmits the transaction ID to the file storage server 6. The printer 4 receives and prints the print file associated with the transaction ID. The transaction ID is printed on the receipt or the like at the time of the previous purchase, and the shopper inputs the printed transaction ID.

The product master server 5 records at least the individual names of the products handled in the store, the identification information (JAN code, etc.) for identifying the product, the set price, and the image data of the product, if any, in association with each other. Has a database. This database can be referred to by each server shown in FIG. 1 through the network 91.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the internal configuration of the intermediate server 3. The intermediate server 3 includes a calculation unit 31, a memory 32, a storage 33, a network connection unit 34, a display unit 35, and an operation unit 36. The intermediate server 3 has the same configuration as the conventional computer.

The arithmetic unit 31 is an arithmetic unit such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit). The calculation unit 31 expands the program 38 stored in the storage 33 into the memory 32 and executes the calculation. As a result, the arithmetic unit 31 provides the functions described below in cooperation with each hardware. The memory 32 is a main storage device, and data is directly transferred from the arithmetic unit 31. The storage 33 is an auxiliary storage device that non-volatilely stores the program 38, data for controlling the operation, and the like. The storage 33 has a recommendation information management area 39 for storing data used by the advertisement providing system 100. This storage area may be, for example, a folder or an area managed by a database. In the recommendation information management area 39, transaction information sent from the POS terminal 2, recommendation information sent from the product recommendation server 1, print file identification information (file name, etc.), and data associated with the shopper ID. Is at least remembered.

The network connection unit 34 includes a network interface card and controls data communication with an external device via the network 91. The operation unit 36 is an input device such as a keyboard and a mouse used by the user, and receives instructions from the system administrator and the maintenance person. The display unit 35 includes a monitor and a display, and displays information to be notified to the system administrator and the maintenance person.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the internal configuration of the file storage server 6. The file storage server 6 includes a calculation unit 61, a memory 62, a storage 63, a network connection unit 64, a display unit 65, and an operation unit 66. The internal configuration of the file storage server 6 also has a conventional computer configuration similar to the internal configuration of the intermediate server 3 shown in FIG. Since each unit shown in FIG. 3 is the same as that of the intermediate server 3 shown in FIG. 2, the description thereof will be omitted.

The storage 63 of the file storage server 6 has a file storage area 69 and a file period storage area 67. The file storage area 69 is an area for accumulating and storing a print file for advertisement. Further, in the file storage area 69, the date and time when the print file for advertisement is created is stored in association with each print file. The file period storage area 67 is an area for storing the values of the file storage period and the update period. The storage period and the like can be specified and changed by a system administrator or the like via the operation unit 66.

Since the other product recommendation server 1 and the product master server 5 have the same configuration as the servers shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, drawings and description thereof will be omitted. It is assumed that the product recommendation server 1 has a calculation unit 11, a memory 12, a storage 13, a network connection unit 14, a display unit 15, and an operation unit 16. Further, it is assumed that the product master server 5 has a calculation unit 51, a memory 52, a storage 53, a network connection unit 54, a display unit 55, and an operation unit 56.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of data configuration stored in the recommendation information management area 39, and FIGS. 5 and 6 show how the data is stored in the recommendation information management area 39 according to the operation described later. It is a figure which showed the transition of.

In the recommendation information management area 39, a transaction ID, transaction information, and recommendation information that uniquely define a transaction are stored in association with each other.

The transaction information includes transaction date and time, a shopper ID that uniquely defines the shopper, a receipt recommendation ID, and JAN code (JAN code list) data for each of the one or more products purchased by the shopper. The recommendation information includes each data of the JAN code list of the recommended product derived by the product recommendation server 1, the name of the print file for advertisement (recommendation print file), and the issue recommendation ID that uniquely defines the recommendation information. 5 and 6 will be referred to in the explanation of the following flowchart.

The operation of the advertisement providing system 100 will be described with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS. 7 to 9. Note that FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an operation example of the intermediate server 3, and FIGS. 8 and 9 are operation examples of the file storage server 6. Each of these flowcharts is realized by the arithmetic unit shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 executing a program and cooperating with each hardware.

When a certain shopper's product registration and settlement are performed on the POS terminal 2, a list of JAN codes of the products registered at that time and transaction information associated with the shopper ID are generated. At this time, if the shopper ID is not entered because the shopper's membership card is not presented at the time of product registration, the transaction information is recorded with "null" indicating that there is no entry. Will be generated. After that, the POS terminal 2 transmits the generated transaction information to the intermediate server 3.

The calculation unit 31 of the intermediate server 3 waits until the transaction information arrives (the loop of ACT001-No). When the transaction information arrives (ACT001-Yes), the calculation unit 31 assigns a unique transaction ID to the transaction information received via the network connection unit 34 (ACT002) and records it in its own recommendation information management area 39. (ACT003). The data state at this time is as shown in FIG. The transaction ID is transmitted to the POS terminal 2 and printed on the receipt given to the shopper. It should be noted that the POS terminal 2 may assign a transaction ID, print it on a receipt, and the intermediate server 3 may receive the transaction ID.

The calculation unit 31 operates the network connection unit 34 to transmit transaction information including the shopper ID, the JAN code list of the purchased product, and the transaction ID to the product recommendation server 1 (ACT004), and receives the reply. Wait until (ACT005-No loop).

The product recommendation server 1 analyzes what should be recommended to the customer with the shopper ID based on the received transaction information. The product recommendation server 1 generates a JAN code list (recommendation information list) for each product that should be recommended to the shopper, assigns the transaction ID obtained from the intermediate server 3 to the recommendation information list, and assigns the transaction ID to the recommendation information list. Send to. The product recommendation server 1 generates a recommendation information list even if there is no shopper ID, and sends it to the intermediate server 3 together with the transaction ID.

When the arithmetic unit 31 of the intermediate server 3 receives the recommendation information list (ACT005-Yes), the calculation unit 31 assigns a unique issuance recommendation ID to the recommendation information (ACT006). The intermediate server 3 adds the returned information and the issue recommendation ID to the record associated with the corresponding transaction ID (ACT007).

The calculation unit 31 further arranges recommended products like a leaflet based on the recommendation information list, and generates a print file for advertisement (ACT008). Further, the calculation unit 31 assigns a file name for identifying the print file, and adds this file name to the record. The data state at this time is as shown in FIG.

The generation of the print file for the advertisement of ACT008 will be described. The calculation unit 31 transmits each of the JAN codes included in the recommendation information to the product master server 5. The number of JAN codes to be transmitted is limited to the number that can be arranged on the paper, and one or more are transmitted. The calculation unit 31 receives the product name, the set price, and the image data of the product, if any, from the product master server 5 corresponding to the JAN code. If there are multiple data, multiple data corresponding to each JAN code will be received. The calculation unit 31 creates image data that combines a product name, a set price, and a product image for one product based on the layout data defined in advance, and creates this for each product. The calculation unit 31 combines these based on the layout data defined in advance to create a print file in which a plurality of product information is arranged.

The arithmetic unit 31 further encodes the issued recommendation ID into a machine-readable mark such as a two-dimensional bar code that can scan and decode (ACT009). The calculation unit 31 acquires a print file for advertisement created by ACT008, synthesizes it with a machine-readable mark, and executes overwriting and saving of the print file (ACT010). This completes the print file for the advertisement to be provided to the shopper. The file generated here is at least a printable file. A format that can be displayed by a general-purpose display program may be used.

The calculation unit 31 transmits the generated print file to the file storage server 6 together with the transaction ID, the shopper ID, and the date and time when the print file was generated (ACT011). The file storage server 6 stores the print file, the transaction ID, and the shopper ID in the file storage area 69 in association with the date and time data when the print file is generated. In addition, the transaction ID and the shopper ID may be included in the file name and associated with each other.

Next, an operation example when the data of the file storage server 6 is deleted will be described with reference to FIG.

The calculation unit 61 of the file storage server 6 waits until a predetermined time (for example, one day) elapses from the previous execution (loop of ACT101-No). With the ACT101, it is possible to control, for example, once a day at 7:00 am. The system administrator or the like can specify the predetermined time, execution time, and the like.

After a lapse of a predetermined time (ACT101-Yes), the calculation unit 61 acquires information on the date and time when the file was generated (or saved) and the retention period defined in the file period retention area 67. , These are added up (ACT102). The calculation unit 61 determines whether the total date and time information has passed the current date and time, that is, is a date and time earlier than the current date and time (ACT103). If it has passed (ACT103-Yes), the calculation unit 61 deletes the print file (ACT104). If it has not elapsed, that is, if the total date and time information is a date and time in the future from the current date and time (ACT103-No), ACT104 is skipped and the file remains as it is. The operations of ACT 102 to ACT 104 are performed on all the print files in the file storage area 69 (loop of ACT 105-No).

Subsequently, an operation example of the file storage server 6 when a print instruction is received from the printer 4 will be described with reference to FIG. When the transaction ID is input by the shopper or the like via the display operation unit 41, the printer 4 transmits the transaction ID to the file storage server 6 as a print instruction. The shopper may hold the membership card over the card reader 42, and the printer 4 may transmit the shopper ID obtained thereby.

The calculation unit 61 of the file storage server 6 waits until the print instruction arrives (the loop of ACT201-No). When the print instruction arrives (ACT201-Yes), the calculation unit 61 searches the file storage area 69 for the print file corresponding to the received transaction ID or shopper ID, and determines whether or not there is a specified file. Judgment (ACT202). If there is a specified file (ACT202-Yes), the calculation unit 61 transmits the file to the printer 4 (ACT203). The printer 4 prints the received file.

On the other hand, when the specified file does not exist (ACT202-No), the calculation unit 61 transmits a telegram indicating that the corresponding file does not exist to the printer 4 (ACT204). The printer 4 that has received the telegram displays a message to the user indicating that the file does not exist. At this time, the printer 4 may simply display a message indicating that the corresponding data does not exist, or may display a message indicating that the data has been deleted because the data is old.

In the above example, an implementation example of deleting a print file for an advertisement after a certain period of time has been described, but there are other implementation examples that make it impossible to provide an advertisement to shoppers. For example, a method of saving (moving) a print file that cannot be provided to another storage area may be adopted. Further, for example, the system has a table in which the print file name and the flag data that can be provided / cannot be provided are associated with each other. The file storage server 6 rewrites the flag data from available to unprovidable for obsolete advertisements. When a print instruction is given from the printer 4, the file storage server 6 refers to this table and controls so that printing is not possible if the table cannot be provided. These are merely examples, and provision / non-provision may be controlled by using various methods other than these.

In this way, by deleting the old advertisement image, it is possible to prevent the output content from becoming obsolete.

(Second Embodiment)
In the second embodiment, in addition to the above-described first embodiment, an implementation example in which it is determined whether or not the recommended product in the print file is in stock and the file is deleted when the recommended product is out of stock will be described.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a system configuration example of the second embodiment. The advertisement providing system 100A of the second embodiment includes an inventory management server 7 that records the inventory amount of each product in the store, in addition to the configuration shown in the first embodiment above. The internal configuration of the inventory management server 7 is the same as the configuration shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, and is a device having the same configuration as a normal computer. It is assumed that the inventory management server 7 has a calculation unit 71, a memory 72, a storage 73, a network connection unit 74, a display unit 75, and an operation unit 76.

Like the product master server 5, the inventory management server 7 records and manages the names and identification information (JAN codes) of the products handled at the store, but in addition to this, the corresponding inventory amount is also recorded. .. This inventory is updated at least once a day. In the present embodiment, the update method is updated by the inventory manager of the store by the operation unit 76 of the inventory management server 7. It should be noted that the identification information attached to each product such as RFID (radio frequency identifier) may be updated in real time by checking at the time of receipt / shipment from the store.

The operation of the second embodiment will be described. After the payment is made on the POS terminal 2, the operation of generating, saving, and printing the print file by the payment is the same operation as that of the first embodiment (see FIGS. 7 and 9). The file storage server 6 of the second embodiment makes an inquiry to the intermediate server 3 regarding the deletion of the file associated with the transaction ID together with the transaction ID. The file storage server 6 controls the operation of deleting / not deleting according to the reply content.

The intermediate server 3 that has received the inquiry message inquires the inventory management server 7 whether or not the JAN code in the recommendation information associated with the transaction ID is in stock. The intermediate server 3 sends a reply message as to whether or not the file should be deleted to the file storage server 6 according to this result. These operations will be described with reference to FIGS. 11 and 12.

FIG. 11 is an operation example when the data of the file storage server 6 is deleted in the second embodiment. The calculation unit 61 of the file storage server 6 determines whether the time has reached a fixed time, for example, once a day at 7:00 am (ACT301). This operation is the same as ACT101 in FIG. After the lapse of a predetermined time (ACT301-Yes), the calculation unit 61 acquires one registered transaction ID and transmits the transaction ID to the intermediate server 3 together with the request message for the deletion determination (ACT302). The calculation unit 61 receives the reply message from the intermediate server 3 and determines whether or not this message is a message to the effect that the file should be deleted (hereinafter referred to as a deletion instruction message) (ACT303). In the case of a deletion instruction message (ACT303-Yes), the calculation unit 61 deletes the corresponding print file (ACT304). On the other hand, if it is not a deletion instruction message (ACT303-No), the calculation unit 61 skips the ACT 304 and does not delete the file. The calculation unit 61 performs the operations of ACT 302 to ACT 304 for all transaction IDs (that is, all print files) (loop of ACT305-No).

FIG. 12 is an operation example of the intermediate server 3 in the second embodiment. The calculation unit 31 of the intermediate server 3 waits until the request message for the deletion determination is received from the file storage server 6 (loop of ACT401-No). Upon receiving the deletion determination request message (ACT401-Yes), the calculation unit 31 searches the recommendation information management area 39 with the transaction ID received together with the deletion determination request message. As a result, the calculation unit 31 extracts the JAN code list in the recommendation information recorded in association with the transaction ID (ACT402). The calculation unit 31 inquires the inventory management server 7 about the presence or absence of inventory (ACT403) for each of the extracted products in the JAN code list, and waits until a reply is received (loop of ACT404-No).

After that, the calculation unit 31 receives a reply message from the inventory management server 7 (ACT404-Yes). The reply message received here is data in which the product information and the information on the availability of the product are associated with each other. When even one product that is out of stock exists (ACT405-Yes), the calculation unit 31 transmits a deletion instruction message to the file storage server 6 (ACT406). On the other hand, when all the products are in stock (ACT405-Yes), the calculation unit 31 transmits a telegram other than the deletion instruction telegram to the file storage server 6 (ACT407).

Similar to the first embodiment, in this example as well, aspects other than deletion may be applied. Further, as in the first embodiment, the flag data may be used to control whether or not the advertisement can be provided. In this case, for the print file that could not be provided in the previous startup (the startup of the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 11 and 12), if the inventory has been restored by this startup, the flag value of the print file can be provided. You may reset it to the one. By doing so, it is possible to control the provision of more detailed information according to the presence or absence of inventory.

According to the second embodiment, it is possible to provide the user with an advertisement considering the presence or absence of inventory.

(Third Embodiment)
In the second embodiment, the implementation example of deleting the print file when there is an out-of-stock product has been described, but in the third embodiment, when there is an out-of-stock product, the information about the product is deleted. Create a new print file of the state. Since the system configuration is the same as that of the second embodiment, the description thereof will be omitted (see FIG. 10). Further, since the operations of generating and saving the print file and printing the print file are the same as those of the first and second embodiments, the description thereof will be omitted (see FIGS. 7 and 9).

FIG. 13 shows an operation example of the file storage server 6 of the third embodiment. The operations of the ACT 501 and ACT 502 are the same as those of the ACT 301 and ACT 302 of the second embodiment, but the telegram transmitted to the intermediate server 3 is not a request message for deletion determination but a message requesting determination of whether to update. Become.

When the arithmetic unit 61 of the file storage server 6 receives the updated print file together with the specified message to be updated (ACT503-Yes), the calculation unit 61 updates the corresponding print file with the received file (ACT504). When the specified message not to be updated is received (ACT503-No), ACT504 is skipped. Repeating ACT502 to ACT504 until all the print files are checked is the same as in the second embodiment (ACT505-No loop).

An operation example of the intermediate server 3 of the third embodiment is shown in FIG. The operations of ACT601 to ACT605 are the same as the operations of ACT401 to ACT405 of the second embodiment shown in FIG. The received telegram in ACT601 is a telegram requesting an update determination. Further, the operation when all the products are in stock (ACT607 after ACT605-No) is the same as the operation of ACT407 shown in FIG.

In ACT605, when there is a product out of stock (ACT605-Yes), the calculation unit 31 of the intermediate server 3 excludes the portion describing the recommended product from the paper surface of the print file (ACT610). The calculation unit 31 is the information of the product that is not reflected on the paper surface of the print file in the recommended information list in the excluded area on the paper surface due to the paper surface layout and the like, and the information of the product that is in stock. Combine (images) (ACT611). As a result, out-of-stock products are replaced with other recommended products. At this time, the calculation unit 31 replaces the image of the product information by performing an inventory inquiry operation (ACT603) to the inventory management server 7 and an inquiry operation to the product master server 5 (see the operation explanation of ACT008 in FIG. 7). conduct.

The above operation is an operation of updating and editing the print file, but may be an operation of newly generating a print file in a state in which the data of the corresponding product is excluded or in a replaced state. Alternatively, an operation of receiving an existing print file from the file storage server 6 and re-editing the print file may be performed.

The calculation unit 31 returns the updated print file to the file storage server 6 (ACT612).

According to the third embodiment, it is possible to consider the presence or absence of inventory and provide advertisements as much as possible.

(Fourth Embodiment)
In the third embodiment, when there is a product that is out of stock, an implementation example of creating a new print file by deleting the information about the product or replacing it with another recommended product has been described. In the fourth embodiment, when there is a product that is out of stock, a new print file is created in which the information about the product and the information of other stores that have the product in stock are added. Since the operations of generating and saving the print file and printing the print file are the same as those of the first to third embodiments, the description thereof will be omitted (see FIGS. 7 and 9). Further, since the operation of updating the print file is the same as that of the third embodiment, the description thereof will be omitted (see FIG. 13).

FIG. 15 shows an example of the system configuration of the fourth embodiment. The integrated inventory management system 300 of the fourth embodiment includes an integrated inventory management server 200 and advertisement providing systems 100A to 100E implemented in different stores. The advertisement providing systems 100A to 100E have the same configuration as that shown in the second embodiment above (see FIG. 10). Further, the advertisement providing systems 100A to 100E shown in FIG. 15 are merely examples, and one or a plurality of advertisement providing systems may actually be included in the integrated inventory management system 300. Further, the functions described below of the integrated inventory management server 200 may be provided by any of the inventory management servers of the advertisement providing systems 100A to 100E shown in FIG.

Hereinafter, the advertisement providing system 100A may be used for convenience, but it is assumed that the advertisement providing system of each store can perform the same operation with the same configuration.

The advertisement providing system 100A includes an inventory management server 7 having the same internal configuration as those in FIGS. 2 and 3. The integrated inventory management server 200 is connected to the inventory management server 7 of the advertisement providing system 100A by some kind of telecommunication line to transmit and receive data.

Since the internal configuration of the integrated inventory management server 200 is the same as the server configurations shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the description thereof will be omitted. The integrated inventory management server 200 will be described as having a calculation unit 201, a memory 202, a storage 203, a network connection unit 204, a display unit 205, and an operation unit 206.

The integrated inventory management server 200 records in the storage 203 data including product identification information (JAN code, etc.) and corresponding inventory amount information transmitted from the advertisement providing systems 100A to 100E of each store. Manage product inventory by store. The inventory information of the storage 203 is updated at least once a day. The update method is performed by communicating with the inventory management server of the advertisement providing system of each store via some kind of telecommunication line. For example, when the inventory amount of the inventory management server is updated as in the second embodiment, the inventory information of the storage 203 may be updated in conjunction with it.

The integrated inventory management server 200 sets the store information of each store in advance and stores it in the storage 203. The store information referred to here includes a store ID, a store name, location information such as a store address and GPS coordinates, a map image file, and a two-dimensional bar code image file for displaying these information on a mobile terminal. Information. These shall be created separately by the server administrator. The advertisement providing system may have the store information of the store concerned and may further store the store information of other stores. With such a configuration, the integrated inventory management server 200 can manage the store information in association with the data including the inventory amount information.

An operation example of the intermediate server 3 of the fourth embodiment is shown in FIG. As described above, the intermediate server 3 is an intermediate server of the advertisement providing system 100A. The advertisement providing system 100A functions for one store (here, store A). In addition, a printer 4 operated and used by shoppers and the like is installed in the store A.

The operations of ACT 701 to ACT 705 are the same as the operations of ACT 401 to ACT 405 shown in FIG. 12 and ACT 601 to ACT 605 shown in FIG. Further, the operation when all the products are in stock (ACT707 after ACT705-No) is the same as the operation of ACT407 shown in FIG. 12 and ACT607 shown in FIG. Therefore, these explanations are omitted.

In ACT705, when there is an out-of-stock product (ACT705-Yes), the calculation unit 31 of the intermediate server 3 refers to each of the out-of-stock products with respect to the integrated inventory management server 200 at another store (a store other than store A). Inquires whether or not the product is in stock (ACT706) and waits for a reply (ACT710-No loop).

After that, the calculation unit 31 receives a reply message from the integrated inventory management server 200 (ACT710-Yes). The reply message received here is data in which the product identification information (JAN code, etc.) is associated with the store information of another store in which the product is in stock. The calculation unit 31 incorporates and combines the store information together with the information of the products in stock in the other store in the area on the paper surface of the print file (ACT711). As a result, when there is an out-of-stock product in the store, information on another store in which the product is in stock can be displayed. However, the information of other stores is not limited to one store, and may be information of a plurality of different stores.

If the product is out of stock at any of the stores, the calculation unit 31 excludes the information of the product or replaces it with the information of another recommended product by the method shown in ACT610 to ACT612 of FIG. You may. Further, for a product in stock in the store A, the store information of the store A may be added to the information about the product and displayed.

The calculation unit 31 returns the updated print file to the file storage server 6 (ACT712).

The integrated inventory management server 200 searches for inventory information of other stores in response to an inquiry from ACT706, and extracts store information of other stores in stock in order of proximity to the store A. After that, the store information of the nearest store is associated with the information of the product and returned. Alternatively, a plurality of store information may be associated and replied in order of closeness so as to fit in the area on the paper surface of the print file. This operation will be described with reference to FIGS. 17 and 18.

An operation example of the integrated inventory management server 200 is shown in FIG. In ACT801, the calculation unit 201 waits until the inquiry message is received from the intermediate server 3 (the loop of ACT801-No). Upon receiving the inquiry telegram (ACT801-Yes), the calculation unit 201 searches the inventory information of another store for the product from the storage 203 (ACT802) and confirms whether or not the product is in stock (ACT803). When the calculation unit 201 has inventory in another store (ACT803-Yes), the calculation unit 201 associates the store information of another store close to the store A with the product information (ACT804) and returns it to the intermediate server 3 (ACT805).

In the ACT 804, the calculation unit 201 determines by comparing the distances between stores using the position information included in the store information. As a result, for each store, the order of other stores close to the store can be determined. Further, the order of proximity of the stores may be set in advance for each store on the integrated inventory management server 200.

On the other hand, when the other store is out of stock (ACT803-No), the calculation unit 201 replies that the other store is out of stock (ACT806).

FIG. 18 is an inventory list formed by the operation of the ACT 803. The inventory list 850 of each store in FIG. 18 is configured in the integrated inventory management server 200.

The inventory list 850 of each store includes a store column 860 and a product column 870. Identification information of each store is stored in the item of the store column 860, and in this example, for example, three stores are extracted in order of proximity to the store by the method described above. In this example, it is assumed that stores B to D are extracted in order of proximity to store A. The identification information in the store column 860 is associated with the store information. In the item of the product column 870, the products handled in the store (products A to C in this example) are stored, and the product information (JAN code, etc.) is associated with each.

The number stored in the inventory list 850 indicates the number of inventories. For example, the number of inventories of the product B in the store C is 58, which indicates that the store B does not have the inventories of the product B.

In the inventory list 850, for example, when it is desired to extract the store information of the nearest store in which the product A is in stock, the store information of the store B is extracted. Further, when it is desired to extract the store information of the nearest store in which the product B is in stock, since the store B is out of stock, the calculation unit 201 confirms that the store C next to the store B is in stock. , Extract the store information of store C. According to the above procedure, in the ACT 804, the store information is extracted from the stores in stock in the order of proximity to the store A and associated with the product information.

In this example, the store information is extracted in the order of the stores closest to the store, but the store information may be extracted in the order of the stores with the largest inventory. For example, when it is desired to extract the store information of the store having the highest inventory of product C among the stores in stock of product C, the store information of store D is extracted because store D has more inventory than store B. , Correspond to product information. As a result, it can be expected that the shopper will be guided to the store where the inventory is excessive and the inventory amount at the store will be reduced.

In the above, the implementation is to first extract the stores that are close to each other and then further extract the presence or absence of inventory from the list of the extraction results. It may be an implementation that sorts.

The number of extracted store information may be plural. For example, when it is desired to extract the store information of two stores in the order of closeness among the stores in stock of the product A, the store information of the store B and the store C is extracted.

According to the fourth embodiment, it is possible to provide advertisements as much as possible for products that are not in stock in the store, considering the presence or absence of inventory in other stores.

Here, an example of the print file generated by the embodiment is shown in FIG. FIG. 19 is a display example of the advertisement created in the first to fourth embodiments, and specifically, FIG. 19 is a print file for the advertisement created by ACT008 or the like. The layout data of the advertisement is defined in advance, and the number of displayed products may be changed, the display information may be arranged, the display information may be added or deleted, and the like.

Each item included in the advertisement 900 of FIG. 19 will be described. The advertisement 900 includes a issuance recommendation ID and a two-dimensional bar code (on the right side of the issuance recommendation ID in FIG. 19) capable of scanning and decoding the issuance recommendation ID. The issued recommendation ID is an ID given to the recommendation information in ACT006, and is associated with the list of products displayed in the advertisement 900. The two-dimensional bar code is a machine-readable mark formed by ACT009. By reading this, a machine, a terminal, or the like can acquire a print file or access each information in the advertisement 900.

The advertisement 900 includes a product name, a price, and a product image. These product information are information received by the intermediate server 3 from the product master server 5 in ACT008. As shown in FIG. 19, the advertisement 900 may include a description about the product.

The advertisement 900 includes store information in which the product is in stock, which corresponds to the product information. Further, as described in the fourth embodiment, the store information includes a store name, location information such as a store address and GPS coordinates, a map image file, and a two-dimensional display for displaying these information on a mobile terminal. Information including a bar code image file. The advertisement 900 may show / hide only a part of this information, if necessary. For example, in this example, the store ID is not displayed, but the store ID may be displayed.

Hereinafter, each embodiment will be described assuming that the print file has the data of the advertisement 900.

The first embodiment is an implementation in which the print file is deleted after the retention period has elapsed. That is, the entire advertisement 900 is deleted. In this way, in the first embodiment, the old advertisement data is deleted.

The second embodiment is an implementation in which the print file is deleted when even one of the products shown in the advertisement 900 is out of stock. That is, the entire advertisement 900 is deleted. In this way, in the second embodiment, the advertisement considering the presence or absence of inventory is provided.

In the third embodiment, when there is an out-of-stock product among the products shown in the advertisement 900, the part describing the product is excluded, and instead, a print file in which the information of other in-stock products is combined is created. The implementation to create. That is, it is an implementation in which the information is replaced with another recommended product only for the product out of stock in the advertisement 900. In this way, in the third embodiment, advertisements are provided as much as possible while considering the presence or absence of inventory.

The fourth embodiment is an implementation in which, when there is a product that is out of stock in the store among the products shown in the advertisement 900, a print file is created in which the information of the store in which the product is in stock is added to the product information. .. That is, it is an implementation that maintains the information of the products that are not in stock in the store among the advertisement 900 and combines the information of the stores that have the products in stock. In this way, in the fourth embodiment, it is possible to provide advertisements as much as possible in consideration of the presence or absence of inventory in other stores as well as in the store.

Although the store information is displayed for all the products in FIG. 19, the store information may be displayed only for the products that are not in stock in the store as described in the fourth embodiment. Alternatively, the store information may be displayed for the products in stock in the store.

In each of the above embodiments, the advertisement information is output on the sheet and the advertisement sheet is provided to the shopper. However, the image data for the advertisement may be provided to the shopper. In this case, it may be transmitted to the portable terminal owned by the shopper via the specified short-range wireless communication, LAN, or the Internet. In addition, image data for advertisement may be transmitted via a pre-registered e-mail address or SNS (social networking service).

The embodiments of the above embodiments may be combined with each other. In the embodiment in which the first embodiment and the second embodiment are combined, the print file that has passed a certain period of time is deleted, and the print file including the recommended product that is currently out of stock is also deleted. In the embodiment in which the first embodiment and the third embodiment are combined, the print files that have passed a certain period of time are deleted, and the print files that include the recommended products that are currently out of stock are replaced. In the mode in which the second embodiment and the third embodiment are combined, for example, the operation may be switched depending on the mode. All aspects of the first, second, and third embodiments may be combined.

Further, in the above embodiment, the advertisement providing system including a plurality of servers in the configuration has been described, but the embodiment is not limited to this. The advertisement providing system may be configured by one computer or a plurality of computers. Further, the correspondence relationship between each function described above and the server is not limited to the embodiment of the above embodiment.

The first information may be a list of recommended information (list of JAN codes of recommended products) transmitted from the product recommendation server 1, the name of the product corresponding to the JAN code, the set price, and the relevant product transmitted from the product master server 5. Any or all of the product images may be used. The generation unit corresponds to the intermediate server 3, and the data control unit corresponds to the file storage server 6. The data replacement unit corresponds to a combination of the intermediate server 3 and the file storage server 6.

The first system corresponds to an advertisement providing system. Further, as a server that stores inventory information related to products for each of a plurality of stores, the integrated inventory management server 200 is exemplified above as one form of the inventory management server.

In the first embodiment, the first state defined in advance corresponds to the state in which the advertisement image data is deleted in the storage unit, and the data control unit deletes the advertisement image data after a certain period of time from the storage unit. It becomes this state. Further, the data control unit deletes the advertisement image data stored in the storage unit in order to prevent the advertisement image data from being provided to the shopper. When the image forming apparatus (printer 4) receives an instruction to print the advertisement image data, it is already in this deleted state.

In the second embodiment, the first state defined in advance corresponds to the state in which the inventory of the product recommended to the shopper is exhausted in the store. When the image forming apparatus receives an instruction to print the advertisement image data, the inventory is already exhausted. Further, the data control unit deletes the advertisement image data stored in the storage unit in order to make it impossible to provide the advertisement image data to the shopper when the product recommended to the shopper is not in stock in the store.

As described in detail above, the configuration of the embodiment can prevent the advertisement content from becoming obsolete.

In the present embodiment, the case where the function for carrying out the invention is recorded in the device in advance has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the same function may be downloaded from the network to the device, or the same function may be recorded on the recording medium. You may install the one stored in the device on the device. The recording medium may be in any form as long as it can store a program such as a CD-ROM and can be read by the apparatus. Further, the function obtained by installation or download in advance in this way may be one that realizes the function in cooperation with the OS (operating system) or the like inside the device.

The present invention can be practiced in various other forms without departing from its spirit or key features. Therefore, the above embodiments are merely exemplary in all respects and should not be construed in a limited way. The scope of the present invention is shown by the scope of claims, and is not bound by the text of the specification. Moreover, all modifications, modifications, substitutions and modifications that fall within the equivalent scope of the claims are all within the scope of the present invention.

100, 100A to E Advertising system, 200 integrated inventory management server,
1 Product recommendation server, 2 POS terminal, 3 Intermediate server, 4 Printer,
5 product master server, 6 file storage server, 7 inventory management server.

Claims (1)

An inventory management server that stores inventory information about products for each of multiple stores,
This is the first system that provides advertising image data to shoppers in the first store.
A generation unit that acquires identification information of products recommended to shoppers and generates advertisement image data of products recommended to shoppers based on the identification information.
An image forming device in the first store that prints advertisement image data for the shopper by the operation of the shopper.
When the advertisement image data generated by the generation unit is stored in one or more storage units and the inventory of products recommended to the shopper is not in the first store where the image forming apparatus is installed. , Based on the inventory information stored in the inventory management server, information about a second store different from the first store in which the product recommended to the shopper is in stock is incorporated into the advertisement image data to create new advertisement image data. Data control unit to create
The first system with
Advertising system including.

Images