1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a technique for displaying purchase specifics (transaction information) on a cash registering apparatus such as a POS (Point of Sales) terminal installed in various types of shops and stores such as supermarkets and convenience stores. The invention particularly relates to a display method suitable for use when an operator alters transaction information stored in the cash registering apparatus, referring to an issued receipt, as requested by a customer.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally speaking, various types of shops and stores such as supermarkets and convenience stores install POS systems (cash registering systems). When purchased items are returned or replaced in response to customers' requests, it is possible for an operator of such a POS system to alter (when adding, replacing, and returning items) transaction information already registered therein, referring to the information printed on an issued receipt (for example, see Japanese Patent Application Publication Nos. HEI 10-188141, HEI 11-096255, and 2000-353283).
When such a transaction alteration is made by an operator on the POS terminal under request from a customer, the operator inputs the POS number and the receipt serial number printed on a receipt which is brought by the customer. Upon input of the information, purchase specifics information (also called transaction information, transaction data) corresponding to the information printed on the receipt is read from a storage unit of the POS terminal or the POS system and is shown on the screen of a main display of the POS terminal. Comparing the read-out registered purchase specifics shown on the main display and the information printed on the receipt, the operator makes necessary alteration (adding, replacing, returning items) to the transaction information on the POS terminal.
At the time of a normal transaction (check out at a check out counter) made on the POS terminal, barcodes of commodity items purchased are read with a scanner, and a database is searched for commodity information [item name, price, discount information, and Bundle Mix Pair match (hereinafter abbreviated as “BMP”) item information] corresponding to the obtained barcode information (commodity code) to retrieve the information.
Here, as shown in FIG. 7, commodity items purchased are arranged on the main display (a display screen for an operator) of the POS terminal in the order in which the barcodes of the purchased items were read by the operator, and the purchased items are registered in the same order (the order of barcode reading) into a storage unit (storing unit) of the POS terminal and the POS system.
After completion of reading the barcodes of all the purchased items, the check out is completed with payment for the purchase, and a receipt is printed/issued to be handed to the customer.
In the information printed on the receipt, the purchased items are normally arranged not in the order of barcode reading as shown in FIG. 7 but in the order such that the purchase specifics stored in the storage unit of the POS terminal or the POS system are edited in a predetermined manner. For instance, the following are example rules applied to the editing process.
(1) Information of items with input errors (reading errors) should not be printed;
(2) transaction data should be sorted according to commodity categories before printing;
(3) if two or more of the same commodity item are separately read and registered, transaction data thereof should be sorted together to print as one piece of transaction data, and the quantity of the commodity item purchased should also be printed; and
(4) if BMP items (with a package price) are separately read and registered, specifics (transaction data) thereof should be printed and/or displayed consecutively, and an amount of discount for the package should also be printed.
For instance, assuming that purchase specifics of commodity items are registered and shown on the main display in the order indicated in FIG. 7, the purchase specifics are edited according to the above rules (1) through (4), and printed on a receipt 200 as shown in FIG. 8. FIG. 7 shows a screen image shown on the main display when data is read/registered from chocolate, cheese, cookies, cigarettes, and cookies in this order. In this example, two packets of cookies are separately read/entered, and both the chocolate and the cookies are BMP items, any three of which purchased at the same time allow a discount of ¥60, from ¥360 to ¥300, as a whole.
In the receipt 200 of FIG. 8 printed/issued after the items are read/entered in the order shown in FIG. 7, the chocolate and the cookies, which are BMP items, are printed as a BMP group below the specifics of the cheese and the cigarettes. At the end of the receipt 200 are printed a POS number (“0001” in FIG. 8) and a transaction serial number (“0627” in FIG. 8), which is assigned in sequence to every transaction made on the POS terminal. In addition, in the storage unit, the purchase specifics (transaction data) of the commodity items purchased are associated with the POS number and the transaction serial number.
If any alteration needs to be made to the transaction information corresponding to the information printed on the receipt 200 after its issuance, the POS number and the transaction serial number printed on the receipt 200 are input to read the purchase specifics information corresponding to the information printed on the receipt from the storage unit to show the information on the main display of the POS terminal. Here, since the information read from the storage unit is shown on the main display without undergoing any editing processing, purchased items are arranged on the screen image in the order their barcodes are read by the operator, as in the case of normal transaction (check out at a check out counter) of FIG. 7.
Accordingly, when any changes are made to the transaction information corresponding to the information printed on a receipt, an operator has to compare the purchase specifics of FIG. 7 shown on the main display with the information of FIG. 8 printed on the receipt to perform alteration on the POS terminal.
At this time, since the information printed on the receipt has undergone the aforementioned editing process, the transaction data (display format) shown on the main display, which data is arranged in the order of barcode reading, differs from the transaction data (print format) printed on the receipt in the order in which purchased items are arranged and also in the number of lines printed/displayed. In such a case, it takes time for the operator to find a target item on the main display, so that ease of operation and searchability deteriorate.
Moreover, the difference between the display format and the print format increases the possibility that an operator will choose a wrong item with a similar item name to the target item, so that the erroneous operation is more likely to happen.