JP2001076220A - Automatic vending machine adjusting system using portable terminal - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make purchasable a commodity without cash in an automatic vending machine without the trouble of a purchaser as much as possible. SOLUTION: A person who is to purchase a commodity from an automatic vending machine 3 connects a portable terminal 5 held by the person to a price adjusting center device 1. Via the connection, automatic vending machine identification information showing from which automatic vending machine 3 the commodity is purchased and a request adjusting the price of purchase in the price adjusting center device 1 are transmitted. In accordance with the transmission, the price adjusting center device 1 judges the propriety of the approval of the adjusting request and transmits a judgement result to the applied automatic vending machine 3 via a communication line. The purchase of the commodity by the automatic vending machine 3 is permitted and a processing on the adjustment of price on the subsequesnt purchase of the commodity is executed by the price adjusting center device 1 by using the communication line.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vending machine settlement system using a portable terminal for making a payment for a product purchased by the vending machine, and more particularly to a relatively inexpensive vending machine. Cashless purchases of
A vending machine settlement method using a portable terminal that can make it possible to minimize the trouble of the purchaser, a payment settlement center device, a vending machine, and a computer program related to these payment settlement center device and vending machine The present invention relates to a recorded computer-readable recording medium.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, payment means for purchasing goods have been settled by a bank account or the like using a credit card, and provision for a payment from a prepaid card. or,
In recent years, various payment methods for purchased goods have been proposed or tested using what is called an IC (integrated circuit) card having a large storage capacity and having various functions. Especially in vending machines,
Theft of goods and change due to counterfeit money, destruction of coin boxes, theft of money are frequent, and the collection, processing, settlement, preparation of change, etc. of money while the vending machine is operating is complicated, Cashless is expected.

[0003]

However, none of the conventional payment methods other than cash can be easily used when purchasing goods at a vending machine.

[0004] In the case of a credit card, it is necessary to open a bank account or the like for settlement of payment, and further, there is a screening standard.
Also, at the time of payment, it is necessary to declare at least the credit card number, expiration date, and the name of the owner. For example, when considering the use at a vending machine, it is conceivable that a product purchaser inputs these declarations to the vending machine by a key, but in this case, the product purchaser takes a lot of trouble. .

[0005] In the payment method using a prepaid card or an IC card, it is only necessary to read the amount stored in the card and write the amount reduced by the price of the product. However, there is a problem in that it is necessary to purchase a prepaid card in advance or write the price in the IC card, which is troublesome.

[0006] Furthermore, as with the prepaid card of pachinko machines, there is a risk that goods are stolen from vending machines by counterfeit cards.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, and makes it possible to purchase relatively inexpensive merchandise at a vending machine by cashless operation with minimum effort of a purchaser. It is an object of the present invention to provide a vending machine payment system using a portable terminal capable of performing the above.

[0008]

First, in a vending machine settlement method using a portable terminal according to the first invention of the present application, a person who intends to purchase goods from a vending machine as described in claim 1 has the following features.
Connect to the payment center with your own mobile terminal,
Via the connection, vending machine identification information indicating which vending machine purchases the product, and a request for reimbursement of the purchase at the reimbursement center, are transmitted. The center determines whether the settlement request is approved or not, transmits the determination result to the corresponding vending machine via a communication line, permits the vending machine to purchase the product, and further purchases the product. Is performed at the payment center while using the communication line, and the vending machine identification information is set to a telephone number displayed for each vending machine in advance. The above object is achieved by connecting the portable terminal to the payment center by a telephone number so that vending machine identification information and identification information of the portable terminal are transmitted. .

In the vending machine settlement method using the portable terminal, when transmitting the purchase price settlement request, password information for certifying that the user is compatible as a user of the portable terminal held is transmitted to the merchandise store. Since the purchaser inputs the information with the portable terminal and transmits it to the payment center, security management can be more reliably performed.

[0010] In the vending machine settlement method using the portable terminal, when transmitting the purchase price settlement request, password information for certifying that the user is suitable as a user of the retained portable terminal is provided. Since the purchaser inputs the password through the password information input means provided in the vending machine and transmits the password to the payment settlement center, the security management can be more reliably performed.

Further, in the vending machine settlement method using the portable terminal, when transmitting the vending machine identification information, the vending machine identification information is transmitted to the portable terminal used from the corresponding vending machine. By automatically importing the vending machine, the vending machine identification information can be imported from the corresponding vending machine to the portable terminal used without the trouble of the product purchaser.

In addition, the payment center sequentially transmits the reservation numbers of a plurality of prospective purchasers to the vending machine together with the corresponding product purchase permission, and the vending machine stores the plurality of reservation numbers. Then, the prospective purchaser can call and select the stored reservation number in the vending machine to confirm the product purchase permission.

Further, at least a part of a plurality of stored reservation numbers is displayed on the vending machine, and the prospective purchaser can select his / her own reservation number from the displayed reservation numbers.

Further, the prospective purchaser inputs password information for certifying that the user is suitable as a user of the portable terminal held by the password information input means provided in the vending machine, and inputs the reservation number. Simultaneously with the selection, the product purchase permission can be confirmed.

Next, a payment settlement center device according to a second invention of the present application is a portable terminal communication system in which a person who intends to purchase a product from a vending machine receives a connection made by a portable terminal held by himself. A connection device, a vending machine communication connection device connected to the vending machine via a communication line for exchanging information, and an approval of the purchase payment settlement request transmitted via the connection using the portable terminal communication connection device. The communication line is transmitted to the vending machine indicated by the vending machine identification information indicating which vending machine purchases the product, and the approval result is transmitted via the connection. By providing a payment approval determination device that transmits via a communication, and a payment processing device that performs processing related to payment for product purchase after the transmission using the communication line, It is intended to achieve the target. In addition, the above-mentioned settlement approval judgment device and settlement processing device can be realized by a computer program as an entity.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a vending machine for storing a product and sequentially releasing the product to be sold, a payment state of a product purchaser and a button. In response to pressing, a vending machine sequence controller that controls the product sales device, a communication line connection device that connects to the payment center device described above via a communication line, and a communication line connection device A sales charge input state control function for permitting the sale of the goods by the goods sales apparatus and the vending machine sequence controller based on the approval result of the purchase payment settlement request transmitted from the payment settlement center; An automatic payment control device having a payment processing function for performing processing relating to payment for a product purchase when a sale is permitted by the payment input state control function; By which is adapted and a display device for a display regarding the purchaser in making payment on state control function and the payment settlement processing function is to achieve the above object.

Further, the display device can simultaneously display a plurality of portable terminal identification information sent together with the approval result transmitted from the payment center, and the merchandise sales device can display one or more of the information displayed on the display device. May be provided with a reservation confirmation unit for selecting one from the portable terminal identification information.

Further, the automatic payment controller may include an input device for a purchaser to input personal identification information for certifying that the personal computer is suitable as a user of the portable terminal.

[0019] In the vending machine, the automatic payment control device performs the product sales permission by outputting to the vending machine sequence controller the same signal as when a sales price is input. You can also. With this configuration, the same product unloading device and the vending machine sequence controller as those used in the conventional vending machine that actually inserts coins and bills into the vending machine are used. it can. Alternatively, such a conventional type can be used in a vending machine to which the present invention is applied by making relatively few modifications. Therefore, the development cost of the vending machine to which the present invention is applied can be reduced.

Further, a computer-readable recording medium according to a fourth aspect of the present invention provides a computer-readable recording medium on which a computer program for realizing the above-mentioned settlement approval determination device and the settlement processing device is recorded. This achieves the above object.

Further, a computer-readable recording medium according to a fifth aspect of the present invention provides a computer-readable recording medium that stores a computer program for realizing the above-mentioned automatic payment control device. Is to achieve.

Hereinafter, the operation of the present invention will be briefly described.

In recent years, mobile phones and PHS (personal)
handy-phone sysytem) or these mobile phones and P
Portable terminals using HS have become widespread. Hereinafter, these are collectively referred to as portable terminals. According to the present invention, the payment for the purchase of the product at the vending machine is performed using the portable terminal.

Conventionally, when purchasing canned juice or the like with a vending machine, after inserting bills or inserting coins to pay for purchase, a button of a desired product is pressed. Then, the product is obtained from the outlet, and if there is change, a considerable amount is refunded from the return opening. On the other hand, according to the present invention, in order to eliminate the trouble of paying money, the price of the product can be settled together with the payment of the telephone charge or separately by bank transfer or the like.

First, the vending machine is specified by the ID given to each vending machine, specifically, the ID displayed on the vending machine.
(Identification) is input to the mobile terminal and transmitted.

For example, a vending machine ID having a unique telephone number in a wired or wireless communication line or a public data communication line is provided for each vending machine. The product purchaser then inputs the telephone number, which is such an ID, to the portable terminal and specifies the vending machine by making a call using the telephone number. As described above, even if the telephone number is different for each mobile terminal, the connection destination can be a common payment settlement center. By recognizing the telephone number of the receiving party, the payment settlement center can recognize which vending machine the prospective purchaser intends to purchase, as if receiving and recognizing the vending machine ID. .

At the time of payment, it is necessary to identify the purchaser of the product and to designate the payment source of the payment required for payment, which is authenticated thereby. In the present invention, a telephone number added to a mobile communication terminal held by a purchaser, such as a PHS or a mobile phone, is used as an ID used for such authentication, that is, a mobile terminal ID. That is, in the present invention, the purchaser's telephone number is utilized by utilizing the telephone number of the purchaser notified by the caller number notification originally possessed by the telephone line equipment when making a call from the mobile terminal used to the settlement center. Use the payment source specified in. Then, the user pays the above-mentioned money while using the communication terminal.

In the authentication using the portable terminal ID, if necessary, password information (password number)
Is input by a mobile terminal or a push button switch provided in a vending machine. For example, input means such as a dial push button for a mobile phone or a PHS phone, and other push buttons of a mobile terminal can be used.

In the present invention, when the settlement request is approved by the payment settlement center, the result of the approval is transmitted to the corresponding vending machine via the communication line. Then, the purchase of goods by the vending machine is permitted. When the product sale permission is given, the product purchaser can purchase a desired product by operating a button of the vending machine.

At the same time, processing relating to the payment for the subsequent purchase of the product is performed at the payment center using the communication line. The present invention is not limited to the specific timing of the payment. That is, the timing at which the settlement request approval is transmitted to the vending machine, the timing at which the product sale is permitted based on the transmission, the timing at which the product purchaser presses the product button of the vending machine after the product sale permission, or The timing may be any timing such as the timing when the product is actually paid out from the vending machine by the pressing.

If there is a request from a plurality of portable terminals simultaneously or slightly before and after the same vending machine, all the requests are transmitted to the vending machine as a reservation for the bill, and the person who intends to purchase the vending machine Select and confirm your own reservation with.

Therefore, according to the present invention, it is possible to purchase a relatively inexpensive product at an automatic vending machine by cashless operation with minimum effort of a purchaser.

Further, in the case where the telephone company which owns the above-mentioned communication line bills the user for the product purchase price together with the call charge and further pays the product purchase price collectively to the product seller, Collection and processing of payment can be ensured, and business costs can be significantly reduced.

[0034]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of the first embodiment to which the present invention is applied.

In the present embodiment, the mobile terminal 5 held by the purchaser is used for payment in the case of purchasing goods at the vending machine 3. A person who wants to purchase a product from the vending machine transmits the telephone number displayed on the vending machine 3 by the portable terminal 5 and connects to the payment center 1 provided in the payment center. . At this time, the merchandise price is entered numerically after the telephone number.

[0037] Thereby, the vending machine identification information indicating which vending machine purchases the product and the request for reimbursement of the purchase at the reimbursement center are transmitted via the connection. Become. Then, the payment settlement center device 1
Shall determine whether to approve the settlement request in accordance with the communication,
If "yes", the judgment result is transmitted to the corresponding vending machine via the communication line, and the vending machine is allowed to purchase the product at the input amount. Further, at the same time, processing relating to the payment for the subsequent purchase of the product is performed at the payment center while using the communication line.

Here, the payment settlement center apparatus 1 may be either a facility of a telephone company that owns the communication line or a facility separate from the telephone company.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the structure of the payment center 1 used in this embodiment.

As shown in the figure, the payment settlement center apparatus 1 includes a mobile terminal communication connection device 12, a vending machine communication connection device 13, a payment approval determination device 15, and a payment processing device 16.

First, the portable terminal communication connection device 12 receives a connection made by a person who intends to purchase a product from a vending machine by using a portable terminal held by himself / herself. The vending machine communication connection device 13 connects to the vending machine via a communication line in order to exchange information.

Next, the settlement approval determination device 15
Whether or not the owner of the mobile terminal 5 has concluded a product purchase contract for the vending machine, whether or not there is any unpaid telephone charge, whether or not the payment is by bank transfer, In the case of cigarettes and alcohols, purchase eligibility information such as whether or not the child is a minor is input in advance, and the approval of the purchase payment settlement request transmitted via the connection using the mobile terminal communication connection device 12 is received. It is determined whether it is possible.

If the determination result is "No", the settlement approval determination device 15 notifies the portable terminal 5 of the fact and disconnects the communication connection. To
Via the communication line, the vending machine 3 is transmitted via the connection to the vending machine 3 indicated by the vending machine identification information indicating which vending machine purchases the product.

Further, the settlement processing unit 16 performs processing related to the settlement of the purchase of the goods after the transmission, using the communication line.

FIG. 3 shows a vending machine 3 used in this embodiment.
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of FIG.

As shown in the figure, the vending machine 3 stores a product in the same manner as the conventional one and pays out the product to be sold, and controls the product sales device 32 in the same manner as the conventional one. In addition, the automatic settlement controller 4 according to the present invention
And a vending machine sequence controller 34 for controlling the operation based on the instruction from 0. Further, the vending machine 3 includes an automatic payment control device 40 and a display device 44.
And a public communication line connection device 46.

A portion shown by a broken line in FIG. 3 is a configuration according to a third embodiment described later.

In FIG. 3, the input device 4 indicated by a chain line
2 is provided as needed. For example, when transmitting the purchase price settlement request, the password information for certifying the suitability as the user of the portable terminal 5 held by the product purchaser is input by the password information input means provided in the vending machine 3. In the case where the password is input and transmitted to the payment center 1, the input device 42 may be provided as the password information input means. This password information is a security measure such as prevention of misuse of the stolen mobile terminal by a third party, and is composed of, for example, a password, and is registered in advance in the payment settlement center 1 for each mobile terminal 5 by notification from the owner. Have been.

The public communication line connecting device 46 is a communication line connecting device for connecting to the payment center 1 via a communication line. The connection uses a public data communication line, but may be a PHS, a mobile telephone line, or a wired telephone line.

Next, the automatic payment control device 40 has a sales payment input state control function for enabling the sale of a product based on the approval result of the transmitted payment payment request. That is, by the connection notification input via the public communication line connection device 46, it is possible to form the same state as if a necessary amount of bills or coins were inserted in a conventional vending machine. Further, the automatic payment controller 40 has a payment processing function for performing processing related to payment for purchase of a product.

The display device 44 displays information to a purchaser when performing the sales charge input state control function and the price settlement processing function.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an operation centered on a purchaser in the present embodiment. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing processing performed by the vending machine 3, the portable terminal 5, and the payment center 1 in connection with the operation. In FIG. 5, a manual operation is indicated by italic characters.

In these figures, first, at step 112
In step S13, the product purchaser purchases the product,
Select and decide which vending machine to use. In this vending machine, a telephone number is posted at a position where a person who wants to purchase the product can easily see it. The telephone number is unique to each vending machine and serves as vending machine identification information for distinguishing each vending machine.

Next, in step S15, the telephone number is obtained visually. Subsequently, in step 114 and step S17, a connection is made to a payment settlement center used for payment for the purchase of the product by the telephone number unique to the vending machine. Further, after the connection, the amount to be settled in the purchase of the product this time is input by a dial button of the portable terminal 5. The input amount is transmitted to the settlement center 1 through the connection. In addition, the input of the amount
As will be described later, it may be executed from an input device of a vending machine.

By such connection and transmission of the settlement amount, the settlement center transmits the request for settlement of the purchase price. In the present embodiment, the payment is performed together with the payment of the communication charge (communication charge) of the portable terminal 5 via the payment settlement center. This connection is made by the portable terminal 5 held by a person who intends to purchase a product from the vending machine.

In this connection, a portable terminal ID is notified. In the present embodiment, the telephone number of the purchaser notified by the caller ID notification originally possessed by the mobile terminal or telephone line equipment used is used as the mobile terminal ID. Therefore,
The telephone number of the portable terminal ID is automatically transmitted to the payment settlement center apparatus 1 by the notification of the caller number even if the caller does not perform an operation for that.

After transmitting the vending machine identification information and the portable terminal ID as described above, the payment settlement center determines whether to approve the settlement request in accordance with the transmission, and, at step S19, via the communication line. Then, the determination result and the settlement amount are transmitted to the corresponding vending machine, and the vending machine 3 is allowed to purchase the product.

When the purchase of the product is permitted, the vending machine 3 displays the amount corresponding to the above-mentioned settlement amount on the display device 44 in order to transmit the permission. At this stage, step S22 is completed.

Although the present invention is not limited to this, in this embodiment, at this stage, password information, for example, a confirmation password is input from the input device 42 of the vending machine 3, and Subsequent actual product purchases may be made possible. In this way, it is possible to take measures against security problems such as erroneous input that may occur when the vending machine identification information is key-inputted on the portable terminal 5 and another person purchases the product at another vending machine 3. . In addition, plagiarism of the portable terminal 5 can be prevented.

If the payment is not confirmed using such password information, or if the portable terminal 5 has previously transmitted the password to the payment center 1 as described above, immediately before the notification in step S19 is made. To do. Here, when confirming with the password information, the password information is transmitted in step S41, and based on this, the payment settlement center apparatus 1 performs in step S43. If the password information and the password information are transmitted from the payment center 1 to the automatic payment controller 40 of the vending machine, the password information can be confirmed in the automatic payment controller 40. .

When the settlement process is completed, the lamp of the commodity button switch which can be purchased after the insertion of the conventional coin or bill is turned on (step S31). That is, in a conventional vending machine, the state is the same as when a predetermined banknote or coin is inserted.

Next, in the state where the amount is displayed as described above, the push button of the desired product is pressed in step 116 or step S32. Then, the vending machine sequence controller 34 and the merchandise vending apparatus 32 operate, and the corresponding merchandise is thrown out to the outlet of the vending machine 3 in step S34. When the dispensing of commodities corresponding to the inserted amount is completed, in step S35, the lamp of the commodity button switch is turned off. Then, in step 118 or step S36, the product purchaser takes out the product.

Regarding the settlement (collection) of the purchase price, the settlement center 1 bills the portable terminal user collectively for one month for each portable terminal, for example, and collects the collected price by deducting a commission or the like to the product seller. pay. At this time, if the settlement center 1 is a telephone company and each mobile terminal user can be billed together with the call charge, the same is done.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the present invention can be effectively applied. Therefore, it is possible to purchase cashless relatively inexpensive commodities at a vending machine with minimum effort of the purchaser.

In this embodiment, each vending machine 3 is provided with a telephone number connected to the individual payment center 1, so that the payment center can be designated by the telephone number corresponding to the vending machine 3 to be used. If connected to the device 1, the payment center device 1 can immediately identify the vending machine 3 that the product purchaser wants to use by receiving an incoming call from the portable terminal 5 at the telephone number. Also, the portable terminal ID can be automatically identified by the caller ID notification. That is, the vending machine identification information and the mobile terminal ID can be automatically transmitted from the mobile terminal 5 to the payment center 1 only by connecting to the payment center 1 using such a special telephone number. .

Further, if the transmission of the personal identification information of the portable terminal ID is unnecessary, the purchaser does not need to manually transmit the information, which is very convenient in use. Further, even if it is required to transmit the password information, for example, the password number used as the password information can be a very short number sequence of, for example, about 2 to 4 digits, and there is no trouble. In the method of transmitting personal identification information from the mobile terminal 5, the mobile terminal 5
In order to prevent abuse when the ID is stolen, password information is not stored in the mobile terminal 5 as the transmission history of the telephone number.

Furthermore, if the price of the product can be charged together with the call fee from the telephone company, the collection cost can be greatly reduced.

Conventionally, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 6, the operation is performed mainly by the purchaser of the product. FIG.
Steps 162, 166, and 168 of FIG.
112, 116, and 118. Here, step 114 in the present embodiment can be simplified compared to the conventional example in which coins are taken out of a wallet or the like in step 164 and put into a slot of a vending machine. Further, in the present embodiment, there is no need to receive change as in step 170 in the conventional example, and the trouble of purchasing goods is simplified by this trouble.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an operation centered on a product purchaser in the second embodiment which is a modification of the above-described first embodiment.

In these figures, first, at step 112
In step S14, the product purchaser purchases the product,
Select and decide which vending machine to use.

Next, at step 114, a payment settlement center to be used to pay for the commodity is determined. In the present embodiment, the payment is performed together with the payment of the communication charge (communication charge) of the portable terminal 5 via the payment settlement center. For example, if the communication line provider (telephone company) can charge the product purchase price together with the call fee, this is the case, and if it is separately charged, the payment must be made by subtracting the call fee from the purchase price. Do. Further, in this step 114, the person who intends to purchase a product from the vending machine connects to the payment center 1 in the payment center by using the portable terminal 5 held by himself.

In this connection, the portable terminal ID is notified. In the present embodiment, a mobile terminal ID added to a mobile communication terminal held by a purchaser, such as a PHS or a mobile phone, is provided. Specifically, in the present embodiment, when a call is sent to a clearing center, the telephone number of the purchaser notified by the caller ID notification originally possessed by the mobile terminal or telephone line equipment used is used as the mobile terminal ID. are doing. The telephone number of the portable terminal ID is transmitted to the settlement center 1 by the caller number notification. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the mobile terminal ID may be manually input.
Alternatively, input means such as a telephone dial / push button or other push buttons of a portable terminal may be used.

Also, in the case of using the caller ID notification, or in the case of manually inputting as described above, if security measures are required, a password may also be input as password information. Good (prevention of plagiarism of communication terminals).

The input of the password information may be input by the purchaser of the product at the portable terminal 5 and transmitted to the payment center 1 at the payment center. Alternatively, before the step S20 to be described later, although the payment settlement center apparatus 1 is connected to the vending machine 3, the purchaser of the product is automatically turned on at the timing when the purchase of the product at the vending machine 3 is not yet permitted. The password information may be input by the input device 42 (used as password information input means) provided in the vending machine 3 and transmitted to the payment settlement center apparatus 1.

Next, in step S16, vending machine identification information (vending machine ID) is obtained. Specifically, in the present embodiment, the purchaser visually recognizes the vending machine identification information posted on the front panel or the like of the vending machine.

Further, in step S18, via the connection, vending machine identification information indicating which vending machine purchases the product, and a request to settle the price of the purchase at the price adjustment center. introduce. Specifically, in the present embodiment, the vending machine identification information visually recognized as described above is stored in the mobile terminal 5 by a mobile phone or PHS.
The input is made using input means such as a telephone dial / push button or another push button of a portable terminal, and is transmitted to the payment settlement center apparatus 1 through the communication line of the connection.

In the above description, the payment settlement center to be used for payment settlement is determined, the portable terminal 5 is connected to the payment settlement center device 1, and then the portable terminal ID is notified by a caller ID notification or the like. Is transmitted to the payment center 1, and if necessary for security measures, password information for indicating that the mobile terminal ID is suitable as a mobile terminal user is transmitted, and then the vending machine identification is performed. Communicates information. However, the order of these transmissions can be interchanged.

As described above, vending machine identification information,
The mobile terminal ID and, if necessary, the mobile terminal ID to be held
After transmitting the password information for certifying that the user is compatible with the portable terminal corresponding to the above, the payment settlement center determines whether to approve the settlement request in accordance with the transmission. If the approval is "No", the mobile terminal 5 is notified of the fact and the communication connection is cut off.
At 0, the determination result is transmitted to the corresponding vending machine via the communication line, and the purchase of the product by the vending machine 3 is permitted. Then, in step S22, the vending machine 3 receives the product purchase permission.

In the present embodiment, the next product purchase permission is given even if another product purchase permission has been given and the product has not been purchased yet. For this reason, in the present embodiment, a reservation number is issued for each product purchase permission in order to distinguish a plurality of product purchase permissions that have already been made. Further, the issued reservation number is transmitted at the same time when the product purchase permission is transmitted to the vending machine 3. The reservation number is also transmitted to the portable terminal 5.

When the purchase of the product is permitted, the reservation number is displayed on the display device 44 in step S30 so that the vending machine 3 transmits the permission. When a plurality of merchandise purchases are permitted, these reservation numbers are displayed simultaneously within a displayable range. One of the displayed reservation numbers is selected by a switch operation or the like. Alternatively, regardless of what is displayed or what is not displayed because there are a large number of reservation numbers, the user inputs one reservation number from the input device 42 or the password information instead of the reservation number. If there is only one reservation number, the process proceeds to the subsequent step S31 without performing the operation of selecting the reservation number.

In step S31, the lamp of the push button switch of the commodity which can be purchased after the conventional coin is inserted is turned on. Alternatively, the display device 44 that can display characters may display to the purchaser that "the payment has been approved".

Although the present invention is not limited to this, at this stage, confirmation information of the vending machine display, for example, confirmation password is input from the portable terminal 5 to thereby confirm the actual product Purchase may be made possible (prevention of mistakes in vending machine designation). In this way, it is possible to take measures against security problems such as erroneous input that may occur when the vending machine identification information is key-inputted on the portable terminal 5 and another person purchases the product at another vending machine 3. .

As described above, when the lamp is turned on or the display by the display device 44 is made, step 116 or step S3 is performed.
At 2, the user pushes the push button of the desired product. Then, the vending machine sequence controller 34 and the merchandise vending apparatus 32 operate, and the corresponding merchandise is paid out to the outlet of the vending machine 3 in step 34. Then, in step 118 or step 36, the product purchaser takes out the product.

Thereafter, the vending machine 3 performs processing relating to the payment for the subsequent purchase of the goods at the payment center using the communication line. Specifically, in step S42, a settlement request is transmitted from the vending machine 3 to the payment settlement center apparatus 1. Then, a settlement process is performed in step S44.

At almost the same time as the payment request transmission, the vending machine 3
Hereafter, similarly to the above-described first embodiment, step S34
, A product is put out that matches the input amount. Subsequent steps are the same as in the first embodiment.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the present invention can be effectively applied. Therefore, it is possible to purchase cashless relatively inexpensive commodities at a vending machine with minimum effort of the purchaser.

When transmitting information on a vending machine or information on a vending machine via a portable terminal,
There are several ways to do this. The simple one is the first
As in the case of visually recognizing the vending machine identification information in the embodiment and the second embodiment, information such as characters written on the surface of the vending machine, information such as characters written on a sticker stuck on the vending machine, The communication can be transmitted by pressing the dial button of the portable terminal.

Alternatively, an information transmitting device using infrared rays, radio waves, or sound waves may be attached to the vending machine and the portable terminal, respectively, to thereby transmit necessary information via the portable terminal. That is, information may be transmitted cordlessly between the vending machine and the portable terminal.

When using infrared rays, radio waves or sound waves, for example, a third embodiment described below can be used.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the portable terminal 5 used in the third embodiment to which the present invention is applied.

In the present embodiment, the vending machine 3 shown in FIG. 3 is provided with a portable terminal information exchange device 50, a transmitting section 52 and a receiving section 54. Further, as in the portable terminal 5 shown in FIG. 8, a transmitting unit 76 and a receiving unit 78 are provided. Thereby, necessary information may be transmitted via the mobile terminal. Reference numeral 80 denotes an antenna.

When using sound waves, the communication function inherent in the portable terminal, such as a microphone 72 for acquiring the voice of the user and a speaker 74 for transmitting the voice of the other party to the hearing of the user, is used. Necessary information may be transmitted via a mobile terminal. In this case, it is not necessary to newly provide the transmitting unit 76 and the receiving unit 78 in the mobile terminal 5.

When the call function inherent in the portable terminal is used as described above, a dial tone of a push-phone line may be used as a sound wave used for transmitting information. That is, the transmission section 52 of the vending machine 3 simulates the dial tone for transmitting information from the microphone 7 of the portable terminal 5.
2 may be sent. The vending machine identification information is like an ID number for individually identifying a vending machine, and has a relatively small amount of information. Therefore, even if such a dial tone is used, information can be transmitted within a sufficient time range. it can.

In this embodiment, the payment for the purchased merchandise is made together with the payment of the telephone charge. That is,
Payment is made in the same manner as dial Q2 conventionally provided by NTT (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation). In this case, as with the conventional method of paying telephone charges, automatic transfer by a bank, post office, or other financial institution, or payment at a convenience store is performed. However, the payment may be performed by another method. For example, independent from telephone charges, automatic transfer by a bank, post office, or other financial institution, or payment at a convenience store may be used.

Note that the product purchase is permitted, and the vending machine 3 transmits the permission to the vending machine 3. You may make it input.
The upper limit is transmitted from the portable terminal 5 to the payment center 1 and transmitted from the payment center 1 to the vending machine 3. Then, in the vending machine 3, it may be possible to purchase a product within the range of the upper limit amount.

In this embodiment, if the upper limit is set as described above, the vending machine 3 permitted to purchase the product can
Due to incorrect input by the buyer or some malfunction of the device,
Even if the vending machine 3 is another vending machine 3, the damage amount is limited to the upper limit amount when another person purchases the vending machine 3 which is erroneously permitted, thereby suppressing the damage. be able to.

The upper limit corresponds to the total amount of bills inserted into the vending machine 3 and coins that have been inserted when purchasing canned juice and the like with a vending machine. Conventionally, the total amount is set as the upper limit amount of the product purchase. Therefore, when the present embodiment is applied by setting the upper limit amount in the present embodiment as described above, the automatic settlement control device 40 newly installed at the time of applying the present embodiment, as if a bill is inserted or a coin is inserted. From the vending machine sequence
The conventional vending machine sequence controller 34 may be modified to send a signal to the controller 34. Therefore, in such a case, the modification of the vending machine sequence controller 34 of the vending machine 3 may be reduced.

In the above-described embodiment,
The communication between the payment center 1 and the vending machine 3 is not specifically limited. The communication may be a wired public telephone line, or a wireless line or the like. Alternatively, a digital line may be used. For example, when using packet communication on a digital line,
If data is sent in packets each time a prospective purchaser inputs, and sent for each unit of information such as personal identification information, the state of the communication line is extended while waiting for the prospective purchaser's input. However, the call charge (communication charge) does not increase.

[0099]

According to the present invention, it is possible to purchase relatively inexpensive merchandise in a vending machine by cashless operation with minimum effort of the purchaser. Since it is cashless, the purchaser does not need to take out coins and put them into the vending machine or receive change from the vending machine.

At a sporting event site or the like, a queue of buyers who use vending machines may occur. However, if the present invention is applied to reduce the labor of the buyers, the purchase time per buyer can be shortened. Can increase the number of buyers who can use the vending machine per unit time and improve the vending machine utilization rate, and therefore reduce the possibility of the occurrence of such a matrix. Can be. Alternatively, when the vending machine utilization rate is improved, it is conceivable to reduce the number of vending machines installed. In this case, the installation cost and the installation space of the vending machines can be reduced.

In addition, when cashless is used, the vending machine seller can save management and labor such as collection of money and replenishment of change. The labor required to maintain the vending machine is related to collection of money and replenishment of change. Therefore, the selling cost can be effectively reduced.

[0102] Damage due to misuse of counterfeit coins is likely to occur in vending machines. Coins are easier to forge than banknotes,
The damage is a problem. Further, the money in the vending machine may be stolen. However, according to the present invention, since the cashless operation is performed, such damage is not caused.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an overall configuration of a first embodiment to which the present invention is applied;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a payment center 1 used in the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a vending machine 3 used in the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an operation centered on a product purchaser in the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing processing performed in the vending machine 3, the portable terminal 5, and the payment center 1 in relation to the above operation.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an operation centered on a product purchaser in a conventional example compared with the embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing processing performed in a vending machine 3, a portable terminal 5, and a payment center 1 according to a second embodiment which is a modification of the first embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a mobile terminal used in a second embodiment to which the present invention is applied.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Payment settlement center apparatus 3 ... Vending machine 5 ... Portable terminal 12 ... Portable terminal communication connection apparatus 13 ... Vending machine communication connection apparatus 15 ... Payment approval judgment apparatus 16 ... Payment processing apparatus 32 ... Product unloading apparatus 34 ... Automatic vending Machine sequence controller 40 automatic payment controller 42 input device 44 display device 46 public communication line connection device 50 portable terminal information exchange device 52 transmission unit 54 reception unit 70 portable unit main unit 72 microphone 74 ... Speaker 76 ... Transmission unit 78 ... Reception unit

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page F-term (reference) GG11 HH05 HH22 HH23 HH24 HH36 KK13 KK15

Claims (14)

[Claims] 1. A person who wants to purchase a product from a vending machine connects to a payment settlement center by using his / her own portable terminal, and via the connection, determines which vending machine is used to purchase the product. The vending machine identification information and the request for reimbursement of the purchase are transmitted at the payment center, and the payment center determines whether or not to approve the payment request, and, via the communication line, according to the transmission. The result of the determination is transmitted to the corresponding vending machine to permit the purchase of the goods by the vending machine, and the processing related to the payment for the subsequent purchase of the goods is processed by the payment center using the communication line. The vending machine identification information is a telephone number displayed for each vending machine in advance, and the person who intends to purchase the product connects the portable terminal to the payment center by this telephone number. It makes an automatic vending machine settlement method using the mobile terminal identification information of the vending machine identification information and the portable terminal is characterized in that so as to be transmitted. 2. The product purchaser according to claim 1, wherein when transmitting the purchase price settlement request, the purchaser inputs password information for certifying that the user is suitable as a user of the portable terminal held by the product purchaser. And transmitting the payment to the payment settlement center. 3. A vending machine according to claim 1, wherein said vending machine provides password information for certifying that the user is suitable as a user of the held portable terminal when transmitting the purchase price settlement request. A vending machine payment method using a portable terminal, wherein the vending machine payment value is input to the payment information input means and transmitted to the payment center. 4. The vending machine identification information according to claim 1, wherein when transmitting the vending machine identification information, the vending machine identification information is automatically taken into the portable terminal used from a corresponding vending machine. Vending machine payment method using a mobile terminal characterized by the following. 5. The vending machine according to claim 1, wherein a reservation number of a plurality of prospective purchasers is sequentially transmitted from the price settlement center to a vending machine together with a corresponding product purchase permission. A vending machine payment method, wherein the prospective purchaser calls and selects the stored reservation number in the vending machine to confirm the product purchase permission. . 6. The vending machine according to claim 5, wherein the vending machine displays at least a part of a plurality of stored reservation numbers, and the prospective purchaser selects his / her own reservation number from the displayed reservation number. A vending machine settlement method characterized in that it is performed. 7. A password information input means provided in a vending machine according to claim 5 or 6, wherein said prospective purchaser inputs password information for certifying that he / she fits as a user of the portable terminal held by said vending machine. And selecting the reservation number and, at the same time, confirming the product purchase permission. 8. A person who intends to purchase a product from a vending machine connects to the vending machine via a communication line to exchange information with a portable terminal communication connection device that is connected by a portable terminal held by the person. A vending machine communication connection device, and whether to approve the purchase payment settlement request transmitted via a connection using the mobile terminal communication connection device is determined, and the approval result is transmitted via the connection. A payment approval judging device for transmitting, via the communication line, a vending machine indicated by vending machine identification information indicating which vending machine purchases a product; and A payment processing center device for performing the processing related to the payment processing of the above-mentioned item using the communication line. 9. A merchandise selling apparatus for storing and selling merchandise in order, and a merchandise sales apparatus for sequentially selling merchandise, and in accordance with a state of payment of a merchandise to be purchased or a button pressed.
A vending machine sequence controller for controlling the merchandise vending apparatus; a communication line connection apparatus for connecting to the payment settlement center apparatus via a communication line; and the charge via the communication line connection apparatus. A sales charge input state control function for permitting the sale of goods by the product sales device and the vending machine sequence controller based on the approval result of the purchase payment settlement request transmitted from the payment center, and the sales charge input state An automatic payment control device having a payment processing function that performs processing related to payment for product purchases when sales are permitted by the control function, and a display to the product purchaser when performing the sales payment input state control function and the payment processing function A vending machine comprising: a display device that performs the following. 10. The display device according to claim 9, wherein the display device is capable of simultaneously displaying a plurality of portable terminal identification information sent together with the approval result transmitted from the payment center, and the merchandise sales device displays on the display device A vending machine comprising a reservation confirmation unit for selecting one from one or more displayed mobile terminal identification information. 11. The automatic settlement controller according to claim 9, further comprising: an input device for allowing a product purchaser to input password information for certifying that the user is suitable as a user of the portable terminal. A vending machine characterized in that: 12. The automatic settlement control device according to claim 8, wherein the automatic settlement control device outputs the same signal to the vending machine sequence controller as when the sales price is entered,
A vending machine for permitting the sale of the product. 13. A computer-readable recording medium on which a computer program for realizing the settlement approval judging device and the settlement processing device according to claim 8 is recorded. 14. A computer-readable recording medium on which a computer program for realizing the automatic settlement controller according to claim 9 is recorded.