JP2003006300A - Customer management system, its method and its program - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [Problem] To provide a customer management system, a method and a program thereof, which allow a customer to select a desired seat. When a customer comes to a store, a card issuing terminal acquires seat information managed by a seat management unit of a center terminal, and displays a seat selection screen on a display unit.
When a desired seat is selected, a menu selection screen is displayed to prompt the user to select a menu. The card issuing unit 15 writes the seat and menu selected by the customer on the customer management card and prints and issues the seat and menu on the card surface. When the customer management card is inserted into the seat terminal 30, the center terminal 20 updates the information of the seat management unit 22 based on the information stored in the card. ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, when entering a restaurant etc., since a customer can select a desired seat from available seats, customer satisfaction is improved and the number of customers attracted is greatly improved. be able to.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a customer management system, a method therefor and a program therefor, and in particular, a customer management system, a method therefor and a program therefor which are applied to a service system for managing the situation of customers in restaurants such as restaurants. Regarding

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in restaurants such as restaurants, when a customer enters a store, it is common to be guided to a table designated by a clerk and take a seat.

[0003]

However, in the related art, there has been a problem that the desired seat position cannot be selected because the clerk unilaterally specifies the seat as described above. For example, even if a seat by the window or the like for enjoying a landscape or a night view is vacant, the seat is often guided to another seat.

[0004] Further, the service provided by the clerk includes a wide variety of service contents such as guidance to seats, first order, serving, additional order, checkout, and tidying up. Had a problem that it was too heavy to grasp the ever-changing situation of what was ordered and what was served. For example, there may be a case in which an additional order is placed, but the clerk forgets to inform the kitchen of the menu.

For example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2000-194795 discloses an "vacant seat management device" as a first conventional example similar to the present invention. This vacant seat management device manages the vacant seat status of the table by determining the seat status of each table and how much the seat status has passed.

Further, as a conventional example 2, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-28
Japanese Patent No. 9275 discloses a "service system for restaurants". This service system for restaurants is
It reduces the work load on employees who serve food (waiters and waitresses), and prevents leakage of cooking support for designated menus after meals.

However, in both the above-mentioned conventional example 1 and conventional example 2, the customer himself cannot select the desired seat.

The present invention aims to provide a customer management system, a method thereof and a program thereof which can improve the satisfaction of users by selecting the seat desired by the customer and expect an increase in the number of users. The purpose of 1.

Further, the present invention provides a customer management system, a method and a program thereof for saving costs by reducing a work burden on a clerk by using a card for processing such as seat management, ordering and clearing. Second to do
The purpose of.

[0010]

In order to solve the above problems, the invention according to claim 1 manages the situation of a plurality of seats installed in a store by using a customer management card having an information recording area. It is characterized by doing.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the customer management system manages a card issuing terminal that issues a customer management card and information on a plurality of seats (seat information). It is characterized in that the center terminal is connected via a communication line.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the second aspect of the present invention, the card issuing terminal includes first communication means for performing data communication with the center terminal via a communication line and first communication means. Display means for obtaining and displaying seat information managed by the center terminal, and input means for selecting and inputting a desired seat position from the seat information displayed on the display means,
The center terminal writes the information on the desired seat position input by the input means in the information recording area and issues the customer management card, and the center terminal performs data communication with the card issuing terminal via the communication line. Communication control means for controlling
And a seat management unit that manages seat information.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the third aspect of the present invention, the customer management system has a seat terminal via a communication line for each of a plurality of seats arranged, and the seat terminal via the communication line. Second communication means for performing data communication with the center terminal, a reader / writer means for reading or writing the information recording area of the customer management card, and a reader / writer.
It is characterized by further comprising: determining means for determining whether the information on the desired seat position read by the writer means and the seat terminal information unique to each seat terminal match.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the invention according to the fourth aspect, the seat terminal is the seat selected by the input means when the information on the desired seat position and the seat terminal information do not match by the determination means. It is characterized by having a notifying means for notifying by a message or a warning sound indicating that there is not.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the invention according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, the center terminal has an operating means for changing a setting of availability of a plurality of seats, The seat information managed by the seat managing means is updated based on the setting changed by the operating means.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the invention according to any one of the first to sixth aspects, the customer management system has a clerk terminal carried by a clerk, and the clerk terminal has additional order information. , The serving completion information, the serving confirmation request, the input means for inputting the seat preparation completion information, the additional order information, the serving completion information, the serving confirmation request input by the input means,
Transmitting means for transmitting seat preparation completion information to the center terminal,
It is characterized by having.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in the invention according to any one of the first to seventh aspects, the center terminal manages the situation of the customer based on the mounting state of the customer management card in the seat terminal. It is characterized by

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, a card issuing terminal for issuing a customer management card having an information recording area, a center terminal for managing information on a plurality of seats arranged in a store (seat information), A processing method of a customer management system in which a seat terminal provided for each seat is connected via a communication line, wherein a card issuing terminal obtains seat information from a center terminal and displays it. The input step of selecting and inputting a desired seat position from the seat information displayed by the step, and the information of the desired seat position input by the input step are recorded in the information recording area of the customer management card to A card issuing step of issuing a management card, and whether the center terminal inserts the customer management card issued in the issuing step into the seat terminal A determining step of determining seat status based, and having a an updating step of updating the seat information managed by the seat managing means based on the determination result by the determination step.

According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, a card issuing terminal for issuing a customer management card having an information recording area,
A program of a customer management system in which a center terminal that manages information on a plurality of seats arranged in a store (seat information) and a seat terminal that is provided for each seat are connected via a communication line. A display process of acquiring and displaying seat information from the center terminal on the issuing terminal, an input process of selecting and inputting a desired seat position from the seat information displayed by the display process, and a desired process input by the input process The information on the seat position is recorded in the information recording area of the customer management card, the card issuing process for issuing the customer management card is executed, and the center terminal inserts the customer management card into the seat terminal. Determination processing for determining the seat status based on whether or not there is a seat condition, and update processing for updating seat information managed by the seat management means based on the determination result of the determination processing. It is characterized in.

[0020]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Next, a customer management system, a method thereof and a program therefor according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. 1 to 5 show an embodiment of a customer management system, a method therefor, and a program therefor according to the present invention.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a customer management system which is an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, a customer management system according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a card issuing terminal 10, a center terminal 20, and a seat terminal 30.
And the clerk terminal 40 are connected via a communication line (wired or wireless) such as a LAN.

The card issuing terminal 10 comprises a display unit 11, an input unit 12, a control unit 13, a communication I / F unit 14, and a card issuing unit 15. The display unit 11 is
It displays in-store guidance when a customer enters a store, seat information and menu information acquired from the center terminal 20, seat position information and menu information designated via the input unit 12, and the like.
Although the display unit 11 and the input unit 12 may be independently configured as shown in the figure, they may be integrally formed by adopting a touch panel format. Control unit 13
Is a center that controls the operation of the card issuing terminal 10,
Each operation is controlled based on a control program stored in a ROM (not shown). The communication I / F unit 14 controls data transmission / reception of seat information with the center terminal 20. The card issuing unit 15 sends the seat position information and menu information designated by the customer via the input unit 12 to a contact or non-contact type IC card or a magnetic recording card (hereinafter referred to as a customer management card). After writing, the same information as the data written on the card face is printed and issued to the customer.

The center terminal 20 comprises a communication control unit 21, a seat management unit 22, a control unit 23, and an operation unit 24. The communication control unit 21 controls data transmission / reception with the card issuing terminal 10, seat terminal 30, and clerk terminal 40, which are connected via a communication line. The seat management unit 22 manages layout information of a plurality of seats arranged in the store and current seat information. The layout information may be held in the card issuing terminal 10. The control unit 23 is a center that controls the operation of the center terminal 20, and controls each operation based on a control program stored in a ROM (not shown). The operation unit 24 is used when changing various settings in the center terminal 20. For example, when a clerk reserves a seat for a customer who has made a reservation by telephone in advance, if a clerk inputs information such as a reserved seat from the operation unit 24, the seat management unit 22 manages the seat based on the information on the reserved seat. Seat information is updated.

The seat terminal 30 includes a reader / writer 31 and
The control unit 32 and the communication I / F unit 33 are included. When the customer management card is inserted when the customer is seated in the seat selected by the customer, the reader / writer 31 transmits the seat information written in the card to the reading control unit 32. The control unit 32 is a center for controlling each operation of the seat terminal 30, and controls each operation based on a control program stored in a ROM (not shown). This control unit 32
Is the seat information transmitted from the reader / writer 31 and the terminal number of the seat terminal 40 (a unique number different for each seat terminal)
It is determined whether or not there is a match, and if there is a match, the menu information recorded in the customer management card is further read by the reader / writer 31 and the menu information is sent to the center terminal 20 via the communication I / F unit 33. Control to send. When the seat information transmitted from the reader / writer 31 and the terminal number of the seat terminal 40 do not match, the control unit 32 uses a speaker or a display unit (not shown) to generate a warning alarm or a warning message. Notify customers that their seats are different.

The clerk terminal 40 has a display / operation unit 41, a control unit 42, and a communication I / F unit 43.
The clerk terminal 40 is a terminal device carried by each clerk. The display operation unit 41 displays additional order information, serving completion information, a seat preparation completion information input screen, a current serving status confirmation screen, and the like. The control unit 42 is a center that controls each operation of the clerk terminal 40, and controls each operation based on a control program stored in a ROM (not shown). The communication I / F unit 43 transmits, from the center terminal 20, a confirmation screen such as the current distribution status in response to data transmission of additional order information and distribution completion information input by the clerk to the center terminal 20 and inquiries from the clerk. Controls data transmission and reception.

FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a concrete example of the customer management card. As shown in FIG. 2, the customer management card 1
A rewritable printing layer A (such as a reversible thermosensitive recording layer) is formed on the ticket face of No. 00, a seat number (table No. 20) designated by the customer, an ordered menu (coffee 4), and date and time information (2001.02). .14 10:00) is printed. In addition, this customer management card 100
Is equipped with a magnetic recording layer (not shown) or an IC chip, and the same information as the information printed on the face of the ticket is written by the card issuing unit 15 of the card issuing terminal 10.

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing an example of a seat selection screen displayed on the display unit of the card issuing terminal. The card issuing terminal 10 acquires the current seat information managed by the seat management unit 22 of the center terminal 20 via the communication line when the customer visits the store, and displays the table status display screen as shown in FIG. 3 on the display unit 11. To do.

On this display screen, the layout of the seats (tables) actually arranged in the store is displayed,
The available seats are marked with a "○" mark and the number of people available is displayed, and the seats currently in use are marked with an "x" mark and the number of available people is displayed. If you select items such as "No smoking", "Smoking", "Infant", "Seat reservation", and "Waiting status" displayed on the right side of the screen, "○" will be displayed for seats available under each condition. Marks and unusable seats are displayed with an "x" mark.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an operation example of the card issuing terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention. First,
When the customer comes to the store, the card issuing terminal 10 acquires the current seat information managed by the seat management unit 22 of the center terminal 20 and displays a seat selection screen prompting the customer to select a seat.
(Step S11).

When the customer selects a desired seat from the seat selection screen, the card issuing terminal 10 transmits the seat selection information to the center terminal 20 and displays the order (menu) selection screen on the display unit 11. (Step S1
2).

When the customer selects a desired menu from the menu screen, the card issuing terminal 10 writes the seat information and the menu selected by the card issuing unit 15 on the customer management card and prints it on the card surface. Then, the card is issued (step S13).

In the above embodiment, the seat selection screen is displayed first, but the menu screen may be displayed first, and the setting can be changed appropriately.

FIG. 5 is a flow chart showing an operation example of the customer management system according to the embodiment of the present invention. In addition,
This operation example shows the operation after the customer management card is already issued by the card issuing terminal and the customer is seated.

In FIG. 5, first, when the customer sits in the seat designated by the customer, the customer management card 100 is inserted into the reader / writer 31 provided in the seat terminal 30 (step S21). Next, the reader / writer 31 reads the seat number recorded in the customer management card 100, transmits it to the control unit 32 together with the terminal number of the seat terminal 30, and the control unit 31 collates the seat number ( Step S22).

In step S22, if the seat number and the terminal number do not match (step S22 / mismatch), the customer is informed of a different seat by an alarm sound or a voice message (step S24), and the reader / writer. The customer management card 100 inserted in 31 is returned (step S25).

If the seat number and the terminal number match in step S22 (step S22 / match),
The reader / writer 31 reads the menu information recorded on the customer management card 100, and the center terminal 20
(Step S23). The menu information transmitted to the center terminal 20 is instructed by the kitchen to cook the dish desired by the customer.

The center terminal 20 determines whether or not the food has been served (step S26), and if it has not been served (step S26 / No), it determines whether or not there is an additional order (step S27).

In step S26, when the serving of the food is completed (step S26 / Yes), or
In step S27, if there is an additional order (step S27 / Yes), the serving completion information or the additional order information is input from the clerk terminal 40 carried by the clerk (step S28). The serving completion information or additional order information input from the clerk terminal is transmitted to the center terminal (step S29). Further, the additional order information is written in the customer management card 100 inserted in the reader / writer 31 of the seat terminal 30 (step S30).

The seat terminal 30 is a customer management card 100.
It is confirmed whether or not the food has been extracted from the reader / writer 31 (step S31), and if it has not been extracted (step S31 / No), whether all the ordered foods have not been served yet When it is determined that the user is seated, the process proceeds to step S26.

In step S31, the center terminal 20
If the customer management card 100 is removed from the reader / writer 31 (step S31 / Yes), it is determined that the customer has left the seat, that is, it is determined that the customer finishes eating and returns home, and the seat number is set. After the display, the fact that the meal is finished is displayed (step S32), and the clerk is urged to prepare (clean up) the seat.

In step S32, the center terminal 20
The clerk who confirms the seat number at the end of the meal displayed on the operation unit 24 of No. 1 transmits the fact that seat preparation is completed from the clerk terminal 40 to the center terminal 20 after clearing the table of the seat number. Yes (step S33). When the center terminal 20 receives from the clerk terminal 40 that the seat preparation is completed, the center terminal 20 notifies the seat management unit 22 that the seat with the seat number is empty and updates the seat information.

The customer is the reader / writer 3 of the seat terminal 30.
When the customer management card 31 is removed from the card 1, the customer carries the card and goes to checkout, and the charging process is performed based on the menu information (information ordered by the customer) recorded on the customer management card 100 (step S34). ). Specifically, the ordered menu recorded in the customer management card 100 is read by the reader / writer provided in the cash register, and the total meal price is calculated.

The above-described embodiment is a preferred embodiment of the present invention, and various modifications can be carried out without departing from the gist of the present invention. For example, the present system can be applied in various forms other than the seats of restaurants.

[0044]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the present invention, when a customer enters a restaurant or the like, a service that allows the customer to select a desired seat from the seats currently available is provided. Therefore, it is possible to improve customer satisfaction and significantly increase the number of customers.

Further, according to the present invention, when presenting the information on the currently vacant seats, it is possible to present the information excluding reserved seats and seats that are not currently available due to desired circumstances. Show the seats,
By displaying only the arbitrarily designated seats at midnight, it is possible to save costs such as turning off unnecessary lights.

Further, according to the present invention, since confirmation such as guidance from selection of seats, first order, and end of meal can be confirmed on the center terminal, the labor of the clerk can be greatly reduced.

Further, according to the present invention, since all the menu information that has been served is recorded in the customer management card,
Since there is no need for handwritten slips required at the time of accounting as in the past, it is possible to greatly reduce the probability of calculation error compared to the case where each menu is calculated manually. A speedy clearing process can be realized.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a customer management system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view showing an example of a customer management card.

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing an example of a seat selection screen.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an operation example of a card issuing terminal.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an operation example of the customer management system according to the embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

10 card issuing terminals 11 Display 12 Input section 13 Control unit 14 Communication I / F section 15 Card issuing department 20 center terminals 21 Communication control unit 22 Seat Management Department 23 Control unit 24 Operation part 30 seat terminal 31 Reader / Writer 32 control unit 33 Communication I / F section 40 clerk terminal 41 Display operation unit 42 Control unit 43 Communication I / F

Claims (10)

[Claims] 1. A customer management system for managing the status of a plurality of seats installed in a store by using a customer management card having an information recording area. 2. The customer management system comprises: a card issuing terminal for issuing the customer management card; and a center terminal for managing information on the plurality of seats (seat information) connected via a communication line. The customer management system according to claim 1, wherein the customer management system is provided. 3. The card issuing terminal includes first communication means for performing data communication with the center terminal via the communication line, and the seat managed by the center terminal via the first communication means. Display means for acquiring and displaying information, input means for selecting and inputting a desired seat position from the seat information displayed on the display means, and information on the desired seat position input by the input means And a communication control means for controlling data communication with the card issuing terminal via the communication line. The customer management system according to claim 2, further comprising: a seat management unit that manages seat information. 4. The customer management system has a seat terminal for each of the plurality of seats arranged via the communication line, and the seat terminal performs data communication with the center terminal via the communication line. Second communication means for performing, reader / writer means for reading or writing the information recording area of the customer management card, information on the desired seat position read by the reader / writer means, and each seat terminal 4. The customer management system according to claim 3, further comprising: a determination unit that determines whether or not the seat terminal information is unique to the. 5. The seat terminal, when the information of the desired seat position and the seat terminal information are not matched by the determination means, a message or a warning sound indicating that the seat is not selected by the input means. The customer management system according to claim 4, further comprising an informing unit for informing. 6. The center terminal has operation means for changing the setting of availability of the plurality of seats installed, and is managed by the seat management means on the basis of the setting changed by the operation means. The customer management system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the seat information stored therein is updated. 7. The customer management system has a clerk terminal carried by a clerk, and the clerk terminal has input means for inputting additional order information, serving completion information, a serving confirmation request, and seat preparation completion information, 7. The transmission means for transmitting the additional order information, the seat preparation completion information, and the serving confirmation request input by the input means to the center terminal.
Customer management system described in section. 8. The customer according to claim 1, wherein the center terminal manages the situation of the customer based on a mounting state of the customer management card on the seat terminal. Management system. 9. A card issuing terminal for issuing a customer management card having an information recording area, a center terminal for managing information (seat information) of a plurality of seats arranged in a store, and a seat provided for each seat. A processing method of a customer management system in which a terminal is connected via a communication line, wherein the card issuing terminal obtains and displays the seat information from the center terminal, and a display step, An input step of selecting and inputting a desired seat position from the displayed seat information, and recording information of the desired seat position input by the input step in an information recording area of the customer management card, A card issuing step of issuing the customer management card, wherein the center terminal is configured to execute the customer management issued to the seat terminal in the issuing step. A determining step for determining the seat status based on whether or not a card for use is inserted, and an updating step for updating the seat information managed by the seat managing means based on the determination result of the determining step. A method of processing a customer management system characterized by the above. 10. A card issuing terminal for issuing a customer management card having an information recording area, a center terminal for managing information (seat information) of a plurality of seats arranged in a store, and a seat provided for each seat. A program of a customer management system in which a terminal and a terminal are connected via a communication line, wherein the card issuing terminal obtains and displays the seat information from the center terminal, and displays by the display processing. Input processing for selecting and inputting a desired seat position from the seat information that has been recorded, and recording the information of the desired seat position input by the input processing in the information recording area of the customer management card,
A card issuing process for issuing the customer management card; and a determining process for determining the seat status on the center terminal based on whether the customer management card is inserted in the seat terminal, A program for a customer management system, which executes update processing for updating seat information managed by the seat management means based on the determination result of the determination processing.