JPH04340691A - Automatic ticket vending machine - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an automatic ticket vending machine that allows a user to manually change or cancel a reserved seat for an issued ticket.

0002

[Prior Art] A conventional device is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 54-70900.
As stated in the issue, it was a dedicated machine for selling reserved seat tickets, which the user operated by themselves and sold reserved seat tickets by inserting cash.

0003

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] In the above-mentioned conventional technology, consideration is not given to cases where a passenger changes the train he or she wishes to ride after making a purchase, or where the customer mistakenly specifies a train. There was a problem where it was not possible to cancel or change trains. An object of the present invention is to solve the problems of the prior art described above.

0004

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to achieve the above object, there is provided a means for reading or discarding a sold ticket when it is inserted, a display means, and a user displayed on the display means. An input means for inputting information according to a guidance screen that guides the operation, and a control section are provided, and when a change or cancellation of a reserved seat is selected by the input means, the control section responds to the user's instructions input from the input means. Accordingly, the reservation center processes the change or cancellation of the reserved seat, issues a new ticket and/or cancels the inserted ticket, and processes the refund or payment of the missing amount. . Furthermore, by providing a card mechanism and a statement printing mechanism, it is possible to process money not only with cash but also with cards, and to issue statement slips with printed payment details.

[0005]

[Operation] When the user inserts a ticket and issues an instruction from the input means, the control means causes the reservation center to change the reservation details or cancel the reservation based on the ticket read data and the instructions. Under the control of the control means, ticket issuance, ticket cancellation, and monetary settlement, refund, and deposit are performed. Furthermore, if the card is used, refunds and deposits will be made to the card.

[0006]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows the external configuration of an automatic ticket vending machine of the present invention, and FIG. 2 shows the block configuration of the device. The automatic ticket vending machine 1 has a display 2 that displays customer guidance, a touch panel 3 placed on top of the display 2 so that the input areas overlap, and a display that prints tickets (reserved seat tickets, boarding passes, etc.). A ticket issuing unit 4 that issues a ticket, a reading/cancelling unit 5 that reads an issued ticket once it is inserted and prints an obsolete mark on the ticket when canceling the ticket, and a banknote calculator that settles the price of the ticket. 6, a coin counter 7, a card mechanism 8 capable of handling credit cards, a statement printing mechanism 11, and a control unit 9 consisting of a microprocessor, a storage unit, etc. that controls these, and a reservation system. It is connected to the center 10 via a communication line. Further, the reading/cancellation unit 5 includes a ticket reading section 12 and a discarded ticket mark printing section 13.

[0007] In the automatic ticket vending machine configured in this way, the user selects cash payment or card payment according to the guidance, and after selecting cash payment, changes the designation of the ticket that has been purchased or cancels it. The case will be explained below using FIGS. 3a and 3b. first,
The ticket that the user wishes to change or cancel (
For example, when inserting (Fig. 4) into the reading/cancelling unit 5,
The ticket reading section 10 of the unit reads the contents of the ticket (boarding date, departure time, non-smoking/smoking, regular/green, seat number, etc.). The ticket reading section 10 is an OCR that reads characters printed on the ticket, or a reading section that reads a code magnetically recorded on the ticket. The departure time of the data read from the ticket is compared with the current time to confirm whether the specified train has already departed. If the train has already departed, the ticket will be returned. If the train has not departed (■), a screen (FIG. 6) is displayed on the display 2 that allows the user to select whether to change the designated train or cancel the ticket.

[0008] Here, when a change in the designated train is selected on the touch panel 3 (■), the history of the ticket is determined from the data content read from the ticket to see if the ticket has already had its designation changed. Check and compare with the standard value that allows reissue. The specified value that allows reissue here may be determined in advance for each system, and may be set one or more times. If the limit is exceeded, the ticket will be returned. If the specified value is not exceeded, a screen for changing the designated train (FIG. 7) is displayed on the display 2, and the user is prompted to select a change item.

[0009] When the user selects and inputs a change item and presses a confirmation button, an input screen for the specified change item is displayed next. For example, if a change in boarding date is selected and input, the boarding date change screen (Figure 10) is displayed and the month, day,
are input using the numeric buttons, and when the confirmation button is pressed, the input of the changed items is completed. For other input items, the contents that have already been selected and input are stored in the storage section of the control section 8, and the contents are read out to create a train reservation message. Send the train reservation message to reservation center 9 to make a reservation (■)
.

[0010] At the reservation center, if there are no vacant seats on the train the user desires and the reservation cannot be made, the ticket is returned. If you want to change the designation with other contents, you can repeat the operation from the beginning. If there is a vacant seat on the train that the user desires and it is possible to make a reservation, the automatic ticket vending machine 1 will combine the price of the ticket inserted into the automatic ticket vending machine with the price of the ticket to be reserved and issued, as the case may be. , and further calculates the difference in charges including fees. If there is no shortage of fares, the ticket issuing unit 4 prints and issues a ticket, and if there is change, it issues the change. If the fee is insufficient, a deposit screen (FIG. 8) is displayed on the display 2 to allow the user to deposit the insufficient amount (■). When the user inserts the missing money, the ticket issuing unit 4 prints and releases the ticket (■), and also releases the change if there is change. .

[0011] When a new ticket is issued, the process of canceling the ticket inserted into the automatic ticket vending machine is performed with the reservation center 9 via the communication line (■). The reservation center 9 has at least a train information file that stores seat information as shown in FIG. 5. For example, when canceling the ticket shown in FIG. The middle Hakkoda No. 1 car 2 B seat will be changed from reserved to vacant. Once the processing is completed in this way, the ticket is then transferred to the reading/cancellation unit 5 to prevent it from being reused.
The obsolete note mark is printed by the obsolete note mark printing unit 11 which is composed of a printer or a stamp or the like.

[0012] In addition, in the above, whether the designated train is changed or
On the screen for selecting whether to cancel the ticket (Figure 6), if the user selects to cancel the ticket on the touch panel 3 (■), the refund amount at the time of cancellation (for example, from the ticket price) will be displayed on the display 2. 9) and wait for the confirmation button to be pressed on the touch panel 3.

When the confirmation button (■) is pressed on the touch panel 3, the ticket cancellation process is executed with the reservation center 9 via the communication line and displayed on the display 2. The money to be returned is returned using the banknote counter 6 or the coin counter 7.

[0014]Furthermore, if the ticket read by the ticket reading section 10 does not know whether or not there is a history of changing the reserved seat, if the ticket's limited expiration date has passed, or if the ticket has a history of changing the reserved seat or not, Cancellation selection screen (Figure 6)
If the user does not select either option, the ticket will be returned.

[0015] Next, the user selects card payment according to the guidance and cancels the purchased ticket (
The case where cancellation) is performed will be explained below using FIG. 11. First, the user selects whether to issue a ticket or cancel the ticket using the touch panel 3. If ticket cancellation is selected here, the device waits for a card to be inserted.If a credit card is inserted, the device then waits for a ticket to be inserted. If you insert a ticket with a reserved seat number that you would like to cancel, for example as shown in Figure 4, the control unit 9 will immediately create a cancellation message from the card information and ticket information without entering the card password, and send it through the communication line. The message is sent to the reservation center 10.

The reservation center has at least a train information file and a credit information file as shown in FIG. The reservation center extracts the content shown in Figure 4 from the cancellation message,
The Hakkoda No. 1 car 2 No. B seat in the train information file in Figure 5 is changed from reserved to vacant. Also, the price at this time is
The refund will be made to the corresponding card area of the credit information file device. When the reservation file is updated as above,
A cancellation completion message is sent to the control unit 9. Upon receiving the message, the control section causes the discarded ticket mark printing section to print the discarded ticket mark on the ticket, causes the statement printing mechanism 11 to print the refund amount on the statement slip, and then places the ticket in the collection box. The credit card and statement slip will be issued and handed over to the customer.

In the example shown in FIG. 12, after printing the obsolete ticket mark on the ticket, the ticket is returned to the customer, and after the ticket is taken out, the credit card and statement slip are issued and handed to the customer. This is what I did. In the example shown in FIG. 13, a ticket is accepted while waiting for the card to be inserted in FIG. 10, and if the ticket is inserted first, the system is set to wait for the card to be inserted. In the example shown in FIG. 14, the system first waits for a ticket to be inserted, and when the ticket is inserted, the system waits for a card to be inserted, and the card is accepted while waiting for the ticket to be inserted.

[0018]

[Effects of the Invention] Since the present invention is constructed as described above, it promotes the following effects. By equipping the automatic ticket vending machine with a cancellation function, it is possible to cancel the issued ticket without having to go to the counter. Also,
Tickets whose reserved seats have been changed have a history of reserved seat changes, and by reading this, tickets that have been changed more than the specified number of times will not be accepted, preventing mischief, etc.
Canceled tickets are discarded to prevent fraud. In addition, we allow credit card payments, so you can choose between cash and card payments, and in the case of card payments, the payment processing can be done quickly.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an external configuration diagram of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3a is the first half of a flowchart for explaining the flow of processing in the present invention.

FIG. 3b is the second half of a flowchart for explaining the flow of processing in the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a seat reservation ticket.

FIG. 5 is a file configuration diagram of a reservation center.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing guidance screen-1.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing guidance screen-2.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing guidance screen-3.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing guidance screen-4.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing guidance screen-5.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart for explaining the flow of processing in the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart for explaining the flow of processing in the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart for explaining the flow of processing in the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart for explaining the flow of processing in the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Automatic ticket vending machine 2 Display 3 Touch panel 4 Ticketing unit 5 Read/cancel unit 6 Bill counting machine 7 Coin counting machine 8 Card mechanism 9 Control section 10 Reservation Center 11. Statement printing mechanism 12 Ticket reading section 13　Discarded ticket mark printing section

Claims (14)

[Claims] [Claim 1] An automatic ticket vending machine connected to a reservation center and operated by a user to sell reserved seat tickets, comprising a display means and an input means capable of inputting information according to a guidance screen displayed on the display means. , a reading/cancelling means for reading the inserted ticket and disposing of the ticket as a waste ticket when the ticket is cancelled, and a control means, the control means comprising:
The expiration date of the ticket is confirmed based on the ticket data read by the cancellation means, and if the expiration date is within the expiry date, selection and input of changing the reserved seat is enabled from the input means, and when the change of the reserved seat is selected. , it checks whether the ticket already has a history of changing the reserved seat, and if there is a history, it checks whether the number of changes is within the specified number of times, and if it is within the specified number of times, a guidance screen is displayed on the display means. make a new reservation for the designated seat to the reservation center based on the seat selection data entered by the user, issue a new ticket that records the updated value of the number of reissues of the inserted ticket, and issue the inserted ticket. An automatic ticket vending machine characterized in that the reserved seat of the ticket is canceled by the reservation center and the reading/cancellation means is instructed to discard the inserted ticket. [Claim 2] The automatic ticket vending machine according to claim 1,
The control means calculates a fee difference based on the fee data from the reservation center when making a new reservation, displays the difference on the display means if there is a difference, and displays the amount of the difference when the fee is insufficient. This automatic ticket vending machine is characterized in that it issues a new ticket in accordance with the insertion, and when there is an excess amount, the amount is returned at the same time as the ticket issuance. [Claim 3] An automatic ticket vending machine connected to a reservation center and operated by a user to sell reserved seat tickets, comprising a display means and an input means capable of inputting according to a guidance screen displayed on the display means. , a reading/cancelling means for reading the inserted ticket and disposing of the ticket as a waste ticket when the ticket is cancelled, and a control means, the control means comprising:
The expiration date of the ticket is checked based on the ticket data read by the cancellation means, and if the expiration date is within the expiration date, the selection input of cancellation of the ticket is enabled from the input means, and when cancellation of the ticket is selected, The automatic ticket vending machine is characterized in that the amount to be returned is displayed on the display means, the ticket is canceled at the reservation center based on the amount confirmation input from the input means, and the amount is returned. Machine. [Claim 4] The automatic ticket vending machine according to claim 1,
The control means checks the expiration date of the ticket based on the ticket data read by the reading/cancellation means, and if it is within the expiration date, enables selection input of cancellation of the ticket from the input means, and cancels the ticket. If cancellation is selected, the amount to be returned is displayed on the display means, and the ticket is canceled based on the amount confirmation input from the input means, and the amount is returned. An automatic ticket vending machine that is characterized by: [Claim 5] The automatic ticket vending machine according to claim 1,
When a ticket is inserted that has a history of reserved seat changes and has exceeded a specified number of times, or a ticket for which it is unknown whether there is a history of reserved seat changes, the control means determines the expiry date of the inserted ticket. The automatic ticket vending machine is characterized in that the inserted ticket is returned if the ticket has passed. [Claim 6] The automatic ticket vending machine according to claim 3,
The automatic ticket vending machine is characterized in that the control means returns the inserted ticket if the validity period of the inserted ticket has passed or if the amount confirmation input is not made. [Claim 7] The automatic ticket vending machine according to claim 4,
When a ticket is inserted that has a history of reserved seat changes and has exceeded a specified number of times, or a ticket for which it is unknown whether there is a history of reserved seat changes, the control means determines the expiry date of the inserted ticket. The automatic ticket vending machine is characterized in that the inserted ticket is returned if the amount has not been confirmed and the amount has not been confirmed. [Claim 8] An automatic ticket vending machine connected to a reservation center and operated by a user to sell reserved seat tickets, comprising a display means and an input means capable of inputting according to a guidance screen displayed on the display means. a reading/cancellation means for reading the inserted ticket and disposing of the ticket as a waste ticket when the ticket is cancelled, a card mechanism, a statement printing means, and a control means, the control means being configured to read the inserted ticket and discard the ticket when the ticket is cancelled, a card mechanism, a statement printing means, and a control means; When cancellation is selected, a credit card is inserted into the card mechanism, and a ticket is inserted into the reading/cancellation means, the password input of the credit card is verified based on the reading data of the inserted credit card and the ticket. without doing so, cancel the reserved seat of the inserted ticket and refund the money to the account corresponding to the inserted credit card to the reservation center, and instruct the reading/cancellation means to discard the inserted ticket; An automatic ticket vending machine characterized in that the automatic ticket vending machine instructs the statement printing means to issue a statement. [Claim 9] The automatic ticket vending machine according to claim 1,
A card mechanism and a statement printing means are provided, and the control means selects card payment and ticket issuance, and when a credit card is inserted into the card mechanism, the control means accepts payment from the credit card along with the reservation. An automatic ticket vending machine characterized in that processing is performed at the reservation center, and instructions are given to the statement printing means to issue a statement. 10. The automatic ticket vending machine according to claim 2, further comprising a card mechanism and a statement printing means, wherein the control means selects card payment and selects ticket issuance or change of reserved seat. When a credit card is inserted into the mechanism, processing of depositing money from the credit card or refunding the credit card to the credit card is performed at the reservation center along with the reservation, and the insertion into the reading/cancellation means is performed. An automatic ticket vending machine characterized in that it instructs to discard a ticket and instructs the statement printing means to issue a statement. 11. The automatic ticket vending machine according to claim 3, further comprising a card mechanism and a statement printing means, wherein the control means selects card payment, ticket issuance or cancellation, and sends a credit card to the card mechanism. When the card is inserted, the ticket is issued or canceled, and the reservation center processes the deposit from the credit card or the refund to the credit card, and the insertion into the reading/cancellation means is performed. An automatic ticket vending machine characterized in that it instructs to discard a ticket and instructs the statement printing means to issue a statement. 12. The automatic ticket vending machine according to claim 4, further comprising a card mechanism and a statement printing means, wherein the control means selects a card payment, issues a ticket, and changes or cancels a reserved seat. is selected and a credit card is inserted into the card mechanism, the reservation center is configured to perform a deposit process from the credit card or a refund process to the credit card in addition to the selected process. An automatic ticket vending machine characterized in that it instructs the reading/cancelling means to discard the inserted ticket and instructs the statement printing means to issue a statement. 13. In the automatic ticket vending machine according to any one of claims 8 to 12, the control means comprises:
If it is detected that a ticket has been inserted into the ticket insertion slot while waiting for card insertion, the system will move to the one-time ticket insertion state, and after the inserted ticket has been inserted, it will return to the card insertion waiting state. An automatic ticket vending machine characterized by accepting . 14. The automatic ticket vending machine according to any one of claims 8 to 12, wherein the control means comprises:
When it is detected that a card has been inserted into the card insertion slot while waiting for ticket insertion, the state changes to the card insertion state, and after the inserted card is inserted, the state returns to the waiting state for ticket insertion, and the ticket is inserted. An automatic ticket vending machine characterized by accepting .