Patent ID: 6021394
Filing Date: 2000-02-01
Classification: G06Q,G07F

Abstract:
A sales management method for a vending machine in which the product it vends is at least partially prepared in advance prior to the beginning of a period of time of vending the product comprising:producing, at the machine, sales information of the product vended and of the sales environment relative to the machine;establishing, at a central computer, sales estimate information of the product for the machine based on at least one of the sales information obtained from the machine and sales environment data entered in said central computer;transmitting said sales estimate information to said machine;modifying at the machine the sales estimate information received from the central computer by the sales environment information produced relative to the machine for determining the quantity of the product to be at least partially prepared at the machine; andat least partially preparing a quantity of the product to be vended based upon said sales estimate information received from said central computer.