Patent Abstract:
This invention provides a system and a method for online, web-based point of sale (POS) building and configuration, which can assist non-expert business operators in building, editing and testing a point of sale system to manage their businesses. The business operations range from a single branch to a large chain of stores or branches. The key advantages of the Web-based POS builder are that it is completely built on the foundation of the Web. The POS builder is accessible anywhere in the world. It can be used by a person of any skill level. The POS builder builds, edits, and tests new POS terminals in real time.

Full Description:
This is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/012,666, filed on Feb. 5, 2008, which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety, and assigned to a common assignee. 
     RELATED PATENT APPLICATIONS 
     This application is related to Ser. No. 11,710,722, filed on Feb. 26, 2007, and Ser. No. 11,710,723, filed on Feb. 26, 2007, which are herein incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Field of the Invention 
     This invention relates to a system and a method for building a point of sale (POS) system to manage business operations. The business operations range from a single branch to a large chain of stores or branches. 
     More particularly this invention relates to an online, web-based point of sale builder method, which can assist non-expert business operators in assembling a point of sale system to manage their businesses. 
     Description of Related Art 
     Current practice in the field of assembling point of sale systems includes manually coding front-of-screen information. Typically, this front-of-screen information contains menu selections, page selections, and general answers to business questions. This front-of-screen menu is typically manually coded by a business expert with the help of a programmer or data expert. Also, currently the entry of this front-of-screen information requires intimate knowledge of a complex interface to a front-of-screen programming language. In summary, current practice includes the manual building of a point of sale (POS) screen. This manual process requires defining the position and operation of touch screen keys and their database correspondence. Currently, only specially trained people can build or change POS screens. This manual POS building and editing is prone to mistakes and is time-consuming. Since POS screen changes are difficult and prone to error, store owners tend to retain older, inaccurate, out-of-date POS screens in order to avoid the POS screen editing process. Also, current POS screen editing occurs off-line with the testing of the screens occurring at a later date, at a remote store location. The following references represent prior art in the field of screen configuration building. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,818,428 (Eisenbrandt et al.) describes a control system with a user configurable interface, particularly suitable for use in connection with appliances. Users can configure display screens either at a point of sale location or at home with a personal computer. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 6,629,080 B1 (Kolls) describes a universal advertising and payment system and method for networking, monitoring and advancing electronic commerce and controlling vending equipment. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 7,051,091 B1 (Cohen et al.) discloses a configuration builder useful in configuring software containing hardware units which are serviced by a center which services a multiplicity of similar units having a plurality of different configurations. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,987,426 (Goodwin) describes a system and method of transferring information between a first software application and a second software application which employ an isolation layer. The system includes a client computer system provided by a first seller of computer systems, including a client software application, and a server computer system provided by a second seller of computer system. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is the objective of this invention to provide a system and a method for building a point of sale (POS) system to manage business operations. The business operations range from a single branch to a large chain of stores or branches. 
     It is further an object of this invention to provide an online, web-based point of sale builder system and method, which can assist non-expert or expert business operators in assembling a point of sale system to manage their businesses. This point of sale building operation can be done in real time from anywhere in the world. 
     The objects of this invention are achieved by a web-based point of sale (POS) builder comprising one or more point of sale terminals, which display POS, screens, an Internet connection to a web server, one or more local or remote PC workstations, and point of sale builder software which runs on said web server. Local or remote workstations can be utilized to build or edit said POS terminals in real time, from anywhere in the world and over the world-wide web. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  shows a typical point of sale touch screen for a pretzel store, as an example only. 
         FIG. 2  shows a typical touch screen for the drinks panel of a pizza restaurant, as an example only. 
         FIG. 3  is a system diagram for web-based back office which supports point of sale terminals. 
         FIG. 4 a    is a sample screen builder panel before the screen building process begins. 
         FIG. 4 b    is a sample screen builder panel after the screen building process is under way. 
         FIG. 5  is a high level flowchart which illustrates the main embodiment of the screen building process. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       FIG. 1  shows a typical point of sale (POS) touch screen for, as an example only, a pretzel store. There are touch keys for pretzels  11  and for drinks  12 . Selecting these keys would typically bring up secondary screens displaying specific product keys for ordering different types of pretzels and drinks respectively. In addition, the screen in  FIG. 1  has some specific pretzel product keys  13  and specific pretzel topping keys  14 . Currently in the prior art, a touch screen as shown in  FIG. 1  is manually configured by a programmer who knows the specific proprietary point of sale system used by a store or business. The  FIG. 1  screen design involves the specific key layout and size of keys. In addition, the  FIG. 1  screen keys must have corresponding hooks or references to product data such as item name, price, cost, group, taxable, and inventory as shown in  FIG. 4 . In this invention, this product data and the touch key structure is stored in relational databases in the back office which is stored on the web servers  36  shown in  FIG. 3 . 
     As an example only,  FIG. 2  shows a touch screen for the drinks page of a pizza restaurant. Again in the prior art, a specialized programmer had to design the layout and data for these POS touch keys. Typically, the programmer is located remotely from the store or business. He or she must learn about the store&#39;s POS requirements via phone calls, emails, and meetings with store operators. In addition, the programmer would need to iterate several passes of the touch screen design and allow the store operator to test the screens. With this invention, the store operator will be able to build his POS screens online over the Internet. With input from the store operator, the POS builder can specify and display the number, shape and arrangement of selection keys or buttons on said POS screens. The store operator, who does not have to be technically trained, will be able to edit and test his screens until he is satisfied with the end results. The testing of said POS screens can be done iteratively by the store operator in real time while said POS terminals are simultaneously in use during store and business operation hours or after store hours. Alternatively, the testing of said POS screens can be done iteratively by a remotely located person such as a store manager or director in real time while said POS terminals are simultaneously in use during store hours or after store hours. All backoffice changes which include screen changes, price changes, employee validation changes are submitted to a batch bucket or queue. These changes have to be submitted for final posting at a scheduled time. For example, the phasing in of new screens and/or new data such as prices and employee validation can be scheduled. The time schedule for uploading or posting these screen changes and/or new data can be specified as follows. Only as examples, the changes can take place after the present transactions are completed. Alternatively, the changes can take place at the end of the business day, during the night, at the start of the next day or at the next application restart for example. Typically, screen changes will take place at the next application start at the beginning of a business day. 
     This automatic online POS builder will reduce the development time for POS screens by weeks. In addition, the store operator will be able to edit the POS screens and its relational databases any time as often as desired. In addition, the store operator will be able to edit, change and test the screens within minutes in real time. The store operator can iterate these changes instantly until he gets the desired screen appearance. This real-time testing and iteration of screen designs is an important feature of this invention. This feature motivates the store operator to keep his screens up to date and accurate. Previously, the store operator would avoid updating screens, since it involved the time and expense of working with programmers off line. 
       FIG. 3  shows a high level diagram of this invention. There are N POS terminals (POS  1 , POS  2  . . . POS N) in “Store”  31  and in “Store N”  32 . POS  31  is in Store  1  and POS  2  ( 32 ) is in Store  2 . Each POS includes personal computer hardware and software. Additional POS terminals beyond those shown, as well as additional stores beyond the two shown, are within the scope of the invention. Each POS normally operates with a hardware/software connection  35  to the Internet or Web. However, if the web goes down, the POS terminal continues to operate. There is a “loose coupling” of the POS to the back office (BO): the POS to BO connection is not required for the basic business functions of the POS. All transaction data is stored in a relational database on the hard drive in the POS. 
     A relational database stores all of its data inside tables. All operations on data are done on the tables themselves. Some operation produce other tables as the result. A table is a set of rows and columns. Each row is a set of columns with only one value for each. All rows from the same table have the same set of columns, although some columns may have NULL values. A NULL value is an “unknown” value. The rows from a relational table are analogous to a record, and the columns are analogous to a field. Below is an example of a relational table. 
                                                                                
There are two basic operations one can perform on a relational table. The first one is retrieving a subset of its columns. The second is retrieving a subset of its rows. The field names such as company describe the content of the columns of the relational table. The rows delineate the individual records stored in the relational tables.
 
     As transactions are created at a POS a log entry for the newest transaction is also created, this log entry is used to flag if the transaction has been uploaded to the web server. Part of the POS application, the BO interface is continuously running in the background. This component reads the log of transactions. If a transaction needs to be sent, it tries to send it. If the send fails (for example, if the connection to, or the Internet itself, is down), it goes to sleep and tries again later. Additionally, the BO interface requests update from the BO such as new items, price changes, employees, etc. The POS terminals communicate via HTTP protocol (hypertext transfer protocol)  35  with Back-office BO software, which is implemented on web servers  36 , which can be located anywhere in the world. In addition, the BO software and data can be viewed from any store employee at any PC  33  who has Internet access  37  and a password. 
     The POS such as  31  send transaction data to the BO in the form of an HTTP post or communication. The packet  35  sent from the POS to the BO consists of transactions, employee clock, customer add/update, item add/update, promotions and more. Promotions are configured in the back office and associated with items or customers or departments. For example, a promotion may be associated with a customer to implement customer loyalty points or a promotion may be associated with a certain item for a % discount. A client who is the store manager or owner selects a promotion type, associates it with an item, department, etc, then sets the parameters that control how that promotion works. These transaction transmissions between the POS and the BO can be encrypted to insure privacy and security. A typical encryption method is 128 bit SSL (secure sockets layer). A further element of security is that each BO client (individual POS, store or multi-store owner) gets their own instance of a database. When they log into the BO they are attached to their own relational database associated and validated via their user login and password. 
       FIGS. 4 a  and 4 b    show a typical web-based POS builder interface.  FIG. 4 a    shows a grid of boxes labeled with screen numbers  1 - 4 . Typically, screens will have screen names such as in  21 , “Subs”. Under each screen box column are boxes labeled “Add Item”. These boxes allow the addition of different products such as small pizza, large pizza, etc. as shown in  FIG. 4 b   .  FIG. 4 b    shows the data interface which would appear when selecting the large pizza box. The store operator would be able to enter and/or modify item name, price, cost, group, taxable and inventory. The above illustrates the ease of building POS screens by store operators via the Web. 
       FIG. 5  shows a flowchart of the point of sale builder methodology. The flow in  FIG. 5  also refers to  FIGS. 4 a  and 4 b   . The Begin POS Build block  51  is entered when the Builder Program is initiated  50  from a Web page action. 
     When creating a new POS, Block  51  brings up a screen such as that shown in  FIG. 4 a   . The screens in  FIG. 4 a    need to be defined. Block  53  allows the store operator to select which screen number to define.  FIG. 4 b    shows what appears on the Web screen after the store operator selects screen # 1  ( 53 ) to work on. In  FIG. 5 , Block  54  allows the store operator to enter/edit the screen name being worked on, such as pizza, as an example only, in  FIG. 4 b   . In  FIG. 5 , block  54  allows the store operator to enter the number of touch keys planned for the pizza screen, as an example only. 
       FIG. 4 b    shows the screen after a few touch screen buttons have been defined. Screen  1  has been labeled Pizza. The pizza screen in  FIG. 4 b    currently has  1  touch screen button item defined on the screen, Large pizza  22 . The Large Pizza item button was entered by hitting ADD Item  20  in  FIG. 4 a   . After hitting add item,  FIG. 4 b    appears with the template  23  to be filled in. This step is shown in block  56  of  FIG. 5 . The template includes Item Name, Price, Cost, Group, Taxable, Inventory. Item Name is Large Pizza. Price is easily changeable, Cost is the cost of making materials. Group is the Pizza Group, Taxable is as yes or no selection. Inventory can be used to monitor the number of Large Pizza&#39;s makeable with the dough, cheese and sauce on hand. Other Template items can be added to the template  23  in  FIG. 4   b.    
     In  FIG. 5 , block  57  asks whether the screen being worked on i.e.) Pizza Screen is done. If the store operator answers yes  59 , the flowchart flows to Node  52  in  FIG. 5 . This allows the store operator to select another screen # as shown in  FIG. 4 a   . If the store operator answers no  58 , the flowchart flows to Node  55  in  FIG. 5 . This allows the store operator to select, add, or edit another item on the pizza screen. 
     The key advantages of the Web-based POS builder are that it is completely built on the foundation of the Web. The POS builder is accessible anywhere in the world. It can be used by a person of any skill level. The POS builder builds, edits, and tests new POS terminals in real time. In addition, all screen designs and changes are reflected real-time into the back office (BO) server&#39;s screen database. For example, all screen designs inputted from any PC in the world appear instantly in the BO screen database, which is instantly viewable anywhere in the world via web browsers. Another big advantage is that all screen design software is located and executed in the BO server. Since all screen designs and changes are immediately visible from any manager&#39;s PC at their home or at headquarters, there is always management oversight of these changes. Therefore, this screen builder allows for local in-store flexibility by the individual store operator or manager, but also provides for corporate visibility of screens instantly for control and standardization. Also, this screen builder does not require the need for any server to be located in the store. Another advantage of this system is the use of standard PC and web architecture which offers both full-scalability without degrading system performance. This results in improved performance and lower cost of implementing these business systems. There is a lower cost associated with projects developed with the technology of this invention due to the flexibility of easy design changes and well-understood software. There is less training required for programmers and system testers. Projects can draw on the huge talent pool in the open source development community. The invention allows configurable software modules for different types of businesses and sales promotions. The invention allows remote monitoring of screen designs from anywhere via the web. There is minimal time required for the implementation and installation of the POS builder system, since the POS builder setup is as basic as a home PC setup. Another advantage is that the POS builder system can be provided as a service or deployed within a corporation. For example, Software as a Service (SAAS) is a software distribution model in which applications are hosted by a vendor or service provider and made available to customers over a network, typically the Internet. Another advantage of this invention is that the POS builder system is maintained in customer centric databases, making it impossible for customers to see other&#39;s data. Each POS builder system client gets their own instance of a database. When they log into the BO they are attached to their own relational database associated and validated via their user login and password. 
     While this invention has been particularly shown and described with Reference to the preferred embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those Skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made without Departing from the spirit and scope of this invention.

Technology Classification (CPC): 6