Merchandising – Customer service – Dining room service
Reexamination Certificate
2001-02-12
2003-06-24
Kramer, Dean J. (Department: 3652)
Merchandising
Customer service
Dining room service
C186S049000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06581727
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a restaurant or eating establishment of the type provided with a rotary catering table system or equipment having a rotary conveyer lane disposed in a top area of a base stand and on which merchandise items are conveyed around. In particular, the invention relates to a method of and apparatus for serving merchandise items whereby merchandise items on the rotary conveyer lane that are becoming short of supply in type and number can be automatically replenished, the presence of merchandise items that are deteriorating in freshness can be alerted to and in turn merchandise items that are abundant in type can be served efficiently. The present invention also relates to a merchandise item management system that can automatically manage merchandise items according to such merchandise supply by a method and in an apparatus as described and can automatically order needed merchandise item materials from suppliers.
2. Description of the Prior Art
So far, in a restaurant or eating establishment in which a rotary catering table system is installed, merchandise items which are typically “sushi” items have commonly been conveyed and served each as placed on a merchandise item tray to pass around a loop on the rotary conveyer path or lane (hereinafter simply referred to as rotary conveyer).
In serving merchandise items, it has been the practice to preliminarily distribute merchandise items of several types with each type of merchandise items in a given number throughout the rotary conveyer that is moving and turning round. The merchandise items reduced in number as they are taken by guests and have thus become short in number on the rotary conveyer are checked for each type by an operator in glancing over the entire area of the rotary conveyer. For each type that is becoming short, fresh merchandise items are prepared each time the shortage is seen, and are replenished on the rotary conveyer.
Also, when merchandise items are so replenished, it is often the case that enough space is not left in the area on the rotary conveyer where merchandise item trays are lacking.
It has then been the traditional practice for the operator to temporarily hold up the succeeding merchandise item tray or trays by hand to create enough space for supply and then to supply the space with a plurality of fresh merchandise item trays of a given merchandise item type.
To improve the servability of merchandise items, it has been commenced to use a processing apparatus such as a computer and to display on a monitor merchandise items to be replenished for indication to an operator.
Also, in order for a sushi merchandise item to be eaten with gusto, it has been known to be optimum if its “shari” (boiled and vinegared rice) is at body temperature (a temperature around 25 to 35° C.) and its “neta” (material) such as “sashimi” (a slice of raw fish) is cold in temperature.
Also, to manage freshness of sushi merchandise items, it has been the conventional practice to rely on the visual observation by an operator. And, if sushi merchandise items are found that remain uneaten by guests for long and are thus so reduced in freshness that their “neta's” are drying and tend to be dehydrated and their “shari” becomes cold, they are withdrawn or recovered.
Also, to ease checking a charge for merchandise items taken by a guest, it has in recent years become common to fit each merchandise item with an ID medium having merchandise item data such as a price of a merchandise item stored therein and to read the merchandise item data from the ID medium using a reader.
Also, in managing merchandise items in a restaurant, it has been the practice that its owner or a person in charge manages sales for merchandise items every day and in the next morning goes to a market to get fresh cooking materials such as fresh raw fish as needed type by type and consumables such as soy sauce each time or calls to suppliers to have them delivered each time.
As mentioned above, to identify what type of merchandise items is becoming of short supply, insofar as the need has so far existed as mentioned above for each individual operator to glance over the entire crescent chain conveyer, it is found to be difficult for an operator, especially to an unskilled operator, to seize in a moment what type of merchandise items is becoming short. This has become a problem.
Also, in the process of replenishing merchandise items, supplying a plurality of merchandise item trays of one given merchandise item type simultaneously at a site makes a series of offered merchandise items less diversified, and creates the tendency for only merchandise items of that one given type to continue to be conveyed passing around. A situation then arises that a guest must wait for a long time before a merchandise item that he favors arrives in front and is thus prevented from enjoying his dining experience. This has been found to leave much to be desired as for the turnover of guests.
Also, in determining types of merchandise items to be offered, reliance has been made wholly on the operator's rule of thumb. As a result, there may be a failure to offer merchandise items in accord with the season, time zone and guest class, thus creating the problem that the sales figures do not rise as much as expected.
Also, if a processing apparatus is used to determine types of merchandise items, the operator's rule of thumb must be relied on to make entry in the processing apparatus. Consequently, it has still been difficult to offer merchandise items well in accord with the season, time zone (i.e. time of day) and guest class.
Also, if the processing apparatus is used to indicate the types of merchandise items to be replenished, displaying them on the monitor requires an operator to prepare them upon checking on the monitor, to look for spaces to be supplied with them on the rotary conveyer and then to distribute them in those spaces. As a result, considerable skill is still necessary, namely in the two checking operations to check on the monitor and to look for the spaces. Thus, an unskilled operator cannot raise his working efficiency in any way and this has presented a problem, too.
Also, as sushi merchandise items are being conveyed to pass around on the rotary conveyer they lose their freshness as time elapses so that their neta's are drying and tend to be dehydrated and their shari becomes cold. As a consequence, they become less tasty to eat over time, and this has become a problem, too.
For this reason, trays loaded thereon with those sushi merchandise items deteriorating in freshness with neta's loosing moisture and shari loosing warmth are withdrawn. In withdrawing such trays, while a practice has been made of observing the length of time or the number of times they are passed around on the rotary conveyer as suited according to types of merchandise items, changes in temperature and humidity by season have required operators to learn and master as a rule of thumb such lengths of time and numbers of times that are optimum depending on the season, which has made operations of withdrawal very troublesome to an operator who is less experienced. Also, a sushi items if left to turn around for a length of time or a number of times in excess of a threshold extent and then eaten may even hygienically impose a danger of food poisoning on guests. These have been recognized to be problems, too.
Also, in managing and especially laying merchandise items in a restaurant, there also remains the inconvenience that its owner or a person in charge must go to a market to get cooking materials as needed type by type and each time or make calls to suppliers to have them delivered each time.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is accordingly an object of the present invention to provide a method of and apparatus for serving merchandise items which method and apparatus enable merchandise items that are becoming short in supply on the rotary conveyer to be automatically replenished on the rotary conv
Japan Crescent Co., Ltd.
Kramer Dean J.
Wenderoth , Lind & Ponack, L.L.P.
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