Data processing: financial – business practice – management – or co – For cost/price
Reexamination Certificate
1998-08-31
2002-05-28
Trammell, James P. (Department: 2161)
Data processing: financial, business practice, management, or co
For cost/price
C705S022000, C235S383000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06397199
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to transaction processing systems, and more specifically to a system and method of altering transaction terms based upon current inventory levels.
Point-of-sale (POS) transaction processing systems typically include a price look-up (PLU) file which contains item identification information and item price information. They also typically include an inventory file which is updated with each rental or purchase.
In some retail establishments, there is a need to sell or rent under different pricing strategies based upon inventory levels. For example, a video rental establishment may have various rental terms for various categories of video rentals. New movies may be single day rentals at one price. Older releases may be week long rentals at a second price. Children's videos may be rented for yet a different period of time at a different price.
However, as inventory levels change, there is a need to change the price or rental period. If the inventory level of one category of video is low, then the retailer may wish to shorten the rental period or increase the rental price. If the inventory level is high, the retailer may wish to lengthen the rental period or decrease the rental price.
Constantly implementing changes in rental terms throughout the video rental establishment would be difficult, since signs would have to be posted and changed for each change in rental terms.
Therefore, it would be desirable to provide a system and method of altering transaction terms which can display current transaction rental terms in real time.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with the teachings of the present invention, a system and method of altering transaction terms based upon current inventory levels is provided.
The system includes a plurality of electronic price labels associated with a plurality of rental items for displaying rental terms of the rental items including price information and rental period information, a storage medium containing a plurality of threshold inventory ranges and a plurality of prices associated with the inventory ranges and a plurality of rental periods associated with the inventory ranges, and a computer which determines first inventory levels for the rental items and first inventory ranges from the current inventory levels at first rental terms including first prices and first rental periods and which determines second inventory levels and second threshold inventory ranges from the second inventory levels for the rental items and which whether to replace the first prices with second prices and the first rental periods with second rental periods if the second inventory ranges differ from the first inventory ranges, and which sends a message to the electronic price labels to display second rental terms including the second prices and the second rental periods.
The method includes the steps of establishing a plurality of different transaction terms for the item at a plurality of different threshold inventory levels, determining a first inventory level and a first threshold inventory level associated with the first inventory level and a first transaction term for the item from the first threshold inventory level, determining a second inventory level and second threshold inventory level for the item, and comparing the first and second threshold inventory levels. If the e first and second threshold inventory levels are different, the method further includes the steps of determining a second transaction term for the item from the second threshold inventory level and replacing the first transaction term with the second transaction term, and displaying the second term by an electronic price label associated with the item.
It is accordingly an object of the present invention to provide a system and method of altering transaction terms based upon current inventory levels.
It i s another object of the present invention to provide a system and method of altering transaction terms based upon current inventory levels w which does not require additional labor costs.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a system and method of altering transaction terms based upon current inventory levels which employs an EPL system to display the new transaction terms.
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Dixon Thomas A.
Martin Paul W.
NCR Corporation
Trammell James P.
LandOfFree
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