JP3028639B2 - Register toy and barcode seal used for it - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a register toy simulating a register machine and a bar code seal used for the register toy.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, most products are provided with a bar code obtained by encoding a product code in a linear black and white pattern, and a cash register is also provided with a bar code reader for reading the product code. Is increasing.
Instead of keying in the price and type of the product as in the past, it is very common to read the barcode attached to the product and automatically enter the price and type of the purchased product into the register. I am beginning to experience it when shopping. Particularly in a so-called convenience store, a register with a barcode reader has become common in terms of product management.

[0003] On the other hand, shopping pretend as a play between children has been persistently popular. A register toy that imitates a real register is necessary to make shopping game play more interesting, and has always been a certain toy. With the recent spread of barcodes, register toys with barcode readers have also been commercialized.

[0004]

However, in the conventional register toy with a bar code reader, in order to read a bar code, the reading surface of the bar code reader must be accurately aligned with a predetermined position of a bar code seal. There was a problem. For this reason, barcodes are often not read even if they are intended to be accurately positioned, and the interest in shopping is lost, and the register toy is often mistakenly considered to be malfunctioning.

Further, since a real barcode is constituted by a linear black and white pattern, a barcode read by a register toy is also constituted by a black and white pattern which does not use colors. Although similar to a real barcode, conventional barcodes for register toys are very plain because of their black-and-white pattern, which can greatly motivate children to purchase them, especially when there are many colorful toys. It was hard to say.

An object of the present invention is to provide a register toy which can be easily read even if there is a slight displacement, and a bar code seal used for the register toy.

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a key for inputting a number, a bar code reader for inputting a bar code, and a display for displaying a key input or a bar code input number. A calculation display unit, the register toy imitating a register machine, the reading surface of the bar code reader, a plurality of bar code-like patterns arranged in a line in the bar code area of the bar code seal. A plurality of barcode sensors for detecting each are provided, each of the plurality of barcode sensors has a light-emitting element and a light-receiving element, and the plurality of barcode sensors includes a plurality of barcode sensors. The light-emitting element and the light-receiving element of each of the barcode sensors are arranged at intervals substantially corresponding to the arrangement interval of the code-shaped pattern, and the arrangement of the plurality of barcode sensors is performed. The bar code reader is arranged at right angles to the reading surface, and the reading surface of the bar code reader is provided with a photo sensor that detects that the reading surface is close to the bar code seal. Is done.

In the above-described register toy, power control means for automatically turning off the power when at least a key input from the register key is not performed for a certain period of time may be provided. In the above-described register toy, a color sensor for detecting a color of a color area of the barcode seal is provided on a reading surface of the barcode reader, and the color sensor is provided in the barcode area of the barcode seal. May be arranged so as to substantially coincide with the arrangement of the color area with respect to.

An object of the present invention is a bar code seal used for the register toy described above, wherein the plurality of bar code-like patterns arranged in the bar code area have a pattern of high density as a whole or a density as a whole. Is drawn as a low pattern, and in order to make it look like a real barcode, a pattern with high density as a whole is drawn with a thin line with low density in the direction perpendicular to the arrangement direction of the plurality of barcode sensors. This is achieved by a bar code seal characterized in that a thin line having a high density is drawn in a pattern perpendicular to the arrangement direction of the plurality of bar code sensors in the pattern having a low density. In the above-described barcode seal, a color region filled with a specific color may be further provided.

[0010]

According to the present invention, reading can be performed reliably by bringing the reading surface close to the barcode seal, and even if the position of the reading surface with respect to the barcode seal is slightly shifted, a plurality of barcode-like patterns can be reliably formed. Can be read.

[0011]

FIG. 1 shows a register toy according to an embodiment of the present invention.
This will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 1 shows the appearance of the register toy of this embodiment. A pop stand 12 on which a picture is drawn is attached to the upper left portion of the upper surface of the register toy body 10. A clip 14 for holding shopping memos or the like is attached to a lower portion of the pop stand 12. A drawer button 16 is provided below the clip 14. When the drawer button 16 is pressed, the drawer 18 jumps forward from the front of the main body.

The upper right side of the upper surface of the main body 10 is inclined,
A calculation display unit 20 for displaying the amount of money input by key input or bar code or the like is provided on the front surface of the slope.
As shown in FIG. 2A, the calculation display unit 20 according to the present embodiment is configured by a liquid crystal display element capable of displaying eight digits. A register key 22 is provided below the calculation display section 20.
Is provided. Since the present embodiment also has a calculation function, the register key 22 is composed of a total of 20 keys in 4 rows and 5 columns as shown in FIG.

The power key 22a at the upper left corner is a key to be pressed when turning on and off the power. Numeric keys 0 to 9
Reference numeral 2b denotes a key to be pressed to input a number required for calculation. The decimal point key 22c is a key pressed at the position of the decimal point. The plus key 22d is a key to be pressed at the time of addition. The minus key 22e is a key to be pressed at the time of subtraction. The multiplication key 22f is a key pressed at the time of multiplication.
The division key 22g is a key to be pressed at the time of division. The equal key 22h is a key to be pressed when seeking an answer. The all clear key 22i is a key to be pressed when an answer overflows or when a new calculation is performed. The clear key 22j is a key that is pressed to correct only a wrongly pressed number. The consumption tax key 22k is a feature of the present embodiment, and is a key to be pressed when a consumption tax is added to the displayed price. When the consumption tax key 22k is pressed, the consumption tax is automatically calculated, and the amount to which the consumption tax has been added is displayed on the calculation display unit 22.

A bar code reader holder 24 is mounted on the right side of the main body 10.
When the bar code reader is not used,
To be placed. The barcode reader 26 is connected to the main body 10. A reading surface 28 is provided on the lower surface of the tip of the barcode reader 26. FIG. 3 shows the bar code reader 26 from the reading surface 28 side.

Above the reading surface 28 of the bar code reader 26, three bar code sensors 30, 31, 32 are provided for detecting bar codes. Each barcode sensor 30, 31, 32 includes a light emitting diode 30a, 31a, 32a and a phototransistor 30b, respectively.
31b and 32b. Each of the bar code sensors 30, 31, and 32 is provided with a light emitting diode 3 so that the alignment restriction of the bar code reader 26 is relaxed.
0a, 31a, 32a and phototransistors 30b, 3b
1b and 32b are arranged in the vertical direction and are arranged as far apart from each other as possible.

A color sensor 33 for detecting a color is provided below the reading surface 28. The color sensor 33 includes a light emitting diode 33a and a phototransistor 33b. The light emitting diode 33a and the phototransistor 33b are arranged in the horizontal direction so as to be as far away from the barcode sensors 30, 31, and 32 as possible. A proximity sensor 34 for detecting that the reading surface 28 has approached the bar code seal is disposed on the right side of the color sensor 33. The proximity sensor 34 includes only the phototransistor 34a.

In this embodiment, a red light emitting diode that emits red light is used as the light emitting diode 33a of the color sensor 33. This makes it possible to distinguish red from other colors, for example, green, a complementary color of red. FIGS. 4 and 5 show specific examples of the barcode seal in this embodiment. The eight relatively dark barcode seals shown in FIG. 4 have a basic color of pink, and the eight relatively light barcode seals shown in FIG. 5 have a basic color of yellow. A bar code area 42 is provided on the upper part of each bar code seal 40, and a color area 44 is provided on the lower right side. In addition,
A character is described on the lower left side. The barcode area 42 is divided into three areas 42A, 42B, 42C.

Each area 42A-4 of the bar code area 42
In FIG. 2C, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, a black and white shading pattern is drawn. For example, the bar code area 42 of the upper leftmost bar code seal 40 in FIGS.
Area 42A, 42B, 42C is "black""black"
The barcode area 42 of the barcode seal 40 on the right side of the pattern is “white”, and three areas 42A,
42B and 42C have "white", "white", and "black" patterns. Similarly, eight kinds of barcode seals 40 are made by combining “white” and “black”. To make it look like a real barcode, a thin black line is drawn on the "white" pattern, and a thin white line is drawn on the "black" pattern.

The color area 44 corresponds to the bar code seal 4 shown in FIG.
0 is painted in red, and the barcode seal 40 in FIG. 5 is painted in green. As for red, light emitting diode 3
A red color in which light emitted from 3a is reflected most strongly was selected, and a green color in which light emitted from the light emitting diode 33a was reflected most weakly was selected as green. The positional relationship between the barcode seal 40 and the reading surface 28 of the barcode reader 26 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 6A is a view showing a barcode seal 40, and FIG. 6B is a view in which the reading surface 28 is arranged downward and each of the reading surfaces 28 when viewed from above the barcode reader 26 is shown. It is a figure showing arrangement of sensors 30-34. 6A and 6B, when the outer edge of the reading surface 28 of the bar code reader 26 is pressed against the outer edge of the bar code seal 40, light is applied to the phototransistor 34 a of the proximity sensor 34. Since it cannot be entered, it can be seen that the bar code has been read. The three barcode sensors 30, 31, 32
Each of the three areas 42A, 42B, and 42C of the barcode area 42 of the barcode seal 40 is detected to detect shading,
The color sensor 33 detects the color of the color area 44 of the barcode seal 40.

FIG. 7 shows a functional block diagram of the register toy according to the present embodiment. The barcode reading unit 50 reads 4-bit product information written on the barcode sticker 40 from the outputs of the barcode sensors 30, 31, 32 and the color sensor 33. In this embodiment, the product information is the price of the product. The barcode reading unit 50 converts the read 4-bit product information into a predetermined product price and outputs it to the arithmetic processing unit 52.

The arithmetic processing unit 52 performs a predetermined arithmetic operation such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, etc., in accordance with the price of the commodity from the bar code reading unit 52 and the numeric input and the arithmetic input from the register key 22. Since the register device of this embodiment has a function as a normal calculator in addition to the barcode input, the arithmetic processing unit 52 performs a calculation according to the register key input.

The control section 54 controls the operation of the entire register device. For example, control according to the output of the proximity sensor 34 is performed. When the proximity sensor 34 detects that the reading surface 28 of the barcode reader 26 has approached the barcode seal 40, the control unit 54 outputs a read command signal to the barcode reading unit 50 to the arithmetic processing unit 52. The barcode reading section 50 receives the barcode sensor 30 according to the read command signal.
32, the input from the color sensor 33 is made valid, and 4-bit product information is read.

The control unit 54 includes a bar code reading unit 5
The display unit 20 sequentially displays the price of the product read by 0, the key input from the register key 22, and the calculation result by the calculation processing unit 52 on the calculation display unit 20, and generates a sound synchronized with the display from the speaker 56. Further, the control unit 54 uses a timer 58 to automatically turn off the power when not in use. If the bar code is not read by the bar code reader 26 for the key input from the register key 22 for a predetermined time, the timer 58 times out. The control unit 54 automatically turns off the power of the register toy in response to the time-up signal from the timer 58.

Next, the operation of the register toy according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS. First, when the power key 22a of the register key 22 is pressed, the power is turned on and a time of 3 minutes is set in the timer 58 (step S100). Next, it is determined whether or not there is a key input from the register key 22. If there is a key input, the process proceeds to step S109 in FIG. 9, and if there is no key input, the process proceeds to step S102 (step S101).

In the next step S102, it is determined whether or not there is a code input from the bar code reader 26. If there is a key input, the flow proceeds to step S107, and if there is no key input, the flow proceeds to step S103. In the next step S103, it is determined whether or not the timer 58 has expired,
If the time is not up, return to step S101,
If the time is up, the process proceeds to step S104, and the power is automatically turned off.

Thereafter, it is determined in step S105 whether or not the power key 22a of the register key 22 has been pressed. When the power key 22a is pressed, the power is turned on (step S105).
106) Return to step S100. Barcode reader 2
When a code is input in step 6, code processing is performed in step S107. In the present embodiment, the processing of adding the code-input product price to the total price up to the present by the arithmetic processing unit 52 is performed. The price of the commodity input by the barcode reader 26 and the total price including the price are sequentially displayed on the calculation display unit 20 in step S108, and a sound synchronized with the display is generated from the speaker 56. When the forward display on the calculation display unit 20 ends, the process returns to step S100.

If there is any key input from the register key 22, the process proceeds to the process shown in the flowchart of FIG. If it is determined in step S109 that the pressed keys are the numeric keys 22b and the decimal point keys 22c, the arithmetic processing unit 52
To set the number of key inputs to a predetermined register (not shown) (step S11).
0). Thereafter, the process returns to step S100.

In step S111, the plus key 22d is pressed. Minus key 22e, multiplication key 22f
Alternatively, if it is determined that the operation key is the operation key of the division key 22g, the operation processing unit 52 performs a calculation process according to the key input (step S112). Then, step S
Return to 100. If it is determined in step S113 that the equal key 22h is pressed, the arithmetic processing unit 52 performs the total processing (step S11).
4). Thereafter, the process returns to step S108, and the total value is sequentially displayed on the calculation display unit 20, and a sound synchronized with the display is generated from the speaker 56.

If it is determined in step S115 that the consumption tax key 22k has been pressed, the arithmetic processing unit 52
, A consumption tax process is performed (step S116).
By the consumption tax processing, a value obtained by adding the consumption tax to the total value of the prices of the products is obtained as a new total value obtained by multiplying the total value up to the present by 1.03. Thereafter, the process returns to step S108, and the total value is sequentially displayed on the calculation display unit 20, and
A sound synchronized with the display is generated from the speaker 56.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, since the distance between the sensors of the bar code reader is increased, the bar code can be reliably read even if there is a slight displacement. In addition, since the code is input using the color information, the bar code seal becomes colorful, and a register toy that inspires children to purchase can be realized. The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications are possible. For example, in the above embodiment, red and green are used as colors, but other combinations of colors can be freely selected according to the sensor.

In the above embodiment, the barcode is symbolized by a black and white pattern. However, the barcode may be symbolized by a shade of color or a special pattern in which black and white and color are mixed. Further, in the above embodiment, the proximity of the reading surface of the barcode reader to the barcode seal is detected by the proximity sensor of the phototransistor, but may be detected by another proximity sensor.

[0032]

As described above, according to the present invention, a plurality of barcode-like patterns arranged in a line in a barcode area of a barcode seal are respectively detected on a reading surface of a barcode reader. A plurality of barcode sensors are provided. Each of the plurality of barcode sensors has a light emitting element and a light receiving element, and the plurality of barcode sensors substantially match the arrangement intervals of the plurality of barcode-shaped patterns. The light emitting element and the light receiving element of each bar code sensor are arranged in a direction perpendicular to the arrangement direction of the plurality of bar code sensors, and the reading surface of the bar code reader has a bar code seal. A photo sensor is provided to detect the proximity, so that the reading surface can be reliably read by approaching the bar code seal,
Even if the position of the reading surface with respect to the bar code seal is slightly shifted, a plurality of bar code-like patterns can be reliably read.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a register toy according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a calculation display unit and a register key of a register toy according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a view illustrating a barcode reader of a register toy according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a plan view showing a specific example of a barcode seal.

FIG. 5 is a plan view showing a specific example of a barcode seal.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of a positional relationship between a barcode seal and a reading surface of a barcode reader.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram of a register toy according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart (part 1) illustrating an operation of the register toy according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart (part 2) showing the operation of the register toy according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Register toy main body 12 ... Pop stand 14 ... Clip 16 ... Drawer button 18 ... Drawer 20 ... Calculation display unit 22 ... Register key 22a ... Power key 22b ... Numeric key 22c ... Decimal point key 22d ... Plus key 22e ... Minus key 22f ... Multiplication key 22g Division key 22h Equal key 22i All clear key 22j Clear key 22k Consumption tax key 24 Barcode reader holder 26 Barcode reader 28 Reading surface 30, 31, 32 Barcode sensor 33 ... Color sensor 30a, 31a, 32a, 33a ... Light emitting diode 30b, 31b, 32b, 33b ... Phototransistor 34 ... Proximity sensor 34a ... Phototransistor 40 ... Barcode seal 42 ... Barcode area 44 ... Color area 50 ... Barcode reading Part 52 ... processing unit 54 ... controller 56 ... speaker 58 ... Timer

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-2-53194 (JP, A) JP-A-63-52277 (JP, A) JP-A 63-168563 (JP, U) JP-A 57- 20059 (JP, U) Hira 2-23768 (JP, U) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G06K 17/00 A63H 33/30 G06K 7/10 G06K 7/12 G06K 19/06

Claims (5)

(57) [Claims] 1. A register comprising: a key for inputting a number by a key; a bar code reader for inputting a bar code; and a calculation display unit for displaying a key input or a bar code input number, etc. A register toy simulating a machine, on the reading surface of the bar code reader, a plurality of bar code-shaped patterns for detecting a plurality of bar code-like patterns arranged in a row in a bar code area of a bar code seal, respectively. A bar code sensor is provided, each of the plurality of bar code sensors has a light emitting element and a light receiving element, and the plurality of bar code sensors are substantially arranged at intervals of the plurality of bar code patterns. The light emitting elements and the light receiving elements of each of the bar code sensors are arranged at a matching interval, and are arranged in a direction perpendicular to the arrangement direction of the plurality of bar code sensors. A reading surface of the bar code reader, wherein a photo sensor for detecting that the reading surface is close to the bar code seal is provided. 2. The register toy according to claim 1, further comprising power control means for automatically turning off the power when at least a key input from said register key is not performed for a predetermined period. Register toy to do. 3. The register toy according to claim 1, wherein a color sensor for detecting a color of a color area of the barcode seal is provided on a reading surface of the barcode reader. A register toy which is arranged to substantially match the arrangement of the color region with respect to the bar code region of the bar code seal. 4. The bar code seal used for the register toy according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of bar code-like patterns arranged in the bar code area have a high density as a whole. It is drawn as a pattern with low density as a whole, and in order to make it look like a real barcode, a thin line with low density is drawn on the pattern with high density as a whole in a direction perpendicular to the arrangement direction of the plurality of barcode sensors, A bar code seal characterized in that a pattern having a low density as a whole is drawn with a thin line having a high density in a direction perpendicular to an arrangement direction of the plurality of bar code sensors. 5. The bar code seal according to claim 4, further comprising a color area filled with a specific color.