Faster Checkout Times with Queue Buster Technology from Fujitsu
Announcement posted by Fujitsu Australia Limited 13 Aug 2003
Checkout lines in supermarkets and other retail outlets are set to move faster thanks to an innovative hand-held checkout device unveiled by Fujitsu at the Retail Business Technology (RBT) 2003 exhibition in Sydney.
Queue Buster is a portable product scanner that enables retail staff to move through the queue to scan customers purchases before they reach the checkout. Their bill is tallied up by the time they reach the checkout, meaning customers only need to complete payment and they are away.
No-one likes waiting in a long queue at the end of their shopping trip but, with Queue Buster technology from Fujitsu, that will soon be a thing of the past, said Marcus May, General Manager Retail, at Fujitsu Australia.
Queue Buster is a cordless mini-computer that works just the same as a checkout yet its completely portable. It means people waiting in the checkout queue can have all their items scanned in their trolley by a mobile operator with a Queue Buster, then pay and leave immediately they arrive at the till with no waiting at all.
The mobile scanner performs many of the same functions as a checkout. Queue Buster runs off the retailers central pricing database via a radiofrequency (RF) network, ensuring items are accurately scanned, priced and totalled in the normal way.
This approach ensures there are no complicated new instructions or protocols for staff to learn: Queue Buster simply works like a standard checkout, but is mobile.
While it is fully connected into the retailers standard back office systems, Queue Buster offers a completely new way to handle customers at checkout time, May said. Queue Buster is so versatile it can also be used for off-store promotions on the footpath, and it can also be used for other in-store functions - as a stock-take reader for example.
Fujitsu expects to see several thousand of these devices used in Australian retail outlets over the next 18 months to two years, added May.
Operating like a standard checkout terminal but freed from network cables and power cords, Queue Buster has everything retailers require in a single device. The portable battery-powered device includes a barcode reader, connection to the pricing database, scanner, readout display and operator entry keypad.
Queue Buster can work as an RF thin client device that links into the main retail database using radio signals, rather than the traditional wired network. Advances in manufacturing and miniaturisation plus the innovation of the RF thin client have allowed a smaller, cheaper and more effective unit than ever before. In addition, the unit contains virtually no software, reducing maintenance requirements.
Notes to Editors
Fujitsu Australia Limited
Fujitsu is a global leader in information and communications technology solutions. Throughout Australia and New Zealand Fujitsu is recognised as a leading systems integrator and services provider. We deliver complex infrastructure systems and services, and business and telecommunications solutions, as well as offering access to a wide network of partners. From the desktop to the data centre; multi-vendor procurement to prime contracting; consulting to systems integration, Fujitsu has earned a reputation as the single supplier of choice for leading corporate and government organisations. Visit au.fujitsu.com for further information
Fujitsu Australia Limited is a wholly owned subsidiary of Fujitsu Limited of Japan.
About Fujitsu Limited
Fujitsu is a leading provider of customer-focused IT and communications solutions for the global marketplace. Pace-setting technologies, highly reliable computing and telecommunications platforms, and a worldwide corps of systems and services experts uniquely position Fujitsu to deliver comprehensive solutions that open up infinite possibilities for its customers success. Headquartered in Tokyo, Fujitsu Limited (TSE:6702) reported consolidated revenues of 4.6 trillion yen (US$38 billion) for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2003. For more information, please see www.fujitsu.com.
Queue Buster is a portable product scanner that enables retail staff to move through the queue to scan customers purchases before they reach the checkout. Their bill is tallied up by the time they reach the checkout, meaning customers only need to complete payment and they are away.
No-one likes waiting in a long queue at the end of their shopping trip but, with Queue Buster technology from Fujitsu, that will soon be a thing of the past, said Marcus May, General Manager Retail, at Fujitsu Australia.
Queue Buster is a cordless mini-computer that works just the same as a checkout yet its completely portable. It means people waiting in the checkout queue can have all their items scanned in their trolley by a mobile operator with a Queue Buster, then pay and leave immediately they arrive at the till with no waiting at all.
The mobile scanner performs many of the same functions as a checkout. Queue Buster runs off the retailers central pricing database via a radiofrequency (RF) network, ensuring items are accurately scanned, priced and totalled in the normal way.
This approach ensures there are no complicated new instructions or protocols for staff to learn: Queue Buster simply works like a standard checkout, but is mobile.
While it is fully connected into the retailers standard back office systems, Queue Buster offers a completely new way to handle customers at checkout time, May said. Queue Buster is so versatile it can also be used for off-store promotions on the footpath, and it can also be used for other in-store functions - as a stock-take reader for example.
Fujitsu expects to see several thousand of these devices used in Australian retail outlets over the next 18 months to two years, added May.
Operating like a standard checkout terminal but freed from network cables and power cords, Queue Buster has everything retailers require in a single device. The portable battery-powered device includes a barcode reader, connection to the pricing database, scanner, readout display and operator entry keypad.
Queue Buster can work as an RF thin client device that links into the main retail database using radio signals, rather than the traditional wired network. Advances in manufacturing and miniaturisation plus the innovation of the RF thin client have allowed a smaller, cheaper and more effective unit than ever before. In addition, the unit contains virtually no software, reducing maintenance requirements.
Notes to Editors
Fujitsu Australia Limited
Fujitsu is a global leader in information and communications technology solutions. Throughout Australia and New Zealand Fujitsu is recognised as a leading systems integrator and services provider. We deliver complex infrastructure systems and services, and business and telecommunications solutions, as well as offering access to a wide network of partners. From the desktop to the data centre; multi-vendor procurement to prime contracting; consulting to systems integration, Fujitsu has earned a reputation as the single supplier of choice for leading corporate and government organisations. Visit au.fujitsu.com for further information
Fujitsu Australia Limited is a wholly owned subsidiary of Fujitsu Limited of Japan.
About Fujitsu Limited
Fujitsu is a leading provider of customer-focused IT and communications solutions for the global marketplace. Pace-setting technologies, highly reliable computing and telecommunications platforms, and a worldwide corps of systems and services experts uniquely position Fujitsu to deliver comprehensive solutions that open up infinite possibilities for its customers success. Headquartered in Tokyo, Fujitsu Limited (TSE:6702) reported consolidated revenues of 4.6 trillion yen (US$38 billion) for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2003. For more information, please see www.fujitsu.com.