Fry's Foods (owned by Kroger, who also own Fred Meyer) does the self-checkout pretty well.
There is no conveyor belt. There is a bagging area with a carousel of bag racks, as well as an additional area to set things.
Barcoded items are simply scanned and then bagged, unless they require age verification, in which case you have to go (right then) and show ID to the clerk who watches over all four self-checkout stations.
Produce without a barcode requires you to hit a "Produce - no barcode" button, then enter the code that's on a sticker on the produce, and place it on the scanner/scale. Once it has been weighed, you get to bag it.
Bakery items without a barcode require you to hit a "Bakery Items" button, enter the code (for which the legend is on the bakery bag) and the quantity, and then place it on the scanner/scale. Once it has been determined to weigh within acceptable tolerances, you get to bag it.
Ready to pay? Hit the "Pay Now" button, then go through the "Do you have any coupons?" menu. "Yes" means you get to give your coupons to the clerk before proceeding.
Now tell it whether you're using cash, check, card, or food stamps. Check and food stamps require more clerk interaction. Cash just slurps it up, and card means you get to deal with a standard POS card reader/pinpad.
Getting change? A loud voice will tell you where the paper money is, if you get any back.
Oh, and there are no sentences constructed of disjointed phrases. All sentences were recorded whole, spoken by a real human.
Some of the stores (in the more-likely-to-be-shoplifted-from areas) have an additional step for every single item. You have to touch it to a yellow panel next to the scanner/scale, so the inventory-control system can note that it's leaving with permission.
All-in-all, it's a good system, unless you have a lot of items. Because you can't be trusted to scan and bag each item quickly without slipping bonus goodies into the bag, you have to go one item at a time. Regular checkout clerks can run huge numbers of items by the scanner much faster, so I go to them if I have a lot to buy.
O
Best posts made by Ozru
-
RE: Supermarket Self-Checkout