How are coupons processed in a point of sale system?

[David Mordigal]

As a cashier finishing up an IT degree this year, this is something that I've been wondering about for a while. The system I work with is Toshiba SurePOS ACE for 4690 OS/Store Integrator GUI. We are able to scan a manufacturer coupon or store coupon and it is supposed to automatically determine whether the coupon requirements are met.

For more complex coupons, like "Save $1 when you buy Item X and Item Y" or "any 3 of Item Group A and any 2 of Item Group B," I'd imagine that the logic gets extremely complex. Is this type of information stored in a relational database or more of a document / NoSQL database? I know that some of the information is stored in the GS1 Databar barcode on most manufacturer coupons, but some of the requirements get complex so I was wondering how those particular scenarios are typically handled.

I'd imagine that there are several item groups stored in a database or the system's memory and that when a coupon is scanned, it checks to see if the required items are in the order, but I'm curious as to the specifics of it.

 

[voyagerfan99]

The logic isn't complex. Computers work on binary, 0 and 1, 0 being no/off and 1 being yes/on. It's just a combination of those that determine if its met or not. And to determine that, certain parts of information (lists) are created and stored for reference and then the inputs (items) are checked against the lists.