Business review

Casio tills are among the most common type of cash register, but where did the idea for cash registers come from?

A cash register is a mechanical or electronic device for calculating and recording sales transactions, and an attached cash drawer for storing currency. The cash register also usually prints a receipt for the customer.

In most cases the drawer can be opened only after a sale, except when using a special key, which only senior personnel or the owner has. This reduces the risk of personnel stealing from the shop owner by not recording a sale and pocketing the money, in the case that the customer does not require a receipt and has to be given change (cash is more easily checked against recorded sales than inventory). In fact, cash registers were first invented for the purpose of eliminating employee theft or embezzlement. The first registers were entirely mechanical, without receipts. The employee was required to ring up every transaction on the register, and when the total key was pushed, the drawer opened and a bell would ring, alerting the manager to a sale taking place. Those original machines were nothing but simple adding machines. Some cash registers include a key labeled "NS" (most of the time silver in color), which is abbreviated for "No Sale", and opens the drawer, printing out a receipt stating "No Sale" and recording it in the register log that the register was opened. Some other cash registers require a numeric password to be entered when attempting to open the register. In the event of a power shortage, some models have latches that can be pulled to open the drawer.

The first cash register was invented by James Ritty following the American Civil War. He was the owner of a saloon in Dayton, Ohio, USA, and wanted to stop employees from pilfering his profits. He invented the Ritty Model I in 1879 after seeing a tool that counted the revolutions of the propeller on a steamship. With the help of John Ritty, his brother, he patented it in 1883.

Shortly thereafter, Ritty became overwhelmed with the responsibilities of running two businesses, so he sold all of his interests in the cash register business to Jacob H. Eckert of Cincinnati, a china and glassware salesman, who formed the National Manufacturing Company. In 1884 Eckert sold the company to John H. Patterson, who renamed the company the National Cash Register Company. John Patterson improved the cash register by adding a paper roll to record sales transactions, thereby creating the receipt.

Kevin Thomas works for Davpack, a uk packaging supplier. Their friendly staff are waiting to help you choose the right packaging for your business. www.davpack.co.uk

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Article Source: ArticlesBase.com - Casio Tills