James Ritty might not have guessed that the cash register, which he invented in 1879, would change completely into some thing, which even he would fail to identify. He just wanted to devise a fool proof cash handling system, which effectively prevented his dishonest staff steal and pocket the money at his tavern in his Dayton, Ohio.

Early cash registers were mechanical machines, which did not issue receipts. The cashier would crank up the machine and press the total key to register transaction and that is when the cash drawer would open and a bell ring at the managers/owner's office to alert him of a completed transaction.

But would it not be possible to open the register when there is no sale at all? These are day to day necessities and the manager or the owner would want to check or take away cash from the register even when there is no sale and the drawer can be opened by hitting the NS (no sale) key which opens the drawer after logging that the drawer was opened. Some models have special keys and latches for such instances.

Modern Cash Registers

Whether you have a small business or a restaurant, modern line of cash registers will fit the bills for you. These computerized cash registers of the day can be attached to scales, check stands and bar code readers. Some specially ordered models have the capacity to be attached to credit card terminals and software such as EFTPOS. EFTPOS stands for Electronic Fund Transfer and Point of Sale, which handle transactions with customers. It handles electronic debiting of customers' accounts and crediting the amount to the merchants' account.

Pilferages with modern cash registers are not easy. These are highly protected. One example is alphanumeric passwords.

Accounting and Taxation Angle to Cash Registers

It is mandatory for customers and merchants to maintain the receipts for some time while merchants compile tax returns. The point is, it is easy taking stock at the cash registers by the volume of sales rather than inventory. Bar code scanners such as EAN and UPC maintain logs for each item sold and totaled at the end of the day.

Top Manufacturers and Salient Features

Japanese have pulled it off in this regard. Toshiba, Casio, Sharp and American companies like IBM, Wincor-Nixdorf and TEC are top selling models. Features keep changing but, Clerk ID System, Self Tax Computation, Memory Protection, Locking Cash Drawer Locking coin tray, multiple tax rates; thermal printers and pop-up rear display are only the most common features.

Have you seen a self checkout cash register yet?