System and method for coupling a mobile device and point of sale device to transmit mobile shopping cart and provide shopping recommendations

• US 10,068,276 B2
• Filed: 12/05/2013
• Issued: 09/04/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 12/05/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Walmart Apollo, LLC (WalMart Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Walmart Apollo, LLC (WalMart Inc.)
• Inventors: Karmakar, Anirvan, Valeti, Sreenu, Sreedharan, Sreejith, Pillareddy, Ananda
• Primary Examiner(s): Thein, Maria Teresa T
• Assistant Examiner(s): Kringen, Michelle T
• Application Number:
  US14/098,318
• Publication Number:
  US 20150161706A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,734 Days
• Field of Search: 705 261, 705 267, 705 271, 705 268
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3276 using a pictured code, e.g. barcode or QR-code, being read by the M-device
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0631 Item recommendations
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0633 Lists, e.g. purchase orders, compilation or processing

Abstract

Systems and methods are disclosed herein for providing shopping recommendations. Amounts and timing of user purchases are recorded and analyzed to determine consumption rates for various products. A list of recommended products is generated for a user including previous purchases. Expected runout dates for products may be determined based on previous purchases and consumption rates. The list of recommended products may be prioritized based on expected runout dates. A listing of products may be presented with one or both of validation and alternative indicators associated with items of the list. A validation indicator indicates that the product satisfies a criteria and an alternative indicator indicates that an alternative product satisfies the criteria better than the product.

Claims

1. A system for coupling a user computing device to a point of sale device at a store to facilitate providing shopping assistance, the system comprising one or more processors and one or more memory devices operably coupled to the one or more processors, the one or more memory devices storing executable and operational data effective to cause the one or more processors to:

receive, at the point of sale device at the store, a request, from a user computer device that is at least one of a mobile phone or a tablet, to use mobile self-checkout;

couple the user computing device that is the at least one of a mobile phone or a tablet to the point of sale device at the store by;

displaying a coupling code at the point of sale device for scanning by the user computing device that is the at least one of a mobile phone or a tablet;

transmitting the coupling code and contents of an electronic shopping cart to a server system associated with the store;

interpreting, at the server system associated with the store, the coupling code to identify the point of sale device;

transmitting, from the server system to the point of sale device, the contents of the electronic shopping cart associated with a transaction; and

receiving, from the server system, at the point of sale device, the contents of an the electronic shopping cart;

receive a customer identifier associated with the transaction, from the user computing device that is the at least one of a mobile phone and a tablet;

conclude, on the point of sale device, the transaction including the contents of the electronic shopping cart received from the user computing device that is the at least one of a mobile phone and a tablet and that is associated with the customer identifier;

report the transaction associated with the customer identifier from the point of sale device to the server system associated with the store;

detect transactions by a consumer associated with the customer identifier and determine, at the server system associated with the store based on the transactions and the transaction including the contents of the electronic shopping cart received from the user computing device and that is associated with the customer identifier, for each product of a plurality of products represented in the transactions, at least one of;

amounts of purchases of the each product and timing of the purchases, a consumption rate for the each product, a runout date for the product according to the consumption rate and the amount of a last purchase of the purchases of the each product, a shopping trip frequency of the consumer, an expected date of a next shopping trip of the consumer from the shopping trip frequency, and at least a portion of the plurality of products having the runout date prior to the next shopping trip;

determine a prioritization of at least a portion of the plurality of products according to the runout dates thereof, and transmit to the user computer device that is the at least one of a mobile phone or a tablet associated with the customer identifier, a listing of the at least the portion of the plurality of products ordered according to the prioritization.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the executable and operational data is further effective to cause the one or more processors to:

validate a first portion of the at least the portion of the plurality of products;

wherein the listing includes validation indicators associated with the first portion in the listing of the at least the portion of the plurality of products.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the executable and operational data is further effective to cause the one or more processors to:

identify a second portion of the at least the portion of the plurality of products, each product of the second portion having at least one alternative product;

wherein the listing includes alternative indicators associated with the second portion in the listing of the at least the portion of the plurality of products; and

wherein the listing includes associated with each product of the second portion the at least one alternative product associated therewith.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the at least one alternative product for each product of the second portion has a lower cost than the each product.

5. The system of claim 3, wherein the device associated with the customer identifier is configured to:

receive an interaction with an alternative indicator of the alternative indicators; and

in response to receiving the interaction, display on the user device a representation of the at least one alternative product associated with the alternative indicator.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the executable and operational data are further effective to cause the one or more processors to:

receive user selection of an element of the listing of the at least the portion of the plurality of products corresponding to the second portion; and

in response to the receiving the user selection, display a representation of the at least one alternative product corresponding to the element of the listing.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the device associated with the customer identifier is further configured to:

receive a user selection of an element of the listing of the at least the portion of the plurality of products; and

in response to receiving the user selection, add a product associated with the element to an electronic shopping list associated with the customer identifier.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the device associated with the customer identifier is further configured to display directions to the product associated with the element.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein the device associated with the customer identifier is further configured to:

receive an indication of scanning a code associated with the element;

in response to the receiving the indication of scanning, add the product associated with the element to an electronic shopping cart; and

receive an indication of payment for the electronic shopping cart.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein receiving the indication of payment includes receiving the indication of payment from the point of sale device paired with the device associated with the customer identifier.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the executable and operational data is further effective to cause the one or more processors to

Determine, from the transactions by the consumer, the shopping trip frequency of the consumer according to an average time elapsed between transactions of the customer;

and

Predict, from the shopping trip frequency, the expected date of the next shopping trip of the consumer, by adding the shopping trip frequency to a current date.

12. The system of claim 1, further comprising identifying, for the each product, one of more alternative products according to a volume of the each product purchased by the customer and a price of the one or more alternative products, the one or more alternative products having customer satisfaction rankings meeting a threshold condition.

13. A method for coupling a mobile phone to a point of sale device at a store to facilitate providing shopping assistance, the method comprising:

receiving an indication of an interaction with an item in an electronic shopping list presented on a display of the mobile phone;

in response to determining that the item has been selected, presenting, on the display of the mobile phone, one or more alternatives associated with the selected item;

in response to receiving an instruction from the display of the mobile phone to add the one or more alternatives to the electronic shipping shopping list on the mobile phone, adding the one or more alternatives to the electronic shipping shopping list;

receiving a request from the display of the mobile phone to use mobile self-checkout with the mobile phone and the point of sale device to initiate a transaction associated with the one or more alternatives in the electronic shopping list;

coupling the mobile phone to the point of sale device at the store by;

displaying a coupling code at the point of sale device for scanning by the mobile phone;

transmitting the coupling code to a server system associated with the store; and

interpreting, at the server system associated with the store, the coupling code to identify the point of sale device;

transmitting, from the server system to the point of sale device, the one or more alternatives in the electronic shopping list associated with the transaction;

generating a customer identifier associated with the transaction associated with the one or more alternatives in the electronic shopping list displayed on the mobile phone;

concluding the transaction associated with the one or more alternatives in the electronic shopping list displayed on the mobile phone via the coupled mobile phone and the point of sale device; and

reporting the transaction associated with the customer identifier from the point of sale device to the server system associated with the store.