Visual customer identification

• US 10,115,094 B2
• Filed: 12/20/2013
• Issued: 10/30/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 12/20/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NCR Voyix Corporation
• Original Assignee: NCR Corporation (NCR Voyix Corporation)
• Inventors: Lawrence, Jonathan Wesley
• Primary Examiner(s): Danneman, Paul
• Application Number:
  US14/136,640
• Publication Number:
  US 20150178703A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,775 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/20 Point-of-sale [POS] network systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/209 Specified transaction journal output feature, e.g. printed receipt or voice output
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/16 Human faces, e.g. facial parts, sketches or expressions

Abstract

An image of a customer is associated with a transaction at an enterprise. The image is accessible during enterprise transaction processing for visual inspection. In an embodiment, the image is printed as a receipt that is handled by enterprise personnel to visually ascertain a particular customer that is to receive at least one good and/or service associated with the transaction.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

receiving, by a device that is a Point-Of-Sale (POS) terminal, an image of a customer during processing of a transaction with the customer and using the image during processing of the transaction;

integrating, by the device, the image for visual presentation on one or more displays of multiple devices during processing of the transaction by forcibly presenting the image on the displays of the multiple devices during the transaction;

printing, by a printer, the image on a sticky media receipt for affixing to an item associated with the transaction; and

broadcasting, by the device, the image with at least one transaction detail for the transaction to multiple ones of the one or more displays associated with the multiple devices during processing of the transaction, wherein broadcasting further includes broadcasting other images associated with other customers engaged in other transactions to the multiple ones of the one or more displays in a list-type viewing mode within screen shots of the multiple ones of the one or more displays.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising, sending, via the device, the image with at least one transaction detail to a third-party delivery service responsible for delivering at least one of:

a good and a service associated with processing the transaction.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising, receiving, taking, via the device, an updated image for the customer using a camera interfaced to the device and communicating the updated image to a loyalty service for processing at least one subsequent transaction with the customer.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein receiving further includes obtaining the image from a loyalty service in response to at least one loyalty detail supplied by the customer with the transaction.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving further includes obtaining the image from a camera interfaced to the device.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving further includes obtaining the image from a customer device operated by the customer.

7. A method, comprising:

identifying, via a server, an image for a customer associated with at least one loyalty detail for the customer;

associating, via the server, the image with a transaction being performed on behalf of the customer and broadcasting the image to multiple displays of multiple devices associated with the transaction by forcibly presenting the image on the multiple displays of the multiple devices during the transaction, wherein broadcasting further includes providing other images associated with other customers engaged in other transactions to the multiple displays in a list-type viewing mode within screen shots of the multiple displays; and

providing, via the server, the image to a printer for printing the image on a receipt that is sticky media and affixed to an item of the transaction.

8. The method of claim 7 further comprising, sending, via the server, the image and at least one or more additional loyalty details to a Point-Of-Sale (POS) device processing the transaction.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein sending further includes altering at least one visual feature of the image to visually highlight a loyalty level associated with the customer before sending the image to the POS device.

10. The method of claim 7 further comprising, receiving, via the server, an updated image to replace the image from at least one of:

a customer device operated by the customer and a Point-Of-Sale (POS) device operated by clerk processing the transaction.

11. The method of claim 7 further comprising, receiving, via the server, at least one additional image identified by the customer to associate with the at least one loyalty detail.

12. The method of claim 7 wherein identifying further includes acquiring the image as a part of one of:

a loyalty registration process for the customer supplying the at least one loyalty detail and loyalty modification process for the customer.

13. A system, comprising:

a Point-Of-Sale (POS) device configured to facilitate execution of a POS customer identifier module; and

wherein the POS customer identifier module is configured to associate an image of a customer with a transaction being processed for the customer and further configured to integrate the image throughout a lifecycle for processing the transaction including forcibly presenting, through a broadcast, the image on multiple displays of multiple devices during the lifecycle of the transaction, and broadcast other images associated with other customers engaged in other transactions to the multiple displays in a list-type viewing mode within screen shots of the multiple displays, and wherein the POS customer identifier module is further configured to provide the image to a printer for printing on a sticky media receipt that is affixed to an item associated with the transaction.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the POS device is at least one of:

a standalone POS terminal and a portable mobile device.

15. The system of claim 13, wherein POS device is a thin client.