Hand-held communications device for tracking physical shopping cart contents and updating shopping list

• US 10,204,369 B2
• Filed: 09/09/2015
• Issued: 02/12/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 01/29/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Walmart Apollo, LLC (WalMart Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Walmart Apollo, LLC (WalMart Inc.)
• Inventors: Pedley, Douglas James, Cancro, Richard Neil, Acker, Jr., Joel Bennett
• Primary Examiner(s): Seibert, Christopher B
• Application Number:
  US14/849,035
• Publication Number:
  US 20150379607A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,252 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 18/22 Matching criteria, e.g. proximity measures
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0629 for generating comparisons
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0633 Lists, e.g. purchase orders, compilation or processing
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/18 Closed-circuit television [CCTV] systems, i.e. systems in which the video signal is not broadcast

Abstract

A computer-implemented process is described and includes employing a shopping list that is accessible on a hand-held communications device, the shopping list including desired items for purchasing from a retailer. The hand-held communications device is employed at the retailer to capture information associated with a selected product. The information associated with the selected product is compared with the desired items contained on the shopping list accessible to the hand-held communications device. Upon correlating the selected product with one of the desired items contained on the shopping list, the shopping list is updated to indicate the desired item has been acquired.

Claims

1. A process of utilizing a computerized system for comparing an item scanned for purchase in a retail store to a plurality of desired items from a shopping list, the process comprising:

receiving, through a processing device, an image, captured by a camera, of each of one or more objects placed in at least one shopping cart by a user and to output image data representative of the image, the shopping cart comprising a cart and an electronics device, the cart comprising a basket mounted on wheels, the electronics device comprising (1) a user interface configured to interact with the user, (2) a communication device configured to transmit and receive data, (3) a locating device configured to determine a location of the cart and the camera, the processing device configured to control the user interface, the communication device, the locating device, and the camera, and a server communicatively connected to the communication device and comprising a shopping list coordination module and a scanned item to desired item comparison module;

monitoring, through the processing device, the image data from the camera;

identifying, through the processing device, information related to the one or more objects based on the image data, or processing the image data to transmit identification of the one or more objects via the communication device;

monitoring, through the processing device, a list of items entered by the user, wherein the shopping list comprises the list of the items;

receiving, through the processing device, input from the user to modify the list of the items;

tallying, through the processing device, a list of the one or more objects to provide information related to the one or more objects for a transaction with respect to the one or more objects;

receiving, through the scanned item to desired item comparison module and from the communication device, the list of the items;

receiving, through the scanned item to desired item comparison module, the identification of the one or more objects;

comparing, through the scanned item to desired item comparison module, the identification of the one or more objects to the items in the list of the items;

determining, through the scanned item to desired item comparison module, whether one of the items in the list of the items is fulfilled based in response to the comparing indicating that there is a match between one of the one or more objects and the one of the items in the list of the items;

providing, through the scanned item to desired item comparison module, an indication of the match to the communication device such that the indication is provided by the user interface to the user in response to the comparing indicating that the match exists; and

providing, through the scanned item to desired item comparison module, another indication to the communication device to indicate that a first item of the items in the list of the items is fulfilled in response to another item in a same category as the first item of the items that is not an exact match between a first object of the one or more objects and the first item of the items in the list of the items.

2. The process of claim 1, wherein determining whether the one of the items in the list of the items is fulfilled further comprises determining that a universal product code of the one of the items in the list of the items matches the identification of the one of the one or more objects.

3. The process of claim 1, further comprising generating the list of the items through the user interface, the list of the items comprising the plurality of desired items for purchase.

4. The process of claim 1, wherein providing the another indication to the communication device to indicate that the first item of the items in the list of the items is fulfilled is further based upon one of (a) referencing statistical data regarding the historical results of the another item fulfilling the first item of the items, and (b) output from a learning program including analysis of historical decisions of a customer using the communication device.

5. The process of claim 1, wherein determining whether the one of the items in the list of the items is fulfilled comprises:

employing a query box, the query box depicting the one of the one or more objects and the one of the items in the list of the items on a screen of the communication device;

querying whether the one of the one or more objects matches the one of the items in the list of the items; and

determining whether the one of the one or more objects matches the one of the items in the list of the items based upon an answer to the query.

6. The process of claim 5, wherein querying whether the one of the one or more objects matches the one of the items comprises employing text on the screen of the communication device to query whether the one of the one or more objects matches the one of the items in the list of the items.

7. The process of claim 5, wherein querying whether the one of the one or more objects matches the one of the items comprises employing audio of the communication device to query whether the one of the one or more objects matches the one of the items in the list of the items.

8. The process of claim 1, further comprising generating the list of the items on the communication device.

9. The process of claim 8, wherein generating the list of the items on the communication device comprises generating the list of the items employing information from a second-source website.

10. The process of claim 8, wherein generating the list of the items on the communication device comprises generating the list of the items employing a keyboard entry of the communication device.

11. The process of claim 8, wherein generating the list of the items on the communication device comprises generating the list of the items employing a voice entry to the communication device.

12. The process of claim 1, further comprising:

generating the list of the items through a registered online account; and

downloading the list of the items to the communication device.

13. The process of claim 1, further comprising:

monitoring an entry to the list of the items; and

when the entry is a generic description of a group of the items, offering specific items available in the retail store for selection to the list of the items.

14. A system for comparing an item scanned for purchase in a retail store to a plurality of desired items from a shopping list, the system comprising:

at least one shopping cart, each of the at least one shopping cart comprising;

a cart comprising a basket mounted on wheels;

an electronics device, comprising;

a user interface configured to interact with a user;

a communication device configured to transmit and receive data;

a locating device configured to determine a location of the cart;

a camera configured to capture an image of each of one or more objects placed in the cart by the user and to output image data representative of the image; and

a processing device configured to control the user interface, the communication device, the locating device and the camera, the processing device also configured to perform operations comprising;

monitoring the image data from the camera;

identifying information related to the one or more objects based on the image data or processing the image data to transmit identification of the one or more objects via the communication device;

monitoring a list of items entered by the user, wherein the shopping list comprises the list of the items;

receiving input from the user to modify the list of the items; and

tallying a list of the one or more objects to provide information related to the one or more objects for a transaction with respect to the one or more objects; and

a server communicatively connected to the communication device of each of the at least one shopping cart, the server comprising;

a shopping list coordination module configured to receive, from the communication device, the list of the items; and

a scanned item to desired item comparison module configured to perform operations comprising;

receiving the identification of the one or more objects;

comparing the identification of the one or more objects to the items in the list of the items;

determining whether one of the items in the list of the items is fulfilled based on response to the comparing indicating that a match exists between one of the one or more objects and the one of the items in the list of the items;

providing an indication of the match to the communication device such that the indication is provided by the user interface to the user in response to the comparing indicating that the match exists; and

providing another indication to the communication device to indicate that a first item of the items in the list of the items is fulfilled in response to another item in a same category as the first item of the items that is not an exact match between a first object of the one or more objects and the first item of the items in the list of the items.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein determining whether the one of the items in the list of the items is fulfilled further comprises determining that a universal product code of the one of the items matches the identification of the one of the one or more objects.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein determining whether the one of the items in the list of the items is fulfilled further comprises determining, through the processing device, that the one of the one or more objects includes a stored descriptor that matches a generic description of the one of the items in the list of the items.

17. The system of claim 14, wherein the processing device is further configured to perform operations comprising:

monitoring an entry to the list of the items; and

in response to the entry including a generic description of a group of the items, providing, via the user interface, an indication that one or more specific objects are available in a proximity of the user based at least in part on the location of the cart, the one or more specific objects fitting the generic description.

18. The system of claim 14, wherein the processing device is further configured to perform operations comprising:

displaying, via the user interface, an image of the one of the one or more objects and the one of the items in the list of the items;

querying the user, via the user interface, whether the one of the one or more objects matches the one of the items in the list of the items; and

receiving, via the user interface, a response from the user to determine whether the one of the one or more objects matches the one of the items in the list of the items.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein querying comprises presenting a textual query, an audible query, or both.

20. The system of claim 14, wherein the server is further configured to provide an instruction to the communication device for display to the user by the user interface, the instruction indicating that there is the another item in the same category as the first item of the items that is not the exact match between the first object of the one or more objects and the first item of the items in the list of the items.

21. The system of claim 14, wherein the determining whether the one of the items in the list of the items is fulfilled comprises (a) referencing statistical data regarding historical results of the another item fulfilling the first item of the items in the list of the items, (b) using output from a learning program including analysis of historical decisions of the user, or (c) both.