System and method for identifying customers with ordered items at a retail enterprise

• US 10,204,373 B2
• Filed: 12/10/2015
• Issued: 02/12/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 12/10/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Meijer (Meijer Cos. Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Meijer (Meijer Cos. Ltd.)
• Inventors: Pugh, Brian, Robinson, Jr., Elmer L., Pallas, David Scott, Ross, K. Michael
• Primary Examiner(s): Fadok, Mark A
• Application Number:
  US14/965,852
• Publication Number:
  US 20160171592A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,160 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/24 Querying
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0635 Processing of requisition or of purchase orders

Abstract

A system and method for identifying customers with ordered items at a retail enterprise may associate in a database each of a plurality of departments within a brick-and-mortar outlet with a different identification code, and also one of a plurality of customer codes identifying a customer with an order code identifying an order placed by the customer for an item to be delivered thereto by one of the departments. In response to a wirelessly received identification code and customer code, a display monitor at one of the plurality of departments is controlled to display a notification message if the received identification code matches the identification code associated with the one of the departments and the received customer code matches the customer code associated in the database with the order code. The notification message may include information relating to at least one of the customer and the order.

Claims

1. A method of processing items ordered from a retail enterprise, the method comprising:

with a processor, storing in a database a plurality of brick-and-mortar store identification codes and associated geographic boundaries each identifying a different one of a plurality of brick-and-mortar stores of the retail enterprise and an associated geographic boundary defined at least partially thereabout,

with the processor, storing in the database a plurality of department identification codes each identifying a different one of a plurality of departments within each of the plurality of brick-and-mortar stores of the retail enterprise,

with the processor storing in the database a plurality of customer codes each identifying a different one of a plurality of customers of the retail enterprise,

with the processor, associating in the database with at least one of the plurality of customer codes (a) an order status code identifying a status of an order placed for an associated item by a corresponding one of the plurality of customers, (b) one of the plurality of brick-and-mortar identification codes identifying the one of the plurality of brick-and-mortar stores from which the order for the item was placed by the corresponding one of the plurality of customers and (c) one of the plurality of department identification codes identifying the one of the plurality of departments, within the associated one of the plurality of brick-and-mortar stores, from which the order for the item was placed by the corresponding one of the plurality of customers,

with the processor, determining that one of the plurality of customers associated in the database with a corresponding one of the plurality of customer codes has entered one of the plurality of geographic boundaries based on GPS tracking of a mobile communication device associated in the database with the corresponding one of the plurality of customer codes,

in response to determining that one of the plurality of customers has entered one of the plurality of geographic boundaries, determining whether the one of the plurality of customer codes associated in the database with the entering one of the plurality of customers is also associated in the database with an order status code indicative of a pending order for an associated item,

in response to determining that the one of the plurality of customer codes associated in the database with the entering one of the plurality of customers is also associated in the database with an order status code indicative of a pending order for an associated item, determining with the processor whether the one of the plurality of brick-and-mortar store identification codes associated in the database with the entered one of the plurality of geographic boundaries is also associated in the database with the order status code indicative of the pending order for the associated item,

in response to determining that the one of the plurality of brick-and-mortar store identification codes associated in the database with the entered one of the plurality of geographic boundaries is also associated in the database with the order status code indicative of the pending order for the associated item and the determined order status code indicates that the pending order for the associated item is complete but not yet picked up,

(i) determining with the processor the one of the plurality of department codes also associated in the database with the determined order status code, and

(ii) controlling, at least in part with the processor, a display monitor located at the one of the plurality of departments identified by the determined one of the plurality of department codes to display a first notification message including information indicating that the one of the plurality of customers that placed the order for the item associated with the determined order status code has entered the one of the plurality of brick-and-mortar stores associated in the database with the determined one of the plurality of brick-and-mortar store codes and that the order identified by the determined order status code is complete and ready for pick up.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

with the processor, associating in the database each of the plurality of customer codes with communication information identifying a mobile communication device associated with a respective one of the plurality of customers, and

if the determined order status code indicates that the pending order for the associated item is complete but not yet picked up, wirelessly transmitting to the mobile communication device identified by the communication information associated in the database with the one of the plurality of customer codes associated in the database with the entering one of the plurality of customers, under control of the processor, a first customer message for display on the identified mobile communication device, the first customer message including information indicating that a completed order for the item associated with the determined order status code is ready for pick up at the one of the plurality of departments identified by the one of the plurality of department codes associated in the database with the determined order status code.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

with the processor, further associating in the database with the one of the plurality of customer codes (d) a scheduled pickup time corresponding to at least one of a calendar date and time of day of a calendar at which the order for the associated item is to be completed for pickup, and (e) an order completion time corresponding to an estimated time required by the one of the plurality of departments associated with the determined one of the plurality of department codes to complete the order for the associated item, and

in response to determining that the one of the plurality of brick-and-mortar store identification codes associated in the database with the entered one of the plurality of geographic boundaries is also associated in the database with the order status code indicative of the pending order for the associated item, the determined order status code indicates that the pending order for the associated item is not yet complete and a current calendar date or current time of day of a current calendar date is equal to or later than the scheduled pickup time,

(iii) comparing the order completion time associated in the database with the order status code identifying the status of the order placed for the associated item by the entering one of the plurality of customers to a predefined time, and

(iv) if the order completion time is less than or equal to the predefined time, controlling, at least in part with the processor, the display monitor located at the one of the plurality of departments identified by the determined one of the plurality of department codes to display a second notification message including information indicating that the one of the plurality of customers that placed the order for the item associated with the determined order status code has entered the one of the plurality of brick-and-mortar stores associated in the database with the determined one of the plurality of brick-and-mortar store codes and that the order identified by the determined order status code is incomplete and overdue.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the second notification message further includes instructions to complete the order for the item associated with the determined order status code.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the predefined time is an estimated amount of time required for the entering one of the plurality of customers to travel from a location at which the entering one of the plurality of customers entered the one of the plurality of geographic boundaries to the one of the plurality of departments identified by the determined one of the plurality of department codes associated in the database with the determined order status code.

6. The method of claim 3, wherein the predefined time is an estimated amount of time that the entering one of the plurality of customers will spend shopping in the one of the plurality of brick-and-mortar stores identified by the one of the plurality of brick-and-mortar store identification codes associated in the database with the entered one of the plurality of geographic boundaries.

7. The method of claim 3, wherein if the order completion time is greater than the predefined time,

(v) determining, with the processor, a revised order pickup time, and

(vi) controlling, at least in part with the processor, the display monitor located at the one of the plurality of departments identified by the determined one of the plurality of department codes to display a third notification message including information indicating that the order identified by the determined order status code is incomplete and overdue, the third notification message further including instructions to complete the order identified by the determined order status code by the revised order pickup time.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

with the processor, associating in the database each of the plurality of customer codes with communication information identifying a mobile communication device associated with a respective one of the plurality of customers, and

if the order completion time is greater than the predetermined time, wirelessly transmitting to the mobile communication device identified by the communication information associated in the database with the one of the plurality of customer codes associated in the database with the entering one of the plurality of customers, under control of the processor, a second customer message for display on the identified mobile communication device, the second customer message including the revised order pickup time, and information indicating that the order for the item associated with the determined order status code is not complete but will be completed for pick up at the revised order pickup time at the one of the plurality of departments identified by the one of the plurality of department codes associated in the database with the determined order status code.

9. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

with the processor, associating in the database each of the plurality of customer codes with communication information identifying a mobile communication device associated with a respective one of the plurality of customers, and

if the order completion time is greater than the predetermined time, wirelessly transmitting to the mobile communication device identified by the communication information associated in the database with the one of the plurality of customer codes associated in the database with the entering one of the plurality of customers, under control of the processor, a virtual discount coupon.