Method, medium, and system for real-time pricing through smart-price-tags

• US 10,210,562 B2
• Filed: 09/08/2016
• Issued: 02/19/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 09/08/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Dey, Kuntal, Ekambaram, Vijay, Nagar, Seema, Rallapalli, Swati
• Primary Examiner(s): Zimmerman, Matthew E
• Application Number:
  US15/259,429
• Publication Number:
  US 20180068375A1
• Time in Patent Office: 894 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0633 Lists, e.g. purchase orders, compilation or processing

Abstract

Various embodiments determine a sale price of an item via a smart price tag associated with the item. In one embodiment, the smart price tag is detected as being shaken. Responsive to detecting the smart price tag as being shaken, a request for a current sale price of the item for sale is sent to a back end price server. The current sale price of the item for sale is received from the back end price server and displayed for a predetermined period of time. The current sale price may be displayed on the smart price tag or a separate display sign. The current price is displayed until expiration of a predetermined period of time unless a lock request is detected which locks the price of the item for sale at the current sale price. If a price unlock button is pressed, the sale price of the item is unlocked.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for determining a sale price of an item via a smart price tag associated with the item, the computer-implemented method comprising:

detecting the smart price tag as being shaken;

sending a request for a current sale price of the item, in response to said detecting the smart price tag as being shaken;

receiving the current sale price of the item for display, in response to said sending a request for a current sale price of the item;

receiving a lock request from a consumer via a button on the smart price tag; and

in response to receiving the lock request, locking the sale price of the item at the current sale price for a predetermined period of time.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying the current sale price for a predetermined period of time.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the current sale price is displayed on at least one of the group consisting of:

a display on the smart price tag and a separate display sign.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the smart price tag is physically attached to the item, wherein an attachment is selected from the group consisting of a hook, a security pin, an adhesive, and a locking tag.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining that the smart price tag has been tampered with, in response to said detecting the smart price tag as being shaken; and

deactivating the smart price tag, in response to said determining that the smart price tag has been tampered with.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising clearing the current sale price upon expiration of a predetermined period of time.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein said receiving the lock request is determined to be associated with a press of a price lock button.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving an unlock request prior to expiration of the predetermined period of time; and

unlocking the sale price of the item.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining that the predetermined period of time has expired;

and unlocking the sale price of the item, in response to said determining that predetermined period of time has expired.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the current sale price of the item is determined based on at least one of the group consisting of current supply of the item, current demand of the item, a given calendar day, a given time of year, a given season, a particular time of day, given crowd levels in a retail store, given online competition, given purchasing and warehousing costs, and given other expenses.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining a motion intensity of being shaken is greater than a predetermined threshold; and

communicating an indication that the shaking is objectionable.

12. A smart price tag logically associated with an item for sale, the smart price tag comprising:

a memory storing computer instructions;

a sensor that detects the smart price tag is being shaken;

a communication interface; and

a processor, operably coupled with the memory, the sensor and the communication interface, the processor adapted to execute the computer instructions, comprising;

detecting the smart price tag as being shaken;

sending a request, via the communication interface, for a current sale price of the item, in response to said detecting the smart price tag as being shaken; and

receiving the current price of the item for sale, in response to said sending a request for a current sale price of the item;

receiving a lock request from a consumer via a button on the smart price tag; and

in response to receiving the lock request, locking a sale price of the item at the current sale price for a predetermined period of time.

13. The smart price tag of claim 12, wherein the computer instructions further comprise instructions for displaying, the current price, in response to said receiving the current price of the item.

14. The smart price tag of claim 13, wherein the processor further clears the current sale price upon expiration of a predetermined period of time.

15. The smart price tag of claim 12, wherein the communication interface communicates using a protocol selected from the group consisting of a Wi-Fi protocol and a Bluetooth protocol.

16. The smart price tag of claim 12, further comprising a tamper sensor operably coupled with the processor such that the tamper sensor determines whether the smart price tag has been tampered with and responsive to determining that the smart price tag has been tampered with, the processor deactivates the smart price tag.

17. The smart price tag of claim 12, further comprising:

a price unlock button, wherein upon detection of the price unlock button being pressed, the processor unlocks the sale price of the item.

18. The smart price tag of claim 12, wherein the processor further unlocks the sale price upon expiration of the predetermined period of time.

19. A non-transitory computer program product for determining a dynamic price of an item for sale via an attached smart price tag, the computer program product comprising:

a computer readable storage medium storing instructions for execution by a computer for performing a method comprising;

detecting the smart price tag as being shaken, the smart price tag logically associated with the item;

sending a request from the smart tag for a current sale price of the item, wherein the request is associated with shaking the smart price tag;

receiving the current sale price of the item for display, in response to said communicating a request for a current sale price of the it;

receiving a lock request from a consumer via a button on the smart price tag; and

in response to receiving the lock request, locking a sale price of the item at the current sale price for a predetermined period of time.