Location tracking of products and product display assemblies in a wirelessly connected environment

• US 10,251,144 B2
• Filed: 06/06/2018
• Issued: 04/02/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 12/03/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Mobile Tech, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Mobile Tech, Inc.
• Inventors: Blaser, Robert Logan, Wylie, Hunter, Collier, Jacob Michael
• Primary Examiner(s): Ali, Shawkat M
• Application Number:
  US16/001,601
• Publication Number:
  US 20180288720A1
• Time in Patent Office: 300 Days
• Field of Search: 235380, 235383, 375220, 705 1, 705 729, 705 10, 705 1445, 705 26, 705 39, 726 2, 726 6
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/203 Inventory monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/303 Terminal profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/026 using orientation information, e.g. compass
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 56/0025 synchronizing potentially movable access points
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks

Abstract

Disclosed herein are a number of example embodiments where wireless nodes are arranged in a wirelessly connected environment to support a variety of remote management operations, including location tracking, status monitoring, and remote control. In an example embodiment, the wireless nodes can be deployed in a retail store and provide remote management and control over any combination of product display assemblies, locks, power strips, display shelves, display hooks, and other node types.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a plurality of wireless nodes arranged as a wireless network, wherein each of a plurality of the wireless nodes includes a wireless transceiver for wireless communication over the wireless network, and wherein a plurality of the wireless nodes are part of different product display assemblies, each product display assembly configured to connect with a product for presentation of the product to a consumer; and

a computer system configured for wireless communication with the wireless network;

wherein each of a plurality of the product display assemblies is configured to wirelessly transmit data to the computer system via the wireless network that pairs an identifier for the product display assembly with an identifier for the product; and

wherein the computer system is further configured to (1) receive the wirelessly transmitted data via the wireless network, (2) store data that identifies a location for each of a plurality of the product display assemblies in association with identifiers for the product display assemblies, and (3) create a data structure based on the received data and the stored data, wherein the data structure tracks locations for the products based on the pairings between product display identifiers and product identifiers and the associations between locations and product display identifiers.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the wireless network comprises a wireless mesh network.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein each of a plurality of the product display assemblies comprises (1) a puck assembly configured to connect with the product, and (2) a base assembly, wherein the puck assembly is removable from the product display assembly;

wherein the puck assembly has an associated puck identifier;

wherein the base assembly has an associated base identifier;

wherein the stored data associates the base identifiers with the locations for the product display assemblies;

wherein the puck assembly is configured to read a product identifier from the connected product;

wherein the product display assembly is configured to wirelessly transmit data that identifies a pairing of the puck identifier, base identifier, and read product identifier to the computer system via the wireless network; and

wherein the computer system is further configured to create the data structure the tracks the product locations based on the pairing data and the associations between the base identifiers and locations.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein a plurality of the puck assemblies include a plurality of the wireless transceivers.

5. The system of claim 3, wherein a plurality of the base assemblies include a plurality of the wireless transceivers.

6. The system of claim 3, wherein each of a plurality of the puck assemblies is adapted to be moveable between (1) a rest position in which the puck assembly rests on the base assembly, and (2) a lift position in which the puck assembly does not rest on the base assembly.

7. The system of claim 3, wherein each of a plurality of the product display assemblies further comprises a tether assembly configured to connect the puck assembly with the base assembly, even when the puck assembly is in the lift position.

8. The system of claim 3, wherein each of a plurality of the product display assemblies is further configured to perform the read operation and the wireless transmission operation in response to a trigger event.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the trigger event comprises a lift of the puck assembly.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the trigger event comprises a loss of power to the product display assembly.

11. The system of claim 8, wherein the trigger event comprises a new connection of a different puck assembly with the product display assembly.

12. The system of claim 8, wherein the trigger event comprises a new connection of a different product with the product display assembly.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein the product display assembly is configured to be controllably switched between an armed state and a disarmed state.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the computer system is configured to wirelessly transmit a command to at least one of the product display assemblies through the wireless network in response to user input through an interface, wherein the command comprises a command to perform at least one of a remote arming and a remote disarming of the at least one product display assembly.

15. The system of claim 1, wherein the wirelessly transmitted data further comprises status information about the product display assembly, and wherein the computer system is configured to store the status information in association with the product display assembly identifier corresponding to the status information.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the status information comprises an event log for the product display assembly.

17. The system of claim 1, wherein the computer system is further configured to compare the created data structure with planogram data to determine planogram compliance data.

18. The system of claim 1, wherein the computer system comprises a gateway computer.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein the computer system further comprises a server for network communication with the gateway computer, wherein the server is further configured to communicate over a network with a plurality of the gateway computers and a plurality of the wireless networks that are dispersed across a plurality of geographic locations, the server configured to aggregate the created data structures from the different wireless networks.

20. The system of claim 1, wherein the computer system comprises a server.

21. The system of claim 1, wherein the products comprise a plurality of electronic devices.

22. The system of claim 1, wherein the wireless nodes are located in a retail store.

23. A method comprising:

associating an identifier for a product display assembly with a location, the product display assembly comprising a wireless transceiver;

the product display assembly determining a product identifier for a product connected to the product display assembly;

the product display assembly wirelessly transmitting data that is indicative of a pairing between the product display assembly identifier and the determined product identifier to a remote computer system via the wireless transceiver;

the remote computer system building a data structure that associates the determined product identifier with the location based on the association between the product display identifier and the location and the pairing data; and

repeating the method steps with respect to a plurality of different products and product display assemblies that are arranged to form a wireless network of product display assemblies so that the data structure tracks locations of a plurality of different products connected to the product display assemblies;

wherein each of a plurality of the product display assemblies comprises (1) a puck assembly that connects with the product for that product display assembly, wherein the puck assembly has an associated puck identifier, and (2) a base assembly, wherein the base assembly has an associated base identifier, and wherein the puck assembly is removable from the product display assembly;

wherein the associating step comprises associating the base identifiers with the locations;

wherein the determining step comprises the puck assemblies reading the product identifiers from their connected products;

wherein the wirelessly transmitting step comprises each of a plurality of the product display assemblies wirelessly transmitting data that is indicative of a pairing between the puck identifier, base identifier, and read product identifier to the remote computer system via the wireless network; and

wherein the building step comprises the remote computer system building the data structure the tracks the product locations based on the pairing data and the associations between the base identifiers and locations.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the wireless network comprises a wireless mesh network.

25. The method of claim 23, further comprising:

a product display assembly detecting a trigger event; and

wherein the product display assembly that detects the trigger events performs the determining and wirelessly transmitting step in response to the detected trigger event.

27. The method of claim 25, wherein the trigger event comprises a new connection of a different product with the product display assembly.

28. The method of claim 23, further comprising:

the remote computer system comparing the data structure with planogram data to determine planogram compliance data.

26. The method of any 25, wherein the trigger event comprises a new connection of a different puck assembly with the product display assembly.

29. A system comprising:

a plurality of wireless nodes, wherein each of a plurality of the wireless nodes includes a wireless transceiver, and wherein a plurality of the wireless nodes are part of different product display assemblies, each product display assembly configured to connect with a product for presentation of the product to a consumer; and

a plurality of processor-executable instructions that are resident on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, the instructions configured for execution by a processor to cause the processor to communicate with the wireless transceivers of the wireless nodes over a wireless network;

wherein each of a plurality of the product display assemblies is configured to wirelessly transmit data via the wireless network that pairs an identifier for the product display assembly with an identifier for the product; and

wherein the instructions are further configured for execution to cause the processor to (1) receive the wirelessly transmitted data via the wireless network, (2) store data that identifies a location for each of a plurality of the product display assemblies in association with identifiers for the product display assemblies, and (3) create a data structure based on the received data and the stored data, wherein the data structure tracks locations for the products based on the pairings between product display identifiers and product identifiers and the associations between locations and product display identifiers.

30. The system of claim 29, wherein the wireless network comprises a wireless mesh network.

31. The system of claim 29, wherein each of a plurality of the product display assemblies comprises (1) a puck assembly configured to connect with the product, and (2) a base assembly, wherein the puck assembly is removable from the product display assembly;

wherein the puck assembly has an associated puck identifier;

wherein the base assembly has an associated base identifier;

wherein the stored data associates the base identifiers with the locations for the product display assemblies;

wherein the puck assembly is configured to read a product identifier from the connected product;

wherein the product display assembly is configured to wirelessly transmit data that identifies a pairing of the puck identifier, base identifier, and read product identifier to the computer system via the wireless network; and

wherein the instructions are further configured for execution to cause the processor to create the data structure the tracks the product locations based on the pairing data and the associations between the base identifiers and locations.

32. The system of claim 31, wherein a plurality of the puck assemblies include a plurality of the wireless transceivers.

33. The system of claim 31, wherein a plurality of the base assemblies include a plurality of the wireless transceivers.

34. The system of claim 31, wherein each of a plurality of the puck assemblies is adapted to be moveable between (1) a rest position in which the puck assembly rests on the base assembly, and (2) a lift position in which the puck assembly does not rest on the base assembly.

35. The system of claim 31, wherein each of a plurality of the product display assemblies further comprises a tether assembly configured to connect the puck assembly with the base assembly, even when the puck assembly is in the lift position.

36. The system of claim 31, wherein each of a plurality of the product display assemblies is further configured to perform the read operation and the wireless transmission operation in response to a trigger event.

37. The system of claim 36, wherein the trigger event comprises a lift of the puck assembly.

38. The system of claim 36, wherein the trigger event comprises a loss of power to the product display assembly.

39. The system of claim 36, wherein the trigger event comprises a new connection of a different puck assembly with the product display assembly.

40. The system of claim 36, wherein the trigger event comprises a new connection of a different product with the product display assembly.

41. The system of claim 29, wherein the product display assembly is configured to be controllably switched between an armed state and a disarmed state.

42. The system of claim 41, wherein the instructions are further configured for execution to cause the processor to wirelessly transmit a command to at least one of the product display assemblies through the wireless network in response to user input through an interface, wherein the command comprises a command to perform at least one of a remote arming and a remote disarming of the at least one product display assembly.

43. The system of claim 29, wherein the wirelessly transmitted data further comprises status information about the product display assembly, and wherein the instructions are further configured for execution to cause the processor to store the status information in association with the product display assembly identifier corresponding to the status information.

44. The system of claim 43, wherein the status information comprises an event log for the product display assembly.

45. The system of claim 29, wherein the instructions are further configured for execution to cause the processor to compare the created data structure with planogram data to determine planogram compliance data.

46. The system of claim 29, wherein the instructions are configured for execution on a gateway computer.

47. The system of claim 46, further comprising a server for network communication with the gateway computer, wherein the server is further configured to communicate over a network with a plurality of the gateway computers and a plurality of the wireless networks that are dispersed across a plurality of geographic locations, the server configured to aggregate the created data structures from the different wireless networks.

48. The system of claim 29, wherein the instructions are configured for execution on a server.

49. The system of claim 29, wherein the products comprise a plurality of electronic devices.

50. The system of claim 29, wherein the wireless nodes are located in a retail store.