Systems and methods for retracing shrink events

• US 10,319,204 B1
• Filed: 04/09/2018
• Issued: 06/11/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 04/09/2018
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Zebra Technologies Corporation
• Original Assignee: Zebra Technologies Corporation
• Inventors: Wulff, Thomas E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Akki, Munear T
• Application Number:
  US15/948,133
• Time in Patent Office: 428 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10475 arrangements to facilitate interaction with further interrogation devices, e.g. such that at least two interrogation devices may function and cooperate in a network of such devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/00 Administration; Management
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/2462 Asset location systems combined with EAS inventory, tracking, logistic G06Q10/00; entrance control systems G07C9/00

Abstract

In an embodiment, the present invention is a shrink event detection system for use within a venue. The system includes a server associated with a venue containing a plurality of items, the server including one or more processors, and a shrink event detection subsystem. The shrink event detection subsystem is operable to: detect a theft event of a stolen item; backtrack from the theft event of the stolen item to recognize at least one attribute related to the theft event; and record the at least one attribute in a tracking database, the tracking database being accessible by the server. The system is configured such that the server, via the one or more processors, generates a shrink event template based at least in part of the at least one attribute in the tracking database.

Claims

1. A shrink event detection system for use within a venue, comprising:

a server associated with the venue containing a plurality of items, the server including one or more processors;

a shrink event detection subsystem that;

detect a theft event of a stolen item;

backtrack from the theft event of the stolen item to recognize at least one attribute related to the theft event, the at least one attribute related to the theft event including at least one of a path traversed by the stolen item prior to the theft event, a path traversed by a perpetrator of the theft event prior to the theft event, and a duration that the perpetrator of the theft event was in possession of the stolen item prior to the theft event; and

record the at least one attribute in a tracking database, the tracking database being accessible by the server; and

a tracking subsystem that generate tracking data related to at least one of tracking a person within the venue and tracking one of the plurality of items,

wherein the server, via the one or more processors, generates a shrink event template based at least in part of the at least one attribute in the tracking database, the shrink event template being generated via machine learning analytics that recognizes at least one pattern based on the at least one attribute, and

wherein the server is configured to compare the tracking data with the shrink event template.

2. The shrink event detection system of claim 1, wherein the server is further configured to generate an alert when a predefined level of correlation is detected between the tracking data and the shrink event.

3. The shrink event detection system of claim 1, wherein the tracking subsystem includes:

at least one radio frequency identification (RFID) reader operable to track the one of the plurality of items via an RFID tag attached to the one of the plurality of items; and

at least one video camera operable to track the person within the venue.

4. The shrink event detection system of claim 1, wherein the server generates the shrink event template to update an existing shrink event template.

5. A method of detecting a shrink event, the method comprising:

providing a server associated with a venue containing a plurality of items, the server including one or more processors;

communicatively linking the server with a shrink event detection subsystem;

detecting, via the shrink event detection subsystem, a theft event of a stolen item;

backtracking from the theft event of the stolen item to recognize at least one attribute related to the theft event, the at least one attribute related to the theft event including at least one of a path traversed by the stolen item prior to the theft event, a path traversed by a perpetrator of the theft event prior to the theft event, and a duration that the perpetrator of the theft event was in possession of the stolen item prior to the theft event;

recording the at least one attribute in a tracking database, the tracking database being accessible by the server;

generating, by the server, a shrink event template based at least in part of the at least one attribute in the tracking database, the shrink event template being generated via machine learning analytics that recognizes at least one pattern based on the at least one attribute;

generating tracking data, via a tracking subsystem, related to at least one of tracking a person within the venue and tracking one of the plurality of items; and

comparing the tracking data with the shrink event template.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising generating an alert when a predefined level of correlation is detected between the tracking data and the shrink event.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the tracking subsystem includes:

at least one radio frequency identification (RFID) reader operable to track the one of the plurality of items via an RFID tag attached to the one of the plurality of items; and

at least one video camera operable to track the person within the venue.

8. The method of claim 5, wherein the step of generating the shrink event template includes updating an existing shrink event template.