Processor-based positioning system

• US 20030011477A1
• Filed: 07/12/2001
• Published: 01/16/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 07/12/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Original Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Inventors: Clapper, Edward O.
• Granted Patent: US 7,084,765 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/573.1
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/02 using radio waves using satellite radio beacon systems for determining position G01S19/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0267 Wireless devices
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/02 by keys or other credit registering devices
• CPC Class Codes: G07G 1/0081 the reader being a portable scanner or data reader G07G1/009 takes precedence

Abstract

A facility such as a retail facility may include a plurality of wireless identifier tags distributed about the facility. An article associated with a user such as a retail customer may include a detector that detects one or more of those tags when the user is proximate to a tag. For example, a plurality of detectors may be placed on a shopping cart in a retail application. Based on the detection of information associated with each tag, the real time position of the user may be determined in the facility.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

positioning a plurality of wireless tags around a facility; and

providing a sensor associated with a user to sense the tags to determine the position of the user in the facility.

2. The method of claim 1 including:

wirelessly linking a plurality of shopping carts within a retail facility through a local area network based in the retail facility; and

enabling the carts to exchange information through said network.

3. The method of claim 2 including providing a processor-based device on a shopping cart to retail customers that wirelessly communicates with said server.

4. The method of claim 2 including pushing information to the cart depending on the cart'"'"'s current location.

5. The method of claim 1 including providing a plurality of sensors associated with the user, each sensor to sense the tags to determine the position of the user in the facility.

6. The method of claim 1 including providing said sensor on a shopping cart.

7. The method of claim 1 including receiving identifying information from each of a plurality of wireless tags.

8. The method of claim 7 including providing said information from said wireless tags to a server.

9. The method of claim 7 including using said information from said wireless tags to determine the current location of the user.

10. The method of claim 1 including obtaining information about the route and direction of travel of a user.

11. An article comprising a medium storing instructions that enable a processor-based system to:

receive information from a plurality of wireless tags distributed about a facility; and

analyze information from the tags to determine the location of a user.

12. The article of claim 11 further storing instructions that enable a processor-based system to:

wirelessly link a plurality of shopping carts within a retail facility through a local area network based in the retail facility; and

enable the carts to exchange information through said network.

13. The article of claim 12 further storing instructions that enable the processor-based system to provide information about the current location of a processor-based device associated with a cart.

15. The article of claim 14 further storing instructions that enable the processor-based system to push information to a cart depending on the cart'"'"'s current location.

16. The article of claim 12 further storing instructions that enable the processor-based system to receive information from a plurality of sensors associated with the user, and extract position information from a plurality of tags sensed by each of the plurality of sensors to determine the position of the user.

17. The article of claim 11 further storing instructions that enable the processor-based system to receive identifying information from each of a plurality of wireless tags.

18. The article of claim 17 further storing instructions that enable the processor-based system to provide said information from said wireless tags to a server.

19. The article of claim 17 further storing instructions that enable the processor-based system to use the information from the wireless tags to determine the current location of the user.

20. The article of claim 11 further storing instructions that enable the processor-based system to obtain information about the route and direction of travel of the user.

14. The article of 13 further storing instructions that enable the processor-based system to determine the cart'"'"'s location.

21. A system comprising:

a plurality of wireless tags;

a wireless sensor associated with a user;

a processor associatable with a user; and

a storage coupled to said processor to determine the user'"'"'s position based on information from said tags.

22. The system of claim 21 further including a wireless transceiver.

23. The system of claim 21 further including an interface to enable network communications.

24. The system of claim 21 wherein each of said wireless tags provides an identifying code to said wireless sensor.

25. The system of claim 21 including a plurality of wireless sensors associated with the user.

26. The system of claim 21 including a shopping cart, said wireless sensor and said processor mounted on said shopping cart.

27. The system of claim 21 including a wireless interface to communicate with a network.

28. The system of claim 27 wherein said processor forwards information from said tags through said wireless interface to said network.

29. The system of claim 21 including a server coupled to said network, said server receiving position identifying information from said sensor and providing advertising information to said processor.

30. The system of claim 21 wherein said processor tracks the direction and movement of said user.