Accessible shopping guide for retail business

• US 20050165649A1
• Filed: 01/22/2004
• Published: 07/28/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 01/22/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Kistler, Karen Elizabeth, Mahaffey, Robert Bruce, Detweiler, Samuel Roy
• Application Number:
  US10/763,107
• Publication Number:
  US 20050165649A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/26
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0639 Item locations
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 90/20 Destination assistance within a business structure or complex

Abstract

An accessible shopping guide to a retail business. A shopper generates a shopping list by interaction with a website of the retail business accessible by persons with cognitive disabilities. During the interaction, the server connected to the website can suggest retail products or utilize information about the shopper.

Claims

1. A system for providing a shopping guide to shoppers of a retail business, comprising:

a website;

a server interconnected to the website; and

a presentation means coupled to the server, configured to have specifications for retail products input through the website;

wherein the server is configured to pass product information and retail store information, including product location information about the specified retail products to the presentation means; and

wherein the presentation means is configured to present a shopping guide which includes the product information and the retail store information, including the product location information.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising a

retrieval means coupled to the server, wherein the server is further configured to obtain from the retrieval means product information and retail store information, including product location information, about the specified retail products.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the website is accessible by persons with disabilities.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein the website is further configured to receive customer identification information from the shopper and the server is further configured to obtain from the retrieval means customer profile information about the person identified by the customer identification information.

5. The system of claim 2, wherein the server is further configured to interact with the shopper through the website and wherein the server is further configured to request demographic information and shopping habit information from the shopper.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the server is further configured, responsive to the demographic information and shopping habit information requested by the server, to obtain product information and retail store information, including product location information.

7. The system of claim 2, wherein the server is further configured to reference in the shopping guide a retail product not specified by the shopper.

8. The system of claim 2, wherein the server is further configured to interact with the shopper through the website and the server is further configured to reference a retail product not specified by the shopper.

9. The system of claim 2, wherein the server is further configured to interact with the shopper through the website, and wherein the server is further configured for the shopper to select a retail location of the retail business through the interaction.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the server is further configured to obtain information about an event occurring at the retail location.

11. The system of claim 2, wherein the server is further configured to obtain information about retail store locations from the retrieval means;

and wherein the server is further configured to include information about one or more retail store locations for the shopper in the shopping guide.

12. The system of claim 2, wherein the server is further configured to interact with the shopper through the website;

and wherein the server is further configured to reference one or more retail store locations for the shopper during the interaction.

13. The system of claim 2, wherein the system further comprises a retail store map generating means for generating a retail store map route in response to input from the shopper.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the retail store map generating means is further configured to be responsive to other data as well as to the input from the shopper.

15. The system of claim 2, wherein the website is configured to be accessed through a personal computer.

16. The system of claim 2, wherein the presenting means consists of a computer kiosk in the retail store outlet.

17. The system of claim 2, wherein the presenting means consists of a customer service desk in the retail store outlet.

18. The system of claim 2, wherein the website is configured to be accessed through a portable computing device.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein the presenting means consists of downloading to the portable computing device.

20. A method for providing a shopping guide to a shopper of a retail business, comprising the steps of:

interacting between a shopper and a website of the retail business;

generating a shopping list through the interaction;

selecting a retail location of the retail business;

generating a shopping guide for the shopping list and the retail location, which shopping guide includes product location information about the items on the shopping list; and

presenting the shopping guide to the shopper.

21. The method of claim 20, generating the shopping list by the interaction of the shopper with an accessible website of the retail business.

22. The method of claim 20, generating the shopping guide with the employment of customer profile information about the shopper.

23. The method of claim 20, wherein the interacting between the shopper and the website further comprises the step of requesting demographic information and shopping information from the shopper.

24. Computer program product for providing a shopping guide to a shopper of a retail business, the computer program product having a medium with a computer program embodied thereon, the computer program comprising:

computer code for interacting between a shopper and a website of the retail business;

computer code for generating a shopping list through the interaction;

computer code for selecting a retail location of the retail business;

computer code for generating a shopping guide for the shopping list and the retail location, which shopping guide includes product location information about the items on the shopping list; and

computer code for presenting the shopping guide to the shopper.

25. The computer program product of claim 24, wherein the computer code is for generating the shopping list by the interaction of the shopper with an accessible website of the retail business.

26. The computer code product of claim 24, wherein the computer code is for generating the shopping guide with the employment of customer profile information about the shopper.