System and method of verifying item placement on a security scale

• US 20050184147A1
• Filed: 02/13/2004
• Published: 08/25/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 02/13/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NCR Voyix Corporation
• Original Assignee: NCR Corporation (NCR Voyix Corporation)
• Inventors: White, Daniel F.
• Granted Patent: US 7,347,367 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 235/383
• CPC Class Codes: G01G 19/4144 for controlling weight of goods in commercial establishments, e.g. supermarket, P.O.S. systems
• CPC Class Codes: G07G 1/0054 with control of supplementary check-parameters, e.g. weight or number of articles

Abstract

A system and method of verifying item placement on a security scale. The system includes a computer for receiving incremental weight signals from a security weight scale, wherein some of the incremental weight signals are unrelated to placement of items on the security weight scale, and an item detector for detecting movement of the item from a scanner following scanning of the item and for generating an item detection signal, wherein the computer ignores the incremental weight signal unless it receives the item detection signal within a predetermined time period preceding receipt of the incremental weight signal.

Claims

1. A method of verifying item placement on a security scale comprising the steps of:

receiving an incremental weight signal from the security scale;

determining whether an item detection signal was received from an item detector within a predetermined time period prior to receipt of the incremental weight signal; and

ignoring the incremental weight signal if the item detection signal was not received.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of:

performing a weight comparison test involving a comparison of incremental weight information in the incremental weight signal to reference weight information if the item detection signal was received.

3. A method of verifying placement of an item on a security scale comprising the steps of:

receiving an item detection signal indicative of placement of the item on the security scale from a detector;

receiving an incremental weight signal from the security scale;

determining that the item detection signal was received within a predetermined time period before the incremental weight signal; and

processing purchase of the item in response to receipt of the item detection signal within the predetermined time period of the incremental weight signal.

4. A method of verifying placement of an item on a security scale of a retail terminal comprising the steps of:

scanning an item by a bar code scanner coupled to the terminal;

sensing placement of the item in a bag well following scanning by an item detector coupled to the retail terminal, wherein the item detector produces an item detection signal;

recording an incremental weight of the item by a security weight scale in the bag well, wherein the security weight scale produces an incremental weight-signal;

processing purchase of the item by the terminal if the item detection signal precedes the incremental weight signal within a predetermined time period.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the sensing step includes the substep of sensing motion in the bag well.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the sensing step includes the substep of taking images of the bag well and processing the images to detect changes within the bag well.

7. The method of claim 4, wherein the sensing step includes the substep of sensing size of the item.

8. The method of claim 4, wherein the sensing step includes the substep of sensing shape of the item.

9. The method of claim 4, wherein the sensing step includes the substep of sensing color of the item.

10. The method of claim 4, further comprising the steps of:

performing a weight comparison test involving a comparison of the incremental weight to an expected weight;

actuating a security warning if the incremental weight fails to equal the expected weight.

11. System for verifying placement of an item on a security scale comprising:

a computer for receiving incremental weight signals from a security weight scale, wherein some of the incremental weight signals are unrelated to placement of items on the security weight scale; and

an item detector for detecting movement of the item from a scanner following scanning of the item and for generating an item detection signal;

wherein the computer ignores the incremental weight signal unless it receives the item detection signal within a predetermined time period preceding receipt of the incremental weight signal.

12. A self-service checkout system comprising:

a computer;

a bar code scanner in communication with said computer for reading a bar code label on an item;

a security weight scale in communication with said computer for weighing the item and for generating an incremental weight signal, wherein said security weight scale is located in a bag well adjacent the bar code scanner; and

an item detector for detecting movement of the item following scanning by the bar code scanner and for generating an item detection signal;

wherein the computer ignores the incremental weight signal unless it receives the item detection signal within a predetermined time period preceding receipt of the incremental weight signal.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the computer performs a weight comparison test involving a comparison of an incremental weight from the security weight scale to an expected weight and actuates a security warning if the incremental weight fails to equal the expected weight.

14. A self-service checkout system comprising:

a computer;

a bar code scanner in communication with said computer for reading a bar code label on an item;

a security weight scale in communication with said computer for weighing the item and for generating an incremental weight signal, wherein said security weight scale is located in a bag well adjacent the bar code scanner; and

an item detector for detecting movement of the item following scanning by the bar code scanner and for generating an item detection signal;

wherein the computer performs a weight comparison test involving a comparison of an incremental weight from the security weight scale to an expected weight and actuates a security warning if the incremental weight fails to equal the expected weight and the computer and the computer has received a prior item detection signal from the item detector.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the item detector is mounted to a side of the bag well.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein the item detector comprises a motion sensor.

17. The system of claim 14, wherein the item detector comprises a camera.

18. The system of claim 14, wherein the item detector senses size of the item.

19. The system of claim 14, wherein the item detector senses shape of the item.

20. The system of claim 14, wherein the item detector senses color of the item.