CART BRAKING CONTROL DURING MECHANIZED CART RETRIEVAL
First Claim
1. A system for retrieving shopping carts, the system comprising:
- a plurality of shopping carts, each of which includes radio frequency (RF) communication circuitry coupled to a braking mechanism, said RF communication circuitry being capable of receiving RF transmissions of commands; and
a mechanized cart retrieval unit that pushes or pulls a group of nested carts to facilitate retrieval, the mechanized cart retrieval unit configured to communicate with the RF communication circuitry of the nested carts to cause the braking mechanisms of the nested carts to remain unlocked during mechanized cart retrieval.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A vehicle tracking system includes a wheel containing sensor circuitry capable of sensing various types of conditions, such as wheel rotation, wheel vibration caused by skidding, and specific electromagnetic and/or magnetic signals indicative of particular wheel locations. The sensor circuitry is coupled to an RF transceiver, which may but need not be included within the wheel. The wheel may also include a brake mechanism. In one embodiment, the wheels are placed on shopping carts and are used to collect and monitor shopping cart status and location data via a wireless network. The collected data may be used for various purposes, such as locking the wheel of an exiting cart if the customer has not paid, estimating numbers of queued carts, stopping wheel skid events that occur during mechanized cart retrieval, store planning, and providing location-based messaging to customers.
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Citations
14 Claims
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1. A system for retrieving shopping carts, the system comprising:
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a plurality of shopping carts, each of which includes radio frequency (RF) communication circuitry coupled to a braking mechanism, said RF communication circuitry being capable of receiving RF transmissions of commands; and a mechanized cart retrieval unit that pushes or pulls a group of nested carts to facilitate retrieval, the mechanized cart retrieval unit configured to communicate with the RF communication circuitry of the nested carts to cause the braking mechanisms of the nested carts to remain unlocked during mechanized cart retrieval. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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7. A system for facilitating retrieval of shopping carts, the system comprising:
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a shopping cart wheel assembly configured for attachment to a shopping cart, said shopping cart wheel assembly including communication circuitry coupled to a braking mechanism, said communication circuitry capable of receiving wireless transmissions of commands, and capable of controlling the braking mechanism in response to said commands; and a communication device adapted to be mounted on and electrically connected to a mechanized cart retrieval unit that pushes or pulls a group of nested carts, said communication device configured to transmit a command to said shopping cart wheel assembly to cause the braking mechanism to remain in a deactivated state during cart retrieval. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10)
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11. A method of facilitating mechanized cart retrieval, comprising:
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during mechanized cart retrieval of a nest of shopping carts with a mechanized cart retrieval unit, transmitting at least one command from the mechanized cart retrieval unit to the shopping carts via wireless communications, said shopping carts comprising braking mechanisms that are capable of being activated to inhibit shopping cart motion, and comprising electronic circuitry that controls the braking mechanisms; and at the shopping carts, responding to the at least one command by causing the braking mechanisms to remain in a deactivated state during said mechanized cart retrieval. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13)
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14. A mechanized cart retrieval unit configured to push or pull a nest of shopping carts, the mechanized cart retrieval unit comprising a communication device that is configured to wirelessly communicate with shopping carts in said nest during mechanized cart retrieval to cause the shopping carts to maintain braking mechanisms thereof in an unlocked state during mechanized cart retrieval.
Specification