INTELLIGENT SHOPPING ASSISTANT

• US 20130103539A1
• Filed: 10/25/2011
• Published: 04/25/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 10/25/2011
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: ABRAHAM, SUBIL M., KANNAN, RAMAKRISHNAN, THOMAS, MATHEWS, HARIHARAN, RAJARAMAN
• Application Number:
  US13/280,904
• Publication Number:
  US 20130103539A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/26.8
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/04 Forecasting or optimisation specially adapted for administrative or management purposes, e.g. linear programming or "cutting stock problem" market predictions or forecasting for commercial activities G06Q30/0202
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0633 Lists, e.g. purchase orders, compilation or processing

Abstract

A method of on-premise customer support can include, responsive to logging a customer into a computerized shopping system on-premises of a store, recalling a shopping list associated with the customer. A route through the store can be generated automatically according to one or more items on the shopping list.

Claims

1. A method of on-premise customer support, the method comprising:

responsive to logging a customer into a computerized shopping system on-premises of a store, recalling a shopping list associated with the customer; and

automatically generating, using a processor, a route through the store according to at least one item on the shopping list.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

modifying the route while the customer is on-premises of the store responsive to at least one route update condition.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the at least one route update condition comprises a condition external to the store.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the condition external to the store comprises a weather condition associated with the store.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein the at least one route update condition comprises a condition within the store.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the condition within the store comprises a minimum amount of congestion within the store at a location on the route.

7. The method of claim 2, wherein the at least one route update condition comprises identifying a high value item in a shopping cart associated with the customer.

8. The method of claim 2, wherein the at least one route update condition comprises a parameter entered into the computerized shopping system while the customer is on-premises of the store.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

responsive to detecting a representative intervention condition for the customer while on-premises of the store, notifying a representative that the customer is in need of assistance.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the representative intervention condition comprises detecting a pause of the customer at a location along the route on-premises of the store.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

correlating the location with a subject matter domain; and

selecting a representative having expertise in the subject matter domain, wherein the notifying a representative that the customer is in need of assistance notifies the selected representative.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the representative intervention condition comprises removing an item from a shopping cart associated with the customer.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

associating the shopping list with an additional customer on-premises of the store; and

synchronizing the shopping list between the customer and the additional customer responsive to at least one of the customers selecting an item on the shopping list for purchase.

14. A method of collaborative shopping, the method comprising:

associating a shopping list with each of a plurality of customers;

determining that at least one of the plurality of customers has selected an item for purchase from the shopping list; and

using a processor, synchronizing the shopping list among the plurality of customers associated with the shopping list.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

generating a different route through the store for each of the plurality of customers according to at least one parameter.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the at least one parameter comprises a preference to generate routes to complete the shopping list in a least amount of time.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the at least one parameter comprises a preference to generate routes according to customer-specific information for each of the plurality of customers.

18. A system comprising:

a processor configured to initiate executable operations comprising;

responsive to logging a customer into a computerized shopping system on-premises of a store, recalling a shopping list associated with the customer; and

automatically generating a route through the store according to at least one item on the shopping list.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein the processor is further configured to initiate an executable operation comprising:

modifying the route while the customer is on-premises of the store responsive to at least one route update condition.

20. A computer program product for on-premise customer support, the computer program product comprising:

a computer readable storage medium having computer readable program code embodied therewith, the computer readable program code comprising;

computer readable program code configured to, responsive to logging a customer into a computerized shopping system on-premises of a store, recall a shopping list associated with the customer; and

computer readable program code configured to automatically generate a route through the store according to at least one item on the shopping list.

21. The computer program product of claim 20, further comprising:

computer readable program code configured to modify the route while the customer is on-premises of the store responsive to at least one route update condition.

22. The computer program product of claim 21, wherein the at least one route update condition comprises a condition external to the store.

23. The computer program product of claim 21, wherein the at least one route update condition comprises a condition within the store.

24. The computer program product of claim 21, wherein the at least one route update condition comprises identifying a high value item in a shopping cart associated with the customer.

25. The computer program product of claim 20, further comprising:

computer readable program code configured to notify a representative that the customer is in need of assistance responsive to detecting a representative intervention condition for the customer while on-premises of the store.