SIMULTANEOUS ITEM SCANNING IN A POS SYSTEM

• US 20160063755A1
• Filed: 08/29/2014
• Published: 03/03/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 08/29/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Walmart Apollo, LLC (WalMart Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Wal-Mart Stores Texas LLC (WalMart Inc.)
• Inventors: Cancro, Richard Neil, Acker, Joel Bennett Jr., Pedley, Douglas James
• Granted Patent: US 9,569,765 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10 by electromagnetic radiation, e.g. optical sensing; by corpuscular radiation
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/208 Input by product or record sensing, e.g. weighing or scanner processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 15/08 Volume rendering
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/00 Image analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G07G 1/0036 Checkout procedures

Abstract

A plurality of items is positioned in a volume scanned by a three-dimensional non-optical imaging system. The imaging system generates a three-dimensional voxel image of the volume. Voxel regions are identified and surfaces of voxel regions are analyzed to identify a symbol printed thereon. The symbols are resolved into product identifiers, which are then added to a transaction and payment for the transaction is processed. The imaging system may be a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) system, computed tomography (CT) scanning system, terahertz (T wave) imaging system, or other imaging system.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

scanning, by a non-optical three-dimensional imaging system a volume occupied by a plurality of products to obtain a three dimensional voxel image of the volume;

processing, by a computer system, the three dimensional voxel image to identify three-dimensional voxel regions, each three-dimensional voxel region corresponding to a product of the plurality of products;

identifying, by the computer system, for each three-dimensional voxel region, a symbol on a surface of the each three-dimensional voxel region;

identifying, by the computer system, for each three-dimensional voxel region, a product identifier corresponding to the symbol on the surface of the each three-dimensional voxel region;

adding, by the computer system, the product identifiers for each three dimensional voxel region to a transaction; and

processing, by the computer system, payment for the transaction.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the non-optical three-dimensional imaging system comprises a magnetic resonance imager (MRI) system.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the non-optical three-dimensional imaging system comprises a computed tomography (CT) scanning system.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the non-optical three-dimensional imaging system comprises a terahertz imaging system.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the non-optical three-dimensional imaging system comprises two or more of:

a magnetic resonance imager (MRI) system;

a computed tomography (CT) scanning system; and

a terahertz imaging system.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the symbol on the surface of the each three-dimensional voxel region comprises an optical code.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the symbol on the surface of the each three-dimensional voxel region comprises a universal product code.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the symbol on the surface of the each three-dimensional voxel region comprises a textual product name.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising moving a receptacle containing the plurality of products through the non-optical three-dimensional imaging system.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising moving a receptacle containing the plurality of products through the non-optical three-dimensional imaging system on a conveyor belt.

11. An apparatus comprising:

a non-optical three-dimensional imaging system having in a viewable area thereof a volume; and

a computer system, coupled to the non-optical three-dimensional imaging system and operable to receive a three dimensional voxel image of the volume from the non-optical three-dimensional imaging system, the computer system further programmed to;

process the three dimensional voxel image to identify three-dimensional voxel regions;

identify for each three-dimensional voxel region, a symbol on a surface of the each three-dimensional voxel region;

identify, for each three-dimensional voxel region, a product identifier corresponding to the symbol on the surface of the each three-dimensional voxel region;

add the product identifiers for each three dimensional voxel region to a transaction; and

process payment for the transaction.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the non-optical three-dimensional imaging system comprises a magnetic resonance imager (MRI) system.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein the non-optical three-dimensional imaging system comprises a computed tomography (CT) scanning system.

14. The system of claim 11, wherein the non-optical three-dimensional imaging system comprises a terahertz imaging system.

15. The system of claim 11, wherein the non-optical three-dimensional imaging system comprises two or more of:

a magnetic resonance imager (MRI) system;

a computed tomography (CT) scanning system; and

a terahertz imaging system.

16. The system of claim 11, wherein the symbol on the surface of the each three-dimensional voxel region comprises an optical code.

17. The system of claim 11, wherein the symbol on the surface of the each three-dimensional voxel region comprises a universal product code.

18. The system of claim 11, wherein the symbol on the surface of the each three-dimensional voxel region comprises a textual product name.

19. The system of claim 11, further comprising an actuator moving a receptacle through the non-optical three-dimensional imaging system.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein the actuator is a conveyor belt.