Shopping cart display system

• US 4,973,952 A
• Filed: 09/21/1987
• Issued: 11/27/1990
• Est. Priority Date: 09/21/1987
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Information Resources Incorporated, Klever-Kart Inc. (Klever Marketing Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Information Resources Incorporated
• Inventors: Moser, Joseph P., Malec, John
• Primary Examiner(s): Weldon, Ulysses
• Application Number:
  US07/099,288
• Time in Patent Office: 1,163 Days
• Field of Search: 186/61, 186/62, 364/464, 364/478, 364/479, 364/424, 364/400, 364/518, 364/900, 364/709.02, 455/56, 455/40, 455/18, 455/41, 40/308, 40/447, 40/446, 40/448, 340/825.35, 340/825.54, 340/825.55, 340/572, 340/755, 340/756, 340/765, 340/825.49, 369/198
• US Class Current: 340/5.91
• CPC Class Codes: B62B 3/1408 Display devices mounted on it, e.g. advertisement displays
• CPC Class Codes: B62B 3/1416 mounted on the handle
• CPC Class Codes: B62B 3/1424 Electronic display devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 17/0022 arrangements or provisions for transferring data to distant stations, e.g. from a sensing device "transfer between computer elements G06F13/00 "; data-transmission H04L
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 90/20 Destination assistance within a business structure or complex
• CPC Class Codes: G07G 1/145 PLU-management

Abstract

A shopping cart display system includes a cart mounted display that is responsive to trigger signals provided by transmitters associated with a particular location. When the display receives a unique trigger signal, it displays advertising media associated with that location. In one embodiment, the display includes a sensor for determining whether the information is displayed in the presence of a consumer, and a memory for storing all trigger signals received during a given shopping trip. The stored data is transmitted to a polling transceiver located at a point of sale register for later analysis.

Claims

1. A system for communicating product information from a given location to a prospective customer at a remote retail establishment comprising:

means at said given location for transmitting a first signal containing said information to said remote retail establishment;

means at said remote retail establishment for transmitting, in response to said first signal, a second signal containing said information;

means movable by said prospective customer about said remote retail establishment including means for receiving said second signal, means for storing the information contained therein, means operative when triggered by a third signal for retrieving said stored information from said storing means, and means for communicating said retrieved information, in a form discernible by a human, to said prospective customer; and

means at said remote retail establishment for automatically transmitting said third signal for automatically triggering said means for retrieving said stored information.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein said means for communicating includes means for displaying said retrieved information.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein said means for automatically transmitting said third signal operates to trigger said means for retrieving automatically, based upon the location of said movable means within said remote retail establishment.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein said means for automatically transmitting said third signal operates to trigger said means for retrieving automatically, based upon the proximity of said movable means to said automatically transmitting means.

9. The system of any one of claims 1-8 wherein said movable means includes means for generating data indicating the presence of a human at said movable means at the time said information is communicated.

10. The system of claim 9 further comprising means for storing said data.

11. The system of claim 10 further comprising means for analyzing said data.

15. The system of claim 3 wherein said means for automatically transmitting is operable for selectively triggering said triggerable means automatically, to communicate said information related to a respective said product selectively based upon the proximity of said product collecting means to the respective product.

5. A system for communicating information relating to a product located in a retail establishment to a prospective customer located in said retail establishment comprising:

means at said retail establishment for transmitting an information signal containing said information;

means movable by said prospective customer about said retail establishment including means for receiving said information signal, means for storing the information contained therein, means operative when triggered by a triggering signal for retrieving said stored information from said storing means, and means for communicating said retrieved information, in a form discernible by a human, to said prospective customer; and

means at said retail establishment for automatically transmitting said triggering signal for automatically triggering said means for retrieving said stored information.

6. The system of claim 5 wherein said means for automatically transmitting operates to trigger said means for retrieving automatically, based upon the location of said movable means within said retail establishment.

7. The system of claim 5 wherein said means for automatically transmitting operates to trigger said means for retrieving automatically, based upon the proximity of said movable means to said automatically transmitting means.

8. The system of claim 5 wherein said movable means includes;

means for displaying said retrieved information.

12. A system for communicating information relating to a product located in a retail establishment to a prospective customer located in said retail establishment comprising:

product collecting means movable by said prospective customer about said retail establishment;

triggerable means, mounted on said product collecting means, for storing said information and, when triggered, retrieving said stored information and communicating said information, in a form discernible by a human, to said prospective customer; and

means for automatically transmitting a triggering signal independent of said information for automatically triggering said triggerable means to communicate said information based upon the location of said product collecting means within said retail establishment.

13. The system of claim 12 wherein there are a plurality of products located in said retail establishment with respective information relating to each, and said means for automatically transmitting are associated with respective products for selectively triggering said triggerable means to automatically communicate respective said information selectively based upon location of said product collecting means within said retail establishment.

14. The system of claim 12 wherein said means for automatically transmitting operates to trigger said triggerable means automatically, based upon the proximity of said movable product collecting means to said product.

16. The system of claim 12 wherein said triggerable means includes means for displaying said retrieved information.

17. The system of claim 13 wherein said triggerable means includes means for storing respective information related to each of said products;

means responsive to said triggering signal for selectively retrieving respective said information from said storing means; and

means for displaying said retrieved information.

23. The system of any one of claims 12-21 or 22 further including means for generating data indicating the presence of a human at said product collecting means at the time said information is communicated.

24. The system of claim 23 further comprising means for storing said data.

25. The system of claim 24 further comprising means for analyzing said data.

18. A system for communicating product information to a prospective customer in a retail establishment comprising:

product collecting means movable about said retail establishment by said prospective customer;

means, located in said retail establishment, for transmitting a first signal containing said information;

means mounted on said product collecting means including means for receiving said first signal, means for storing the information contained therein, means operable when triggered by a second signal for selectively retrieving at least a portion of said stored information, and means for automatically communicating said selectively retrieved information, in a form discernible by a human, to said prospective customer; and

means located in said retail establishment for automatically transmitting a second signal for automatically triggering said means for selectively retrieving based upon the location of said product collecting means within said retail establishment.

19. The system of claim 18 wherein there are a plurality of products located in said retail establishment with respective information relating to each, and a plurality of said transmitting means, each associated with a respective one of said products, and said means for selectively retrieving being responsive to respective said triggering signals for selectively retrieving said information relating to respective said products based upon the location of said product collecting means within said retail establishment.

20. The system of claim 19 wherein respective said information is automatically communicated to said prospective customer based upon the proximity of said product collecting means to a said transmitting means associated with a respective said product.

21. The system of claim 19 wherein said means for communicating selectively automatically communicates respective said information related to a respective said product based upon the proximity of said product collecting means to a transmitting means associated with the respective product.

22. The system of claim 21 wherein said means for storing includes means for storing respective information relating to each of said products.

26. A system for communicating product information from a first location in a retail establishment to a prospective customer located within said establishment comprising:

product collecting means movable about said retail establishment by said prospective customer;

means at said first location for transmitting an information signal, wherein said signal is representative of said information;

means, mounted on said product collecting means, for receiving said signal and storing said information and, when triggered, automatically communicating said information, in a form discernible by a human, to said prospective customer; and

means, located in said retail establishment for automatically transmitting a triggering signal for automatically triggering said movable receiving and communicating means to communicate said information based upon the location of said product collecting means within said retail establishment.

27. A system for communicating a plurality of product advertisements from a central location to prospective customers at a remote retail establishment comprising:

means at said central location for transmitting a first signal representative of said product advertisements to said retail establishment;

means at said retail establishment for receiving said signal, converting the information contained therein into a second signal representative of said product advertisements, and transmitting said second signal;

a plurality of shopping carts located within said retail establishment, each of said carts carrying an electronic display device including a receiver, each of said receivers including means for receiving and storing said second signal representative of said advertisements and triggerable means for selectively displaying one of said advertisements; and

means at said retail establishment associated with a particular product within the establishment for automatically transmitting an electromagnetic trigger signal for automatically triggering said receivers to display the advertisement corresponding to said product only when said receiver is within a predetermined distance from said trigger transmitting means.

28. A system for communicating a plurality of product advertisements from a central location in a retail establishment to a prospective customer within said establishment comprising:

a shopping cart;

an electronic unit mounted on said shopping cart, said unit including memory means for storing electrical signals representative of said product advertisements, a display, triggerable means for selecting which of said advertisements is to be displayed, and means responsive to said selecting means for reading respective stores signals corresponding to said selected advertisement and transmitting said respective signals to said display; and

means located within said retail establishment and associated with a particular product for automatically transmitting a signal for automatically triggering the selecting means of said unit to cause the advertisement corresponding to said selected portion of said stored signal to be displayed on said display only when said unit is within a predetermined distance from said triggering means.

29. A system for communicating a plurality of product advertisements from a central location in a retail store to a prospective customer within said store comprising:

a shopping cart;

an electronic unit mounted on said shopping cart including memory means for storing electrical signals representative of said product advertisements, a radio receiver, a display, means responsive to an output of said receiver for selecting which of said advertisements is to be displayed at a given time, and means responsive to said selecting means for reading respective stored signals corresponding to said selected advertisement and transmitting said respective signals to said display; and

a radio transmitter associated with a particular product within said store, the signal of which causes the selecting means of said unit to cause the advertisement for said particular product to automatically be displayed when said receiver is within a predetermined distance from said transmitter.

30. An electronic display unit for use in an automatic advertising system in which a plurality of external trigger signals are associated with respective products within a retail establishment, and in which the receipt of one of said trigger signals causes said display unit to automatically communicate an advertisement relating to the product associated with said trigger signal, said display unit comprising:

input circuitry for receiving digital data representative of a plurality of product advertisements;

memory means connected thereto for storing said received digital data;

a trigger signal receiver responsive to a said trigger signal representative of a respective one of said plurality of product advertisements for generating an enabling signal;

logic circuitry responsive to said enabling signal for retrieving from said memory means a portion of said data representative of the product associated with said received external trigger signal; and

a video display for displaying a video representation of said selected data.