Method and apparatus for enabling a selection of catalog items
First Claim
1. A method for enabling a designation of items from a store'"'"'s catalog, the store'"'"'s catalog being made available at a station in an automated system, comprising the steps of:
- a. identifying at least a first customer at the station from an input customer-identification signal;
b. obtaining catalog data associated with the identified customer including items from the store'"'"'s catalog;
c. obtaining designation-data associated with each identified customer which represents the prior designations of items for each identified customer;
d. defining a database subset of the catalog data using the designation-data, wherein the database subset is restricted to those items in the store'"'"'s catalog that are not among the items in the designation-data associated with each identified customer;
e. guiding present selections by enabling an electronic designation of an item at the station from at least the items in the database subset; and
f. electronically modifying the designation-data associated with each identified customer to include any item designated at the station, such that a subsequent step of obtaining designation-data will obtain said modified designation-data,whereby any subsequent selection is guided using a database subset defined by said modified designation-data.
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0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A method and apparatus for enabling a selection of items at a computer terminal from an electronic catalog is described. One or more customers access the terminal and identify themselves, and each such customer'"'"'s past item selections are made available to the system in the form of an electronic signal. A subset of catalog items is created which excludes the prior selections of each identified customer. Thus, if only one customer has identified himself or herself, then only that customer'"'"'s prior selections are excluded from the catalog of items. And, if two or more customers have identified themselves, then the subset created will exclude the items of those customers'"'"' prior selections. The customer is enabled to select items at the terminal from at least the items in the subset. The subset may be distinguished from the remainder of the catalog items in a number of ways. The subset formed may optionally be directed to items of a specific category or type from within the catalog. The invention has industrial utility, for example, in the rental and sale of movies in the form of videotapes and the like and in the maintenance and managing of registry-based transactions.
169 Citations
34 Claims
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1. A method for enabling a designation of items from a store'"'"'s catalog, the store'"'"'s catalog being made available at a station in an automated system, comprising the steps of:
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a. identifying at least a first customer at the station from an input customer-identification signal; b. obtaining catalog data associated with the identified customer including items from the store'"'"'s catalog; c. obtaining designation-data associated with each identified customer which represents the prior designations of items for each identified customer; d. defining a database subset of the catalog data using the designation-data, wherein the database subset is restricted to those items in the store'"'"'s catalog that are not among the items in the designation-data associated with each identified customer; e. guiding present selections by enabling an electronic designation of an item at the station from at least the items in the database subset; and f. electronically modifying the designation-data associated with each identified customer to include any item designated at the station, such that a subsequent step of obtaining designation-data will obtain said modified designation-data, whereby any subsequent selection is guided using a database subset defined by said modified designation-data. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A method for presenting a selection of items from a store'"'"'s catalog, the store'"'"'s catalog being made available at a station in an automated system as catalog data, comprising the steps of:
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a. identifying at least a first customer at the station from an input customer-identification signal; b. obtaining designation-data associated with each identified customer which represents the prior designations of items by each identified customer; c. creating a database subset of the catalog data by excluding the designation-data, wherein the database subset is restricted to those items in the store'"'"'s catalog that are not among the items in the designation-data associated with each identified customer; and d. displaying at least a portion of the database subset on a display device at the station to thereby guide a present selection of an item from the database subset. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23)
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24. An apparatus for presenting a selection of items from a catalog, the catalog being made available as catalog data, comprising:
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a. means for identifying a first customer at the station from an input customer-identification signal; b. means for obtaining designation-data associated with each identified customer using the customer-identification signal; c. means for creating a database subset of the catalog data which excludes the designation-data in response to the obtained designation data, wherein the database subset is restricted to those items in the catalog that are not among the items in the designation-data associated with each identified customer; and d. means for displaying at one time at least a portion of the database subset at the station to thereby guide a present selection of an item from the database subset. - View Dependent Claims (25)
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26. A method for displaying items in a catalog, the items in the catalog being made available at a station in an automated system as catalog data, comprising the steps of:
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a. identifying one or more customers at the station from respective input customer-identification signals; b. obtaining designation-data associated with each identified customer in response to each customer-identification signal, the designation-data including data elements which represent the prior designations of items by each identified customer; c. defining a database subset of the catalog data using the designation-data, wherein the database subset is restricted to those items in the catalog that are not among the items in the designation-data associated with each identified customer; and d. displaying at least the database subset at the station to thereby guide a present selection of an item from the database subset. - View Dependent Claims (27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34)
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Specification