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Retail store configured for bidirectional communication between a plurality of product shelf areas and a plurality of portable cards

  • US 6,173,891 B1
  • Filed: 03/03/2000
  • Issued: 01/16/2001
  • Est. Priority Date: 06/06/1995
  • Status: Expired due to Fees
First Claim
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1. A method for a system including a plurality of portable cards transported by consumers, each card including a flat substrate, and a memory for storing a plurality of signals corresponding to pricing information for a plurality of products, and a store includinga plurality of areas each including a shelf, a plurality of units of a respective product, the plurality of units being on the shelf, the plurality of units having a common symbol different than a symbol of units of another product, the system further includinga plurality of interfaces, each including an interface junction from which signals exit the interface, the method comprising the steps, performed for each interface, of:

  • storing a respective first signal, in the interface;

    detecting, in the interface, a card in the plurality of cards, the detecting step being performed after the storing step, at time when the interface is supported by a shelf in a respective one of the plurality of areas and located adjacent to the plurality of units of the respective product such that no units of another product are between the interface and the plurality of units; and

    sending the stored first signal through the interface junction to the card detected in the previous step, at a time when the interface is supported the shelf and the respective first signal corresponds to pricing information for the product represented by the units adjacent to the interface, the sending step being performed for multiple cards per performance of the storing step.

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