Shopping process including monitored shopping cart basket weight

• US 9,607,486 B2
• Filed: 01/29/2013
• Issued: 03/28/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 01/29/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Walmart Apollo, LLC (WalMart Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Wal-Mart Stores Texas LLC (WalMart Inc.)
• Inventors: Acker, Joel Bennett Jr., Pedley, Douglas James, Cancro, Richard Neil
• Primary Examiner(s): Chein, Allen
• Application Number:
  US13/753,448
• Publication Number:
  US 20140214577A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,519 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B62B 3/1424 Electronic display devices
• CPC Class Codes: B62B 5/0096 Identification of the cart or merchandise, e.g. by barcodes or radio frequency identification [RFID]
• CPC Class Codes: G01G 19/12 having electrical weight-sensitive devices
• CPC Class Codes: G01G 19/4144 for controlling weight of goods in commercial establishments, e.g. supermarket, P.O.S. systems
• CPC Class Codes: G01G 19/52 Weighing apparatus combined with other objects, e.g. furniture with walking sticks A45B3/08
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/18 involving self-service terminals [SST], vending machines, kiosks or multimedia terminals
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/20 Point-of-sale [POS] network systems
• CPC Class Codes: G07G 1/0054 with control of supplementary check-parameters, e.g. weight or number of articles
• CPC Class Codes: G07G 1/0081 the reader being a portable scanner or data reader G07G1/009 takes precedence

Abstract

A computer-implemented process aiding a customer scan and rapid checkout process can include monitoring a shopping cart basket weight. The process includes monitoring, in a computerized processor installed to a shopping cart of a customer, a signal from a weight device configured to monitor the shopping cart basket weight. The process further includes automatically generating a basket weight output value based upon the shopping cart basket weight. The basket weight output value includes one of a check against an expected weight of an item from a database, a billing statement total for a bulk good, a check against an expected total order weight to confirm presence of an un-scanned item in the shopping cart basket, and a check against unsafe use of the shopping cart. The process further includes providing a message based upon the basket weight output value.

Claims

1. A computerized server comprising:

a product information module including programming to access a product information database;

a scan fault identification module including programming to;

receive the plurality of scanned barcodes generated by a customer operated purchasing device in a retail store, compare the plurality of scanned barcodes to a plurality of known barcodes in the product information database, determine that a first barcode of the plurality of scanned barcodes corresponding to a first product fails to identify a known product in the product information database, and identify a product identification scan fault for the first barcode, and

monitor data from the product information module utilizing a shopping cart equipped with a weight measuring device to monitor an incremental weight associated with a second product added to the cart, compare the incremental weight to a reference weight associated with a second barcode from the second product, and identify a product weight scan fault based upon the comparing, and

a store personnel coordination module generating an alert to a store employee based upon the product identification scan fault and the product weight scan fault;

a checkout module including programming to place a list of products associated with the plurality of scanned barcodes into a virtual shopping cart, the list including a running price total;

a graphical user interface generated on the customer operated purchasing device, the graphical user interface programmed to;

display the virtual shopping cart and the running price total to the customer on the customer operated purchasing device;

mark the first product associated with the product identification scan fault as on hold pending resolution of the product identification scan fault; and

display instructions from the store personnel coordination module to resolve the product identification scan fault, wherein the instructions include at least a request that the customer capture a photograph of the entire first product with the customer operated purchasing device, and transmit the photograph to the server.

2. The computerized server of claim 1, further comprising programming to receive uploaded information from the store employee regarding the scan fault.

3. The computerized server of claim 1, further comprising programming to:

alert store management if the store employee fails to resolve the scan fault within a threshold scan fault time; and

provide the store management an option to set a price related to the scan fault.

4. The computerized server of claim 1, wherein alerting the store employee comprises alerting the closest employee.

5. The computerized server of claim 1, wherein alerting the store employee comprises generating a push notification to the employee.

6. The computerized server of claim 1, wherein alerting the store employee comprises displaying a store map including a location of the customer.

7. A computer-implemented method comprising:

accessing, by a product information module of a computerized server, a product information database;

receiving, by a scan fault identification module, a plurality of scanned barcodes generated by a customer operated purchasing device in a retail store;

comparing, by the scan fault identification module, the plurality of scanned barcodes to a plurality of known barcodes in the product information database;

determining, by the scan fault identification module, that a first barcode of the plurality of scanned barcodes corresponding to a first product fails to identify a known product in the product information database;

identifying, by the scan fault identification module, a product identification scan fault for the first barcode;

providing a weight measuring device in a shopping cart;

generating, by the weight measuring device, a signal containing information including an incremental weight associated with a second product added to the cart;

receiving, by the scan fault identification module of the computerized server, the signal from the weight measuring device;

comparing, by the scan fault identification module, the incremental weight to a reference weight associated with a scanned barcode from the second product;

identifying, by the scan fault identification module, a product weight scan fault based upon the comparing;

generate, by a store personnel coordination module of the computerized server, an alert to a store employee based upon the product identification scan fault and the product weight scan fault;

storing, by a checkout module of the computerized server, a list of products associated with the plurality of scanned barcodes, the list including a running price total;

placing, by the checkout module, the list of products into a virtual shopping cart; and

generating, by the checkout module, a graphical user interface on the customer operated purchasing device, the graphical user interface programmed to;

display the virtual shopping cart and the running price total to the customer on the customer operated purchasing device,

mark the first product associated with the product identification scan fault as on hold pending resolution of the scan fault, and

display instructions from the store personnel coordination module to resolve the product identification scan fault, wherein the instructions include at least a request that the customer capture a photograph of the entire first product with the customer operated purchasing device, and transmit the photograph to the server.

8. An apparatus comprising:

a weight measuring device in a shopping cart;

a mobile device associated with a customer using the shopping cart in a retail store; and

a computerized server communicatively coupled to the weight measuring device and the mobile device, the computerized server including a processing device, the processing device further configured to perform operations comprising;

accessing, by a product information module, a product information database,

receiving, by a scan fault identification module, a plurality of scanned barcodes generated by the mobile device,

comparing, by the scan fault identification module, the plurality of scanned barcodes to a plurality of known barcodes in the product information database,

determining, by the scan fault identification module, that a first barcode of the plurality of scanned barcodes corresponding to a first product fails to identify a known product in the product information database,

identifying, by the scan fault identification module, a product identification scan fault for the first barcode;

generating, by the weight measuring device, a signal containing information including an incremental weight associated with a second product added to the cart,

receiving, by a scan fault identification module, the signal from the weight measuring device,

comparing, by the scan fault identification module, the incremental weight to a reference weight associated with a scanned barcode from the second product,

identifying, by the scan fault identification module, a product weight scan fault based upon the comparing,

generate, by a store personnel coordination module, an alert to a store employee based upon the product identification scan fault and the product weight scan fault,

storing, by a checkout module, a list of products associated with the plurality of scanned barcodes, the list including a running price total,

placing, by the checkout module, the list of products into a virtual shopping cart, and

generating, by the checkout module, a graphical user interface on the mobile device, the graphical user interface programmed to;

display the virtual shopping cart and the running price total to the customer on the mobile device,

mark the first product associated with the product identification scan fault as on hold pending resolution of the scan fault, and

display instructions from the store personnel coordination module to resolve the product identification scan fault, wherein the instructions include at least a request that the customer capture a photograph of the entire first product with the mobile device, and transmit the photograph to the server.