Virtual queue for a line at a retail store

• US 9,767,420 B2
• Filed: 10/21/2016
• Issued: 09/19/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 06/25/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Walmart Apollo, LLC (WalMart Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Wal Mart Stores Inc (WalMart Inc.)
• Inventors: Argue, Stuart, Marcar, Anthony Emile
• Primary Examiner(s): GUDORF, LAURA A
• Application Number:
  US15/331,468
• Publication Number:
  US 20170039490A1
• Time in Patent Office: 333 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/02 Reservations, e.g. for tickets, services or events
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/12 Hotels or restaurants
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services

Abstract

A computer-implemented process can be operated for entering and holding a place for a first customer in a queue while the first customer is waiting to be served at a retail store. The process includes, within a computerized processor, establishing a place in the queue for the first customer, wherein the queue operates to establish among a plurality of customers a customer currently being served by a store employee and an order in which other customers of the plurality will be served. The process further includes displaying upon a portable computerized device of the first customer an indication of a status of the first customer within the queue.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented process for entering and holding a place for a customer in a queue while waiting to be served at a retail store, the computer-implemented process comprising:

providing a virtual queue application for a portable computerized device to be initiated by the customer;

establishing, by a server, the place in the queue for the customer, wherein the queue operates to establish among a plurality of customers a customer currently being served by a store employee and an order in which other customers of the plurality of customers will be served;

monitoring, by the server, a current location of the portable computerized device of the customer;

using, by the server, historical shopper data, including individual shopper history, time of day, and available store employees to estimate a waiting time for each customer in the queue;

estimating, by the server, a wait time until the customer is likely to be served;

determining, by the server, a warning interval describing a scheduled time that the customer should arrive at a predetermined location;

adjusting, by the server, the warning interval based upon a location of the portable computerized device of the customer in relation to the predetermined location;

sending, by the server, a push notification of a warning based on the warning interval to the portable computerized device of the customer prior to the scheduled time for the customer to arrive;

displaying, by the server, upon the portable computerized device of the customer, an indication of a status of the customer within the queue including a queue number of the customer and the wait time, as estimated;

determining if the customer arrived at the scheduled time;

if the customer is delayed, holding the place of the customer in the queue for a predetermined time; and

if the predetermined time has passed, bumping the customer to a later place in the queue based upon a current location of the portable computerized device of the customer.

2. The computer-implemented process of claim 1 including providing the server for the retail store in communication with the portable computerized device of the customer.

3. The computer-implemented process of claim 1 including displaying to the customer a list of items that can be pre-ordered from the retail store and accepting a pre-order from the customer through the portable computerized device of the customer, the pre-order comprising items that the customer wishes to purchase when the customer is served by the store employee.

4. The computer-implemented process of claim 3 including providing for a payment of the pre-order with the portable computerized device of the customer.

5. The computer-implemented process of claim 1, wherein estimating the wait time is based upon a portion of the plurality of customers ahead of the customer in the queue.

6. The computer-implemented process of claim 1, wherein estimating the wait time is based upon a number of store employees serving the plurality of customers.

7. The computer-implemented process of claim 1, wherein estimating the wait time is based upon items being ordered by the plurality of customers ahead of the customer in the queue.

8. The computer-implemented process of claim 1, wherein estimating the wait time is based on customer order tendencies for a current time of day.

9. The computer-implemented process of claim 1, including updating a counter machine so that a next paper ticket that is printed will be a next number in the queue.

10. The computer-implemented process of claim 1, including responding, by the server, to the portable computerized device of the customer with a message indicating a queue number of the customer currently being served.

11. The computer-implemented process of claim 1 including presenting, by the customer, a ticket or the portable computerized device of the customer to the store employee.

12. A computerized server with programming enabling operation a queue for a plurality of customers waiting to be served at a retail store, the computerized server comprising:

a queue place-keeping module configured to assign a customer a place in the queue for the customer, wherein the queue operates to establish among the plurality of customers a customer currently being served by a store employee and an order in which other customers of the plurality of customers will be served;

a customer location module configured to monitor a current location of a portable computerized device of the customer;

the queue place-keeping module being configured to use historical shopper data, including individual shopper history, time of day, and available store employees to estimate a waiting time for each customer in the virtual queue and estimate a wait time until the customer is likely to be served;

the queue place-keeping module being configured to determine a warning interval describing a time that a message should be displayed to the portable computerized device of the customer and to adjust the warning interval based upon a location of the portable computerized device of the customer in relation to a predetermined location;

a communication device including a customer push notification module being configured to send a push notification of a warning based on the warning interval to the portable computerized device of the customer prior to the scheduled time for the customer to arrive, and to provide a message to the portable computerized device of the customer of an indication of a status of the customer within the queue including a queue number of the customer and the wait time, as estimated; and

wherein the place-keeping module being configured to determine if the customer arrived at the scheduled time and if the customer is delayed, to hold the place of the customer in the queue for a predetermined time and if the predetermined time has passed to bump the customer to a later place in the queue based upon a current location of the portable computerized device of the customer.

13. The computerized server of claim 12, including an electronic order module displaying to the customer a list of items that can be pre-ordered from the retail store and accepting a pre-order by the customer of items that the customer wishes to purchase.

14. One or more non-transitory computer-readable storage media, having computer-executable instructions embodied thereon, wherein when executed by at least one processor on a portable computerized device of a customer wishing service at a counter in a retail store, the computer-executable instructions cause the at least one processor to operate to:

establish a place in a queue for the customer, wherein the queue operates to establish among a plurality of customers a customer currently being served by a store employee and an order in which other customers of the plurality of customers will be served;

monitor a current location of the portable computerized device of the customer;

use historical shopper data, including individual shopper history, time of day, and available store employees to estimate a waiting time for each customer in the virtual queue;

estimate a wait time until the customer is likely to be served;

determine a warning interval describing a time that a message should be displayed to the portable computerized device of the customer;

adjust the warning interval based upon a location of the portable computerized device of the customer in relation to a predetermined location;

send a push notification of a warning based on the warning interval to the portable computerized device of the customer prior to a scheduled time for the customer to arrive;

display an indication of a status of the customer within the queue based upon the current location of the customer including a queue number of the customer and the wait time, as estimated;

determine if the customer arrived at the scheduled time;

if the customer is delayed, hold the place of the customer in the queue for a predetermined time; and

if the predetermined time has passed, bump the customer to a later place in the queue based upon a current location of the portable computerized device of the customer.

15. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable storage media of claim 14, further comprising displaying to the customer a list of items that can be pre-ordered from the retail store and accepting a pre-order from the customer through the portable computerized device of the customer, the pre-order comprising items that the customer wishes to purchase when the customer is served by the store employee.