WIRELESS-BASED CHECKOUT AND LOSS PREVENTION

• US 20120280040A1
• Filed: 07/29/2011
• Published: 11/08/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 05/06/2011
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Carney, Mark D., Pacella, Dante, Schiller, Harold J.
• Application Number:
  US13/194,060
• Publication Number:
  US 20120280040A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 235/383
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/047 using payment protocols involving electronic receipts
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G07G 1/009 the reader being an RFID reader
• CPC Class Codes: G07G 3/003 Anti-theft control theft alarms G08B13/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07G 5/00 Receipt-giving machines cash registers giving receipts G07G1/00

Abstract

A method may include reading tags associated with items that are leaving a store with a person and receiving an electronic receipt associated with the person. The method may also include comparing the items that are leaving the store with information included in the electronic receipt and determining whether a discrepancy exists based on the comparing.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

reading tags associated with items that are leaving a store with a person;

receiving an electronic receipt associated with the person;

comparing the items that are leaving the store with information included in the electronic receipt; and

determining whether a discrepancy exists based on the comparing.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

generating an alert when a discrepancy exists.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the determining whether a discrepancy exists further comprises:

determining whether the person entered the store with at least one of the items that are leaving the store with the person.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 3, wherein the determining whether the person entered the store with at least one item comprises:

reading tags associated with items brought into the store by the person.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 4, wherein the determining whether a discrepancy exists further includes:

comparing the tags associated with items brought into the store by the person with the tags associated with items that are leaving the store with the person.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

reading tags brought into the store or taken out of the store by a second person; and

determining whether a monetary value associated with items corresponding to the tags brought into the store or taken out of the store by the second person is greater than a predetermined amount.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 6, further comprising at least one of:

alerting store personnel, in response to determining that the monetary value is greater than the predetermined amount, or

using one or more cameras to capture images of the second person entering or exiting the store in response to determining that the monetary value is greater than the predetermined amount.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

requesting that a user device, associated with the person, provide the electronic receipt, and wherein the receiving an electronic receipt comprises;

receiving the electronic receipt from the user device in response to the request.

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining that the person left a purchased item in the store; and

at least one of alerting a user device associated with the person or a check out terminal associated with a transaction involving the purchased item that the purchased item was left in the store.

10. A system, comprising:

at least one device configured to;

read identification information associated with items that are leaving a store with a person;

receive an electronic receipt associated with the person;

compare the identification information with information included in the electronic receipt; and

determine whether a discrepancy exists based on the comparing.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the at least one device is further configured to:

generate an alert when a discrepancy exists.

12. The system of claim 10, wherein when determining whether a discrepancy exists, the at least one device is configured to:

determine whether the person entered the store with at least one of the items that are leaving the store.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the at least one logic device is further configured to:

read tags associated with items brought into the store by the person to determine whether the person entered the store with at least one of the items.

14. The system of claim 10, wherein the at least one logic device is further configured to:

read tags brought into the store by a second person;

determine whether a monetary value associated with items corresponding to the tags brought into the store by the second person is greater than a predetermined amount; and

at least one of;

alert store personnel, in response to determining that the monetary value is greater than the predetermined amount, or

use one or more cameras to capture images of the second person entering the store in response to determining that the monetary value is greater than the predetermined amount.

15. The system of claim 10, wherein the at least one logic device is further configured to:

determine that the person left a purchased item in the store based on the comparing; and

at least one of alert a user device associated with the person or a check out terminal associated with a transaction involving the purchased item that the purchased item was left in the store.

16. The system of claim 10, wherein the at least one device comprises a reader configured to read the identification information and receive the electronic receipt via a wireless medium.

17. The system of claim 10, wherein the at least one device comprises a reader configured to read the identification information using at least one of radio frequency identification or near field communications.

18. A computer-readable medium having stored thereon sequences of instructions which, when executed by at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to:

receive information identifying items leaving a retail location;

receive an electronic receipt associated with a user who is leaving the retail location with at least some of the identified items;

compare the identified items with the electronic receipt; and

determine whether a discrepancy exist based on the comparing.

19. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, further including instructions for causing the at least one processor to:

generate an alert when a discrepancy exists.

20. The computer-readable medium of 18, wherein when determining whether a discrepancy exists, the instructions cause the at least one processor to:

determine whether the person entered the store with at least one of the items that are leaving the store with the person.