COMPUTERIZED METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR AUTOMATING REWARDS TO CUSTOMERS

• US 20170140409A1
• Filed: 03/25/2015
• Published: 05/18/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/25/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nanyang Technology University
• Original Assignee: Nanyang Technology University
• Inventors: LIU, Siyuan, HAN, Xiaogang, SHEN, Zhiqi, MIAO, Chunyan
• Granted Patent: US 10,311,457 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/22 Indexing; Data structures therefor; Storage structures
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2455 Query execution
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0207 Discounts or incentives, e.g. coupons or rebates
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/172 Classification, e.g. identification
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/20 Movements or behaviour, e.g. gesture recognition recognition of facial expressions G06V40/16
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal

Abstract

A computerized reward mechanism system is proposed which makes use both of presently collected data relating to the customer, and a database of historical data relating to the customer. Using this information, the system performs a customer preference analysis, which results in selecting rewards which are adapted to the customers'"'"' personal needs. In one form, the system is positioned at a shopping center, and includes cameras for recognising past customers by image processing. This may be done without requiring customers to participate in a process of signing up to use the system. The presently collected data include responses to questions put to the customer relating to his present shopping experience. Customer honesty is considered in the step of determining which rewards to offer the consumer, to encourage the consumers to express their feelings more clearly.

Claims

1. A computer system comprising:

a computer processor; and

a data storage device, the data storage device storing;

for each of a plurality of customers a profile comprising historic data indicating a history of interaction with at least one retailer, and

program instructions operative to cause the processor;

to recognise that a said customer is interacting with the at least one retailer;

to extract from the database the historic data for the recognised customer;

to receive current data describing the present behaviour of the recognised customer; and

to use the historic data and the current data to select, from among a predefined plurality of rewards, a reward to be presented to the recognised customer.

2. A system according to claim 1, further comprising one or more cameras arranged to capture an image of a said customer if the said customer is in a geographical location associated with the at least one retailer,

the profile further storing at least one stored image of each of the customers,

the program instructions causing the processor to recognise that the customer is interacting with the at least one retailer by performing an image recognition process on an image captured by the one of more cameras using the stored images.

3. A system according to claim 1, further comprising an interface, the program instructions being operative to cause the processor to register said current data comprising data entered via the interface, to indicate the answers given by the said customer to questions.

4. A method for rewarding a customer of at least one retailer, the method comprising:

(a) to recognise that a said customer is interacting with the at least one retailer;

(b) to access a database which stores, for each of a plurality of customers a profile comprising historic data indicating a history of interaction of the recognised customer with the at least one retailer,

(c) to extract from the database the historic data for the recognised customer;

(d) to receive current data from the customer comprising data describing the present behaviour of the recognised customer;

(e) to use the historic data and the current data to select, from among a predefined plurality of rewards, a reward to be presented to the customer; and

(f) to provide the selected reward to the recognised customer.

5. A method according to claim 4, further comprising capturing an image of the customers using one or more cameras arranged to capture an image of a said customer if the said customer is in a geographical location associated with the at least one retailer,

the profile further comprising at least one stored image of each of the customers,

step (a) being performed by performing an image recognition process on an image captured by the one of more cameras using the stored images.

6. A method according to claim 4 further comprising a step of using the historic data for the customer to determine whether or not to provide a reward to a recognised customer.

7. A method according to claim 4 wherein the current data comprises data indicating a region of the geographical location associated with a type of product, step (e) being performed to select a reward which is a product of said type.

8. A method according to claim 4 wherein the current data comprises data describing the recognised customer'"'"'s current feelings in using the at least one retailer.