System and method for diet control

• US 5,412,564 A
• Filed: 02/03/1994
• Issued: 05/02/1995
• Est. Priority Date: 02/03/1994
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Gunes M. Ecer
• Original Assignee: Gunes M. Ecer
• Inventors: Ecer, Gunes M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Evans, F. L.
• Application Number:
  US08/191,947
• Time in Patent Office: 453 Days
• Field of Search: 364/413.02, 364/413.29, 235/380
• US Class Current: 600/300
• CPC Class Codes: G07G 1/00 Cash registers alarm indicators G07G3/00
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 10/65 stored on portable record carriers, e.g. on smartcards, RFID tags or CD
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/60 relating to nutrition control, e.g. diets
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 128/921 Diet management

Abstract

A system and a method for recording and monitoring of dietary consumption by a consumer is disclosed. The system consists of a computer for storing and processing nutritional information of the type used for diet control, a real time clock for maintaining current date record, a product code entry terminal or a bar code reader for inputting product identification information, a read-write unit adapted to receive one or more integrated circuit (IC) cards of the smart card type having memory and a microprocessor for reading and writing nutritional information into and from a smart card, a printer for printing nutritional information, and optionally an electric display for displaying such information. Consumer inserts his/her personalized smart card into card reader writer before a purchase transaction starts at a food store or a restaurant check-out counter. As foods and drinks are purchased, dietary nutritional consumption data is electronically collected, sorted, and combined with historical daily averages of nutritional consumption data stored in consumer'"'"'s personalized smart card and daily averages of nutrition consumption along with other nutritional and personal data is printed out as a report to the consumer at the end of the purchase transaction. Nutritional data may include personal consumption data on calories, calories from fat, calories from sugars, and cholesterol, dietary fibers, sodium, carbohydrates, proteins, and the like. Consumer'"'"'s smart card serves as a personal nutritional consumption history file, and is updated each time it is used.

Claims

1. A method for electronically recording and monitoring of nutritional information of the type of concern in diet control when foods and drinks are purchased by a consumer at a location where food and drinks are sold for human consumption by a consumer, said method including

providing computer means with memory for storing nutritional and product identification information on foods and drinks available at said location and enabling said computer means to process said nutritional information and said product identification information;

providing means for transmitting product identification information of said foods and drinks when being purchased at said location;

providing real time clock means connected to said computer means for maintaining current date record and for determining duration of said recording and monitoring activity for the purpose of creating daily averages of nutritional consumption by said consumer;

providing card reader writer means connected to said computer means through a known communication link;

providing at least one consumer smart card enabled to communicate with said computer means through said reader writer means, wherein said consumer smart card has memory to store said consumer'"'"'s personalized information and to store current and historical nutritional consumption data received from said computer means, wherein said current nutritional consumption data include nutritional contents of said foods and drinks purchased in the latest purchase transaction, and said historical nutritional consumption data include averages of daily nutrition consumption by said consumer averaged over selected periods of time;

providing printer means connected to said computer means by a known communication link for printing a dietary report generated by said computer means, said dietary report containing personalized nutritional consumption information including said current and historical nutritional consumption data for said consumer;

enabling said computer means to communicate with said smart card through said reader writer means, and to communicate with said printer means, said display means, and with product identification transmission means;

said consumer, prior to start of said current purchase transaction, inserting said smart card into said reader writer means, thereby informing said computer means of readiness of said smart card to provide and receive information;

transmitting product identification information on said foods and drinks being purchased by said consumer to said computer means;

maintaining a current date record and determining duration of said recording and monitoring activity by a real time clock;

said computer means creating a list of totals of said nutritions in said foods and drinks purchased;

said computer means operated to create new daily averages of nutrition consumption by said consumer by using historical daily nutrition consumption data stored in said smart card memory, totals of said nutritions from last purchase stored in said smart card memory and elapsed number of days since said smart card has been activated;

said computer means through said card reader writer means erasing said smart card memory containing historical daily averages of nutrition consumption by said consumer and said list of totals of said nutrition from last purchase;

said computer means through said reader writer means writing into said smart card memory new daily averages of nutrition consumption by said consumer and said current list of totals of said nutrition in said foods and drinks purchased;

said printer means providing to said consumer said dietary report generated by said computer means, said dietary report containing said new daily averages of nutrition consumption by said consumer and said current list of totals of said nutrition in said foods and drinks purchased;

said consumer then retrieving said smart card from said reader writer, and storing said smart card until the next food and/or drink purchase transaction.

2. A method as defined in claim 1, including providing at least a part of said memory of smart card in the form of electronically erasable programmable memory used to store data on daily averages of nutrition consumption by said consumer and said current list of totals of said nutrition in said foods and drinks purchased at said location.

3. A method as defined in claim 2, including updating said data on daily averages of nutrition consumption by said consumer and said current list of totals of said nutrition in said foods and drinks purchased at said location by operation of said computer means through said reader writer means, each time said smart card is used at said location.

4. A method as defined in claim 3, including providing and operating display means for displaying nutritional contents of said foods and drinks as foods and drinks are purchased at said location.

5. A method as defined in claim 4, including programming said smart card to provide to said computer means nutrition consumption limits preferred by said consumer as a reference to be printed in said dietary report.