Systems and methods for managing a hierarchical structure
Abstract
These are computer-readable systems, methods and media, consistent with the principles of some modalities of the present invention, which allow management of information, including providing a table of location data including information relating to a plurality of members, providing a table of location. cluster data including information related to the location data table, wherein the grouping data table groups one of a plurality of subsets of the plurality of members into one of a plurality of groups, and retrieving information relating to one of the plurality of subsets of the plurality of members based on information stored in the table grouping.

Term
Term ended
Expired 28 April 2026, 0.4 years ago.
- Priority and filed
- Granted
- Expired
- Today
15 claims: 3 independent, 12 dependent
- 1REIVINDICAÇÕES 1. Método para gerenciar informação, CARACTERIZADO pelo fato de que compreende:prover uma tabela de dados de localização incluindo informação relativa a uma pluralidade de membros;prover uma tabela de dados de agrupamento incluindo informação relacionada à tabela de dados de localização, em que a tabela de dados de agrupamento agrupa um de uma pluralidade de subconjuntos da pluralidade de membros em u de uma pluralidade de grupos;e recuperar informação relativa a um da pluralidade de subconjuntos da pluralidade de membros com base em informação armazenada na tabela de agrupamento.
- 2Método, de acordo com a reivindicação 1, CARACTERIZADO pelo fato de que a tabela de dados de localização pode ser atualizada, indicando um registro da tabela de dados de localização como inativo e criando um novo registro na tabela de dados de localização.
- 3Método, de acordo com a reivindicação 2, CARACTERIZADO pelo fato de que recuperar informação relativa a um da pluralidade de subconjuntos da pluralidade de membros inclui acessar registros tanto ativos como inativos na tabela de dados de grupo.
- 4Método, de acordo com a reivindicação 1, CARACTERIZADO pelo fato de que a informação recuperada inclui dados relativos a vendas de produtos dentro de um estabelecimento comercial de vendas a varejo.
- 5Método, de acordo com a reivindicação 1, CARACTERIZADO pelo fato de que compreende adicionalmente:prover uma tabela de dados de clientes incluindo informação relativa a uma pluralidade de clientes;prover uma tabela de dados de transação de compras incluindo informação relativa à experiência de compras da pluralidade de clientes incluída na tabela de dados de clientes;e recuperar informação relativa à experiência de compras de pelo menos um da pluralidade de clientes com base na informação armazenada na tabela de agrupamento.
- 6Aparelho para gerenciar informação, CARACTERIZADO pelo fato de que compreende:dispositivo de memória para armazenar um conjunto de instruções;e um dispositivo processador para executar o conjunto armazenado de instruções para realizar um método para gerenciar informação, o método compreendendo: prover uma tabela de dados de localização incluindo informação relativa a uma pluralidade de membros;prover uma tabela de dados de agrupamento incluindo informação relacionada à tabela de dados de localização, em que a tabela de dados de agrupamento agrupa um de uma pluralidade de subconjuntos da pluralidade de membros em um de uma pluralidade de grupos;e recuperar informação relativa a um da pluralidade de subconjuntos da pluralidade de membros com base em informação armazenada na tabela de agrupamento.
- 7Aparelho, de acordo com a reivindicação 6, CARACTERIZADO pelo fato de que a tabela de dados de localização pode ser atualizada, indicando um registro da tabela de dados de localização como inativo e criando um novo registro na tabela de dados de localização.
- 8Aparelho, de acordo com a reivindicação 7, CARACTERIZADO pelo fato de que recuperar informação relativa a um da pluralidade de subconjuntos da pluralidade de membros inclui acessar registros tanto ativos como inativos na tabela de dados de grupo.
- 9Aparelho, de acordo com a reivindicação 6, CARACTERIZADO pelo fato de que a informação recuperada inclui dados relativos a vendas de produtos dentro de um estabelecimento comercial de vendas a varejo.
- 10Aparelho, de acordo com a reivindicação 6, CARACTERIZADO pelo fato de que compreende adicionalmente:prover uma tabela de dados de cliente incluindo informação relativa a uma pluralidade de clientes;prover uma tabela de dados de transação de compras incluindo informação relativa à experiência de compras da pluralidade de clientes incluída na tabela de dados de clientes;e recuperar informação relativa à experiência de compras de pelo menos uma da pluralidade de clientes com base na informação armazenada na tabela de agrupamento.
- 11Mídia legível por computador que armazena instruções executadas por um processador para realizar um método para gerenciar informação, CARACTERIZADO pelo fato de que o método compreende:prover uma tabela de dados de localização incluindo informação relativa a uma pluralidade de membros;prover uma tabela de dados de agrupamento incluindo informação relacionada à tabela de dados de localização, em que a tabela de dados de agrupamento agrupa um de uma pluralidade de subconjuntos da pluralidade de membros em um de uma pluralidade de grupos;e recuperar informação relativa a um da pluralidade de subconjuntos da pluralidade de membros com base em informação armazenada na tabela de agrupamento.
- 12Mídia legível por computador, de acordo com a reivindicação 11, CARACTERIZADA pelo fato de que a tabela de dados de localização pode ser atualizada, indicando um registro da tabela de dados de localização como inativo e criando um novo registro na tabela de dados de localização.
- 13Mídia legível por computador, de acordo com a reivindicação 12, CARACTERIZADA pelo fato de que recuperar informação relativa a um da pluralidade de subconjuntos da pluralidade de membros inclui acessar registros tanto ativos como inativos na tabela de dados de grupo.
- 14Mídia legível por computador, de acordo com a reivindicação 11, CARACTERIZADA pelo fato de que a informação recuperada inclui dados relativos a vendas de produtos dentro do estabelecimento comercial de vendas a varejo.
- 15Mídia legível por computador, de acordo com a reivindicação 11, CARACTERIZADO pelo fato de que o método compreende adicionalmente:prover uma tabela de dados de cliente incluindo 5 informação relativa a uma pluralidade de clientes;prover uma tabela de dados de transação de compras incluindo informação relativa à experiência de compras da pluralidade de clientes incluída na tabela de dados de cliente;e 10 recuperar informação relativa à experiência de compras de pelo menos um da pluralidade de clientes com base na informação armazenada na tabela de agrupamento. 1/14 SERVIDOR MERCANTIL Servidores de Aplicação 2/14 112,114 Dispositivo de compras pessoal 202 208 210 208
Independent claims15
185 paragraphs in 6 sections, as filed
(54) Title: SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR MANAGING A HIERARCHICAL STRUCTURE (30) Unionist Priority: 29/04/2005 us 60 / 675,843 (73) Owner (s): springboard retail Networks
LICENSING SRL (72) Inventor (s): denys montuzenko, harold springer, JEREMY LIST, JIANG ZHAO, LUCY LIST, MICHAEL FEDOROV, ROBERT SEGAL, ROBIN HARRISON, RUSSELL HARPER, SYLVAIN PERRIER (74) Attorney (s): Veirano e Associates (86) International Order: pct IB2006001062 of 28/04/2006 (87) International Publication: wowo2006 / U7626de 11/11/2006 (57) Summary: systems and methods to manage a HIERARCHIC STRUCTURE. These are computer-readable systems, methods and media, consistent with the principles of some modalities of the present invention, which allow management of information, including providing a table of location data including information relating to a plurality of members, providing a table of location. cluster data including information related to the location data table, wherein the grouping data table groups one of a plurality of subsets of the plurality of members into one of a plurality of groups, and retrieving information relating to one of the plurality of subsets of the plurality of members based on information stored in the table grouping.
Application servers
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MERCHANT SERVER
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SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR MANAGING A HIERARCHICAL STRUCTURE.
RELATED ORDER DATA
This application concerns and claims the priority of provisional patent application N-US 60 / 675,843, filed on April 29, 2005, entitled Systems and Methods for Enabling Information Management Incorporating a Personal Computing Device, the content of which is expressly and fully incorporated into the present as a reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of invention
The present invention relates, in general, to a system that includes a personal computing device and, more specifically, to systems and methods that enable the management of information through a personal computing device.
2. Description of the Related Art
Distributors are expanding their commercial retail facilities to provide an increasing amount of services to their customers. However, as the number of services increases, and the number of customers increases, it becomes increasingly difficult to provide adequate services to customers. In addition, it becomes increasingly difficult to manage customer information and provide them with information relevant to their shopping experiences. Conventional personal computing devices do not address this need for a single source of information for a customer.
In this sense, it is necessary to have a personal computing device that works within a system capable of effectively managing customer information and providing information to customers in a skillful way.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
These are computer-readable systems, methods and media consistent with the principles of some modalities of the present invention, which allow management of information, including providing a location data table that covers information relating to a plurality of members, providing a cluster data including information related to the location data table, wherein the grouping data table groups one of a plurality of subsets of the plurality of members into one of a plurality of groups and retrieving information relating to one of the plurality of subsets of the plurality of members based on information stored in the grouping table.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The attached drawings, which are incorporated and which form part of this specification, illustrate various modalities of the invention and, together with the present, serve to explain the principles of the same and together with the description, explain its features and aspects. In the drawings:
Figure 1 is an example diagram of a system environment in which systems and methods, consistent with the principles of some modalities of the present invention, can be implemented;
Figure 2 is an example diagram of the main components of a Personal Shopping Device, consistent with some modalities of the principles of the present invention;
Figure 2A is an example diagram of the application components of a Personal Shopping Device consistent with some embodiments of the present invention;
Figure 3 is an example diagram of components of a security key, consistent with the principles of some embodiments of the present invention;
Figure 4 represents an exemplary diagram of the main components of an application server, consistent with the principles of some embodiments of the present invention;
Figure 4A represents an exemplary diagram of the relationship of some of the data tables consistent with the principles of some modalities of the present invention;
Figures 4B-4C represent some tables of exemplary data consistent with the principles of some embodiments of the present invention;
Figure 5 represents an exemplary planogram consistent with the principles of some embodiments of the present invention;
Figure 6 represents an exemplary table stored in memory consistent with the principles of some embodiments of the present invention; and
Figures 7A-7D represent exemplary images presented to a consumer using a Personal Shopping Device, consistent with the principles of some embodiments of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Reference will now be made in detail to the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Whenever possible, numerical references will be used in all drawings, the same references to refer to the same or similar parts.
Overview
Methods and systems consistent with the principles of some modalities of the present invention improve a consumer's personal shopping experience, providing a Personal Shopping Device to a consumer in a retail shopping environment and allowing the consumer, who uses a consumer has access to information. Additional systems and methods consistent with the principles of some modalities of the present invention allow a user, through an application server, to manage information delivered to the Personal Purchasing Device. Additional systems and methods consistent with the principles of some modalities of the present invention, allow a retailer to manage inventory, locate products within a store and / or study and maximize the product layout in order to maximize sales. Additional systems and methods consistent with the principles of some modalities of the present invention provide the user with a loyalty card, personal security key, etc., which interacts with the Personal Shopping Device to personalize the shopping experience. Additional systems and methods consistent with the principles of some modalities of the present invention allow an efficient exchange of content between a Personal Purchasing Device and an application server. Additional methods and systems consistent with the principles of some modalities of the present invention allow manufacturers to program and send information to the Personal Purchasing Device. Additional methods and systems consistent with the principles of some embodiments of the present invention allow customers to place orders for counter services. Additional methods and systems consistent with the principles of some modalities of the present invention allow for the effective management of information about the company, the commercial establishment and customer information within the system. Additional methods and systems consistent with the principles of some embodiments of the present invention allow a customer to generate and maintain a list of products for purchase.
Those not skilled in the art may find that the systems and methods discussed here can be implemented in a variety of shopping environments. For exemplary purposes, systems and methods consistent with the principles of the present invention will be discussed here in an environment of retail sales of groceries. The terms Personal Shopping Device and personal computing device are used interchangeably here.
System Architecture
Figure 1 is an example diagram of a system environment 100 for implementing the principles of the present invention. System components 100 can be implemented using any suitable combination of hardware, software and / or firmware. As shown in Figure 1, system 100 includes a plurality of stores 102, 104. Store 102 includes storage server 110 which is maintained by a grocery store. Store 102 further includes a plurality of servers 106, 108 which can interact with a plurality of application servers 120, 122 over network 116. Alternatively, servers 106, 108 can be implemented as a server. Store 102 may additionally include a staging server 107 that is communicatively connected to either a storage server 110 or one or both of the application servers 106, 108. Staging server 107 can store information that can be shared between application server 106, 108 and storage server 110. Staging server 107 can serve to protect information stored on the respective servers, so that all storage information on the respective servers can be secure. Alternatively, one of both application servers 106, 108 can be connected communicably to storage server 110.
A plurality of personal shopping devices 112, 114 physically located in or near store 102, can interact with servers 106, 108 using known technology, including wireless communication. A consumer can access the Personal Shopping Device 112 to access and manage information to improve their shopping experience. Each Personal Shopping Device 112, 114 can be associated with a unique identifier. 0 The consumer can access the Personal Shopping Device 112 with a personalized security key 140.
System 100 can additionally include an operator server 124, where a user on server 124 can manage information that is provided to application servers 120, 122, servers 106, 108 and / or Personal Purchasing Device 112, 114 over the network 116 . Manufacturer 126, 128 can additionally reside on system 100 where manufacturer 126, 128 can access application servers 120, 122 to request and / or program information related to their products to be transferred to Personal Shopping Device 112, 114.
System 100 may additionally include client computers 130, 132, which can be communicated with application servers 120, 122, where a consumer can enter information for access by the Personal Shopping Device 112, 114. For example, the consumer can access application servers 120, 122 and enter information, that is, a shopping list, for access in the grocery store by the Device
Purchasing Personnel 112, 114. Finally, system 100 can include merchant servers 136, 134. Merchant servers 134, 136 can be accessed by application servers 120, 122 and / or personal shopping devices 112, 114 to obtain content for viewing by the consumer on the Personal Shopping Device 112, 114.
Those not skilled in the art realize that, although only one or two devices may be represented, client computers and / or servers, many devices, computers and / or servers may reside in system 100. Although network 116 can be implemented as the Internet , network 116 can be any local or wide area network, both public and private.
Figure 2 represents an exemplary block diagram of components included in the Personal Shopping Device 112, 114. The Personal Shopping Device 112, 114 can be implemented as a computing device that can be made a part of a shopping card. Personal Shopping Device 112, 114 may include central processing unit 202, a touchscreen monitor 204, application software 206, memory 208, secondary storage 210 and input / output devices 212. Personal Shopping Device 112 114 can be communicated with servers 106, 108. Additionally, Personal Shopping Device 112, 114 can be communicated with commercial server 134, 136 through servers 106, 108.
A customer can access network 116 through server 106, 108 using application software 206, where the application software can include a conventional browser including conventional browser applications available from Microsoft or Netscape. Application software 206 may additionally include a user interface that improves the consumer's shopping experience by providing a plurality of features discussed here.
Input / output devices 212 may include, for example, a barcode reader, a USB port for receiving security key 140, an interface for receiving a variety of external devices, including, but not limited to, a smart card , a floppy disk, an external memory device, that is, a compact flash memory card, stick memory card, etc. and a touchscreen monitor for displaying information to the consumer and receiving information from the consumer via input to the touchscreen, etc.
Figure 3 represents an exemplary block diagram of the components that can reside in the security key 140, consistent with the principles of some embodiments of the present invention. Represented in Figure 3, the identification information can be stored. By issuing security key 140 to the consumer, the system associates unique identification information 304 with the consumer. This unique identification information 304 that identifies the consumer can be stored in security key 140. By inserting security key 140 in Personal Purchasing Device 112, 114, a verification algorithm 302, stored in security key 140, can be executed to verify the authenticity of security key 140. After due verification, the consumer can access the information available on the Personal Shopping Device 112, 114. In addition, a session can be created and managed using session management information 308, stored in security key 140. In this sense, in the event of a failure of the Personal Purchasing Device, how the device stores all interaction between the customer and the Device Purchasing Personnel, the consumer section can be completely restored using information stored in session management information 308.
Figure 4 represents an exemplary diagram of application servers 106, 108, 120, 122 that can be implemented in system environment 100, consistent with the principles of some embodiments of the present invention. As shown in Figure 4, application servers 106, 108, 120, 122 include a CPU 402, application software 404, memory 406, secondary storage 408, network interface application 410 and input / output devices 412. Input / output devices 212 may include, for example, a keyboard, a mouse, a video camera, a monitor, a storage device, a printer, etc. Application software 404 may additionally include software applications that facilitate the programming and transmission of intelligent content discussed here about personal shopping devices 112, 114. The 404 application software may additionally include software applications that facilitate the tracking of personal shopping devices in and around the retail environment and, based on the tracking information, facilitate the determination of certain information discussed here. Application software 404 can further facilitate functionality according to the personal shopping devices 112, 114 discussed here. It can be seen that the configuration of operator server 124, manufacturing server 126, 128, client computer 130, 132 and commercial server 134, 136 can be similarly configured for application servers represented in Figure 4 in which the application software can differ according to the functionality of individual computers discussed here.
Personal Purchasing Device Tracking Application
Using conventional applications, the system can track the present location of each of the plurality of personal shopping devices located in or near the shopping environment. In addition to tracking each of the plurality of personal shopping devices, for each Personal Shopping Device, the system can store the position of the Personal Shopping Device at given intervals, that is, every five seconds. This information can then be used to determine the actual location of the Personal Shopping Device in relation to certain products ·, both in part and on the entire personal shopping path as it travels through the shopping environment, etc. This information can be used for a variety of purposes.
First, using this information, the system can determine where, within the purchasing environment, the Personal Purchasing Device is located. Certain signs or conditions can be established in the system in such a way that, upon determining that a Personal Purchasing Device is some distance from a particular location, direct advertisement can be used. This direct ad may or may not take into account the consumer's purchase history. The user, on operational server 124 or on application servers 120, 122, can create and modify these signals or conditions, thus establishing an event-driven process. For example, if it is determined, based on the location of the Personal Shopping Device, that the consumer is located in the juice section, a discount generated by the computer may be offered to the consumer. These computer-generated discounts can be offered to some or all consumers when they are in a predetermined location in the juice section. Alternatively, if it is determined that the consumer has spent $ 20 on juice in the past two weeks, a computer-generated discount can be offered to the consumer based on the consumer's purchase history. These computer-generated discounts can be offered by displaying the consumer discount on the monitor of the Personal Shopping Device 112, 114. Similarly, advertisements, withdrawals, etc. may be selectively displayed to the consumer based on the location of the Personal Shopping Device and / or the consumer's purchase history.
Second, using the set of determined positions obtained using the Personal Purchasing Device location application, part or all of the Personal Purchasing Device path in the business can be determined. This can be useful for identifying how often each corridor, area, zone, etc. the store is visited. By identifying which areas of the store are most frequently visited, the store owner can optimize this space by placing certain products in the area that the store owner would like to sell quickly, advertise massively, place special deals, etc. In addition, by identifying which areas of the store are less frequently visited, the owner of the sales establishment can rearrange the products in the store to generate more traffic in those less traveled areas. In addition, it can provide information indicating that the scheme of the commercial establishment is confusing for the consumer; not properly arranged, etc.
Third, the system can store information related to the date, duration, etc. customer shopping experience. Using the information obtained, the shop owner can compare the speed of purchase in one store with the speed of purchase in another store.
Fourth, the position information from the Personal Purchasing Device can be used to support the self-healing planogram discussed.
Content Programming Application
A user can schedule content to be downloaded and displayed to a consumer on the Personal Purchasing Device using an application on operator server 124, and / or application servers 120, 122. Alternatively, a user on application servers 106, 108 or temporary storage server 107 can schedule content to be downloaded and displayed on the Personal Purchasing Device. Using the content scheduling application, a user can enter the content to be displayed, the start and end date / time, to which shopping establishments and / or personal shopping devices the content must be transferred (both by designation of personal shopping devices such as individual consumers), the commands to be executed by the Personal Shopping Device before and / or after the content has to be displayed, etc. This content can be targeted, active and / or passive advertising, and can be in the form of text, images, etc., commands to be executed by the CPU of the Personal Purchasing Device, updates for software applications, etc.
Alternatively, the manufacturer, using a similar content programming application, can access the application server 120, 122 to request content programming, entering similar information. This request can be reviewed before programming the content, or it can be programmed automatically.
Alternatively, content can simply be stored either on application server 106, 108, temporary storage server 107 or on Personal Shopping Device 112, 114, where content is pushed to the Personal Shopping Device and displayed in a list order. , randomly, etc.
Personal Device Update Application
Shopping
Information can be updated on the Personal Purchasing Device when the Personal Purchasing Device is reloading. A determination can be made to ensure that there is still enough power in the Personal Purchasing Device for the duration of the transfer and installation, if the Personal Purchasing Device is not plugged in. For example, upon a determination that the Personal Purchasing Device is not recharging, and that a predetermined level of energy is maintained, the Personal Purchasing Device can generate a message to the application server 106, 108, notifying the application server 106, 108 that the Personal Purchasing Device is ready to transfer content. Upon receipt of the message, application server 106, 108 prepares a response to the Personal Purchasing Device by providing the Personal Purchasing Device with a plurality of public keys and notifies the Personal Purchasing Device that the updates are ready for download. Using the update content application, the Personal Purchasing Device retrieves a private key from its storage and submits a request with the private key for updated content data. This ensures that only suitable personal shopping devices can transfer content from application server 106, 108. Upon receipt of the request, application server 106, 108 transmits the updated content to the Personal Shopping Device.
This exchange of transmissions between the Personal Purchasing Device and application server 106, 108 can be facilitated with the Microsoft Message Queuing Center (MSMQ), where the message header is modified to include security information, that is, an RSA key, to guarantee secure transactions.
Experienced in the technique realize that the determination of the energy level cannot be made if the Personal Purchasing Device is recharging.
Information Management Hierarchy
Information related to the plurality of shopping establishments, the companies that own the shopping establishments and the customers who buy at the shopping establishments can be stored in a way that allows real-time access to accurate current and historical data. Figure 4A represents exemplary data tables consistent with the principles of some embodiments of the present invention. It can be seen that the data tables represented in the figures may include additional information that is not revealed here. Additionally, it can be seen that additional tables can be stored, including additional information related to companies, purchasing establishments and / or customers. For example, additional information can be stored related to the customer's shopping experience, including shopping lists, items, price and quantity of items purchased, number of ad clicks, demographics of the interface discussed above, customer path in the store, advertisements that were presented to the customer, coupons used by the customer, etc.
As shown in Figure 4A, a plurality of data tables is provided. Data tables can be implemented using an Excel spreadsheet application from Microsoft Corporation, Macromedia Flash application from Adobe Systems Incorporated, a dynamic HTML application, etc. Data tables can include Company Information 421, Hierarchy Information 423, Level 425 Information, Location Information 427 and Cluster Details 429. Figure 4A represents the association between the data tables. Exemplary details of the data tables represented in Figure 4A are shown in the figures
4A-4C.
Company Information 421 stores company-related information, including company ID, as a primary key, and additionally includes the date the company record was created in the data table, and the name, street, state, postal code, country, company phone and fax number.
Hierarchy Information 423 stores information related to hierarchy definitions and includes
Company and Hierarchy as primary keys, and additionally includes the date the record was created and the name of the Hierarchy.
Location Information 427 stores information related to individual locations of each of the companies' shopping outlets stored in Company Information 421 and includes Company ID, Hierarchy ID, Member ID and Time Zone ID as primary keys and additionally includes a date the record was created, the member's name, level ID, street, city, state, country, postal code, telephone and fax number of the business. Location information 427 establishes which levels certain shopping establishments belong to.
Level 425 Information stores information related to level definitions and includes Company ID, Hierarchy ID and Level ID as primary keys and additionally includes the date the record was created in the data table and the level name.
Cluster Details 429 stores information related to groupings, or rollovers of purchasing establishments and includes Company ID, Hierarchy ID and Group ID as primary keys, and additionally includes the date the record was created and the member ID. Grouping Details 429 associates individual shopping outlets with certain groups.
Each of the data tables additionally stores related information whether the records included in it are active or inactive. For example, if a store changes locations, then a new record can be created in Location Information 427 by keeping the member ID, but updating all other data stored in the new record. The old record of the closed store will be saved in the data table, however the record can be indicated as inactive.
With information stored in this way, as companies and individual purchasing establishments change locations, a simple update to the tables discussed here, while still maintaining historical data, provides real-time data access to current and historical data. For example, if Member ID 1001 changes location for Southern California, a new record is created in Member ID 1001 that lists Location Information 427, the new time zone ID, the date that the new record was created, the member name and the new Level ID associated with the new location. In addition, the old record is marked as inactive and the date the record was marked as inactive is stored. None of the other tables need to be updated. The new information is maintained as current information, and the historical information is maintained for data mining purposes.
As such, anytime any of the values represented in the tables need to be updated, only those tables that store the value to be changed need to be updated.
By establishing and maintaining the tables in this way, current and historical data in real time can be mined. For example, how the active / inactive state of records and date records are created and date records that are inactive are stored, still retaining the data after the records are inactive, clarifying at least one of the Company ID, Hierarchy, Member ID, Level ID, group ID, time period, or any other information stored in the tables, accurate current and historical data in real time can be obtained.
It can be seen that records can be established in order to allow a company to select certain shopping establishments for target advertising, without being limited to levels previously established in the table. For example, a new record can be established at Level 425 Information with a Level ID 99999. Company 1 may want to provide an advertisement for Tide detergent only for store member IDs 1001, 10001 and 10002. By adding new records in Grouping Details 429, where store member ID number 1001, 10001 and 10002 have Group ID No. 99999 (in addition to the already assigned group ID numbers, ie 10001, 1000000 and 1000000 , respectively) the company can designate the Tide detergent ad to be displayed to customers associated with Group ID no. 99999. This provides added functionality because Company ID 1 is not limited to transmitting the ad to all stores at levels that may already be defined in Level 425 Information. Company ID 1 can, in a simple way, return to advertising for specific stores, regardless of pre-defined levels. It can be seen that this can save money for companies in advertising costs, administrative costs, etc. It can also be seen that, in addition to selecting stores to target advertising, a company can similarly select between demographic customer information, customer purchase history, etc., to target advertising. It can also be realized that, by establishing a record such as 99999, information related to the pre-defined levels is not affected. As such, data mining for pre-defined levels remains the same, still providing the added functionality of defining levels for targeted advertising.
It can be seen that similar functionality can result from adding new hierarchy IDs to the Hierarchy Information Table.
It can be seen that additional tables can be provided to maintain customer information. For example, a Customer Information table can be provided including primary key Customer ID, and storing customer demographic information including age, age group, gender, date of creation of the customer record, number of family members, number of children, age and sex of children in the family, family income, etc. In addition, a Sales Transaction table can be provided including primary keys for Customer ID, Transaction ID and Location ID, and additionally including date, type, quantity, price, etc. of products purchased, number of ad clicks, ads seen, date, time and trajectory of the cart on the shopping tour, time of entry and departure time of each zone during each shopping tour, etc.
It can be seen that additional information can be stored in these tables to expand data mining results.
It can be seen that all the tables discussed here can be stored on application server 106, 108, 122, 124 and / or database 142, 144.
Self-Healing Planogram Application
For each store, application servers 120, 122, 106, 108 can store the store's planogram in memory, that is, a drawing that shows where specific products are arranged on the shelves or retail displays. Figure 5 represents an exemplary planogram consistent with the principles of some embodiments of the present invention. As shown in Figure 5, the store includes aisles 502, 504, 504 and covers 508, 510 and 512, fruit and vegetable displays 514, 516, 518, 520, dairy display 522, meat and seafood display 524, display wine 526, 528, hot food / buffet display 532, 534, and bread display 530.
For example, the store can be divided into a plurality of zones, and each product in the store can be designated located in a particular zone. As shown in Figure 5, the dairy display 522 can be identified as zone 1 536, and fruit and vegetable displays 514, 516, 518 can be designated as zone 2 540.
It can be seen that the data related to each planogram of the store can be stored in data tables with a similar structure discussed above with respect to the information management hierarchy.
Information can be stored related to the location of products in the commercial establishment. For example, for each of the plurality of zones represented in Figure 5, information can be stored that identifies the boundaries of each of the plurality of zones and information related to the location and descriptive information associated with the products located in each zone. Figure 6 represents exemplary tables that can be used to store information in the commercial establishment. As shown in Figure 6, table A 600 stores the limits of each of the plurality of zones, that is, the limits of each of the plurality of zones, in the commercial establishment. Column 602 identifies each zone, column 604 identifies the minimum coordinates of each zone and column 606 identifies the maximum coordinates of each zone. It can be seen that alternative methods can be used to identify the limits of each of the plurality of zones. Column 611 identifies the location identification of the business.
In addition, table B 608 can store information about each of the products included in the store, including a specific product location in the area, descriptive information related to the product, etc. For example, table B 608 includes a SKU #, a unique identification number that uniquely identifies a particular product, a Zone ID, which represents the zone in which the product is located, and a product number. Those skilled in the art can realize that additional information can be stored in these tables.
Those not versed in the technique can perceive that alternatives to the zones can be implemented in storage information related to the positioning of products in the commercial establishment, that is, the store can be divided into smaller or larger areas; etc.
The planogram discussed here can be self-healing, in which it does not need any user interaction to update the product location information stored in the tables, for example, in the case where the product exhibitor was relocated in the commercial establishment. As noted earlier, the tables store information that identifies the location of each of the products located in the store. When a consumer reads an item and places the item in their shopping cart, the Personal Shopping Device receives the bar code information. This information can be loaded on the application servers 106, 108. This information can additionally be associated with the position information of the Personal Purchasing Device. The system can assume that the consumer placed the item in the cart at approximately the same location where the
<td>consumer</td><td>took the item</td><td>gives</td><td>shelf / display.</td><td>THE</td>
<td>information</td><td>location</td><td>can</td><td>be compared with</td><td>The</td>
<td>information</td><td>location</td><td colspan="2">stored in the tables. If</td><td>The</td>
<td>information</td><td>is different, the</td><td>system</td><td>can flag the item</td><td>and,</td>
if a predetermined number of customers are placing the same item in their carts in new locations, the system can automatically adjust the entry of the item in the tables as inactive, and create a new entry in table B, identifying the new position or zone of the item. Thus, the planogram does not necessarily need to be updated manually. It can be self-healing in that, as consumers shop at the store, the tables can be updated automatically.
When a consumer searches for a product, as discussed below, these tables can be searched to identify the location of the product in the store. In addition, the consumer can use the information in these tables to access the location, direction and distance of the product based on the location of the Personal Shopping Device.
In addition, data mining can be performed to determine where a product sells best. By viewing data regarding where an item was located and how many customers purchased the item, the merchant can determine where to place an item to optimize sales.
User Interface
Consistent with the principles of some embodiments of the present invention, the Personal Purchasing Device user interface can be generated based on stored customer information. This customer information can be collected when the consumer signs the loyalty card / security key, etc. The information can be stored on the storage server 110, application servers 106, 108, application servers 120, 122 and / or databases 142, 144. The user interface can alternatively be generated based on stored customer information that is collected based on the consumer's past shopping experience and / or can be generated based on a combination of the customer information collected at the time the consumer signs up the loyalty card / security key, etc., and the purchase history information.
During the registration of the loyalty card, security key, etc., the customer may be asked about personal information. For example, the customer may be asked for age, sex, address, postal code, number of family members, number of children, children's age, family income, etc. All information provided by the customer can be stored in the manner indicated above. Additionally, information related to the date of the customer's last shopping tour, the duration of the last shopping tour, etc. can be stored.
Different display attributes can be stored in memory and associated with different categories of customer information. Certain display attributes can be associated with sex, age and / or age group, race, address, marital status, number of children, sexes of children, etc. For example, if you are a female customer, then the display may have a certain colored background that may be more attractive to females; if the customer is Spanish and the customer's first language is Spanish, then the text displayed on the monitor can be in Spanish; if the customer's vision is weak, this information can be associated with a large font, etc.
Information can be additionally stored with respect to the customer's previous shopping experience. For example, each time the customer touches the Personal Shopping Device, the buttons selected by the customer can be stored. This data can be accessed to determine how often the customer has selected each of the menu options on the personal device. If the system determines that the customer uses the shopping list feature more frequently, then the actuable button that represents the shopping list function can be displayed more prominently in the user interface, that is, at the beginning of the list of actuable buttons, displayed as a button larger than the other actuable buttons, etc. The next most frequently used feature can be displayed second in the list, such as the second largest button, etc.
The content to be displayed on the Personal Purchasing Device can be stored and associated with the different categories of customer information. The content displayed on the Personal Purchasing Device can be displayed based on the stored customer information. For example, if the customer is Spanish, the recipes offered to the customer may be from Spanish culture, that is, paella, beans and rice, etc.
In addition, the weekly brochure can be generated dynamically based on customer information. Ads eligible for the weekly brochure can be associated with different categories of customer information; the ads eligible for the weekly brochure can be associated with particular types of products, etc. For example, if the customer has a newborn baby, the weekly brochure may include a diaper ad. Alternatively, based on access to the customer's purchase history and past purchases, the system can determine which canned corn is often purchased. Based on this determination, the weekly brochure may include an advertisement for canned beans with canned vegetables. For another example, an ad eligible for the weekly frying brochure can be associated with soft drinks. These associations can be determined by a store employee, the advertiser, the manufacturer, etc.
In addition to the advertisement included in the weekly brochure, an additional advertisement can be displayed on the Personal Purchasing Device based on customer information during the customer's shopping experience. This additional advertisement can be associated with particular products. The system can store information related to particular items, quantity, etc. that a customer has acquired in the past. The additional advertisement can be selected and displayed on the Personal Purchasing Device based, for example, on the most frequently purchased items. For example, application server 106 can access the customer's purchase history and determine, for example, the first eight products the customer buys most often. Ads associated with the eight most purchased products can be shown to the customer during the shopping tour at random; can be displayed based on the position of the Personal Shopping Device within a predetermined distance from the product, etc.
Personal Purchasing Device
Consistent with the principles of some modalities of the present invention, the use of the Personal Shopping Device provides certain functionality to the consumer to improve their shopping experience. Some examples of this functionality include personalized offers, discussed previously, storage of purchase history, item search / finder, price verification and / or suggestions for alternative products, access to recipe information, an interactive shopping list, automatic reading / scanning , etc.
By accessing the Personal Purchasing Device, noted earlier, the consumer can see an example screen thumbnail represented in each of Figures 7A-7D. As shown in Figure 7A, an offered recipe is announced. If the customer wants to see the recipe and the ingredients in the recipe, the consumer can select the button to view this recipe 704. By selecting button 704, the recipe can be displayed along with a shopping list of the ingredients that are needed to make the dish. In addition to the recipe offered, the most special ones at the 706 establishment can be displayed. Additionally, menu items 708 are provided where the consumer can select any of the menu items. For example, the user can select home page 708, where the consumer can be directed to the home page of the application. The consumer can additionally select 710 in order to access additional daily special offers. These daily special offers can be specials offered to all consumers within the merchant, or they can be special offers to the consumer based on the consumer's purchase history. The consumer can additionally select 712 in order to access the product directory, that is, to search for a product in the store. The consumer can select 714 to access the consumer's personal shopping list. The consumer can select 716 to access recipes. The consumer can select 718 to access an electronic calculator, a calculation application that allows the consumer to perform basic mathematical computations. The consumer can select 720 to access a help application that explains how to use the Personal Shopping Device. Additionally, section 722 presents a passive advertisement to the consumer, similar to the banner advertisement.
Figure 7B represents an alternative example screenshot that can be displayed to a consumer by accessing the application on the Personal Shopping Device. Alternatively, as shown in Figure 7B, the user can select family fun 724 to access entertainment information. For example, if the consumer is shopping with a child, the consumer can access appropriate entertainment videos to occupy the child while he is shopping. Alternatively, the consumer can access music information for the consumer to hear while shopping. Alternatively, the consumer can purchase this information and store it in the consumer's personal security key 140. This information can subsequently be transferred to a device at the consumer's home.
Figures 7C-7D represent alternative example screenshots that can be displayed to a consumer by accessing the application on the Personal Shopping Device.
Experienced in the technique can perceive that the display of the Personal Shopping Device can be turned, rotated, etc., so that a person seated in the cart can properly see the information that appears on the monitor of the Personal Shopping Device. It can also be seen that the Personal Purchasing Device can include speakers, a headset set, microphone (to enable the consumer to interact with the Personal Purchasing Device via voice), etc.
As the customer uses the Personal Shopping Device, information relating to the customer's interaction with the Personal Shopping Device is stored, including products read on the reading device with the scanning device (product type, price, quantity, time of purchase) reading with the scanning device, etc.), ads displayed, time the ads were displayed, number of ad clicks, products searched, cart path, against ordered services (including order details), shopping list information, shopping tour date, shopping tour start and end time, etc. The information can be stored on the Personal Purchasing Device during the customer's shopping experience. The information starts being compiled on the Personal Purchasing Device when the customer connects. During the customer's shopping experience, information relating to customer interaction can be stored, for example, in a plain text file, on the Personal Purchasing Device. The plain text file can include a customer ID, a store location ID, date. start, start time, stop date, stop time, ad ID representing displayed ads, time the ad was shown, time spent in different zones in the store, start time and stop in and out of zones in the store commercial, products read on the reading device with the scanning device, user clicks on the ad, etc. After the customer connects the device, the Personal Purchasing Device can filter the plain text file and transmit the filtered plain text file to storage server 110, and / or application server 106, 108. The storage server 110 and / or application server 106, 108 can update the appropriate data tables with the information stored in the filtered plain text file and / or can transmit the filtered plain text file to the application server 120, 122 for processing and storage of data in database 142, 144.
It can be seen that, alternatively, the Personal Purchasing Device can trigger the interaction with other devices within the commercial establishment. For example, kiosks, monitors and other computing devices can be located throughout the store that can provide additional and / or improved services to the customer. Based on the customer's position at the merchant, the system can determine that a customer is physically close to another computing device. The system can instruct the other computing device to activate and play content that engages the customer in using the other device and to offer improved and / or additional services. Some examples of services that can be provided on monitors / kiosks may include printing coupons, printing, accessing and / or searching for recipes, printing photos ordered using the photo counter service, recording media on a removable storage device, customized Internet search based on stored customer information, purchase of lottery tickets, obtaining funds from an ATM where the kiosk is communicated to the customer's bank company, parking validation and alternatively parking validation where free parking is added to the total of the customer's purchase verification, media rental including video tapes, DVDs, etc., postal service kiosks where the customer can post a package and, alternatively, the cost of the customer to post the package can be added to the customer's total purchase check, provide fast food services and quick snacks where the cost of food can be added to the customer's total purchase check, provide audio / video personalized to the customer, providing customer games, providing advanced input features to enable the customer to provide comments or responses to surveys relating to the customer's shopping experience, provide instructional videos to the client or family members of the client, printing customized books, ie coloring books, books and stories, etc., in which the book is customized for the client or family members of the client, enabling research and provide event tickets, purchase mobile / cell phone cards and / or reset mobile cell phone minutes, enable search and provide airline tickets, suggest products for purchase based on stored customer information, that is, where the product is physically located near the kiosk / display, the product can be suggested based on age, sex, etc., offer voice over IP services where the kiosk is communicably connected to the
Internet, etc.
Dynamic Ad
Advertisements can be generated dynamically based on customer information stored in the system. A manufacturer can identify an advertising template that it can incorporate. static components of advertising. Additionally, the manufacturer can also identify dynamic advertising components that may be associated with certain categories of customer information. Dynamic components can have a priority associated with them. For example, the manufacturer can provide a template that indicates that Tide detergent is on sale. The detergent price and the price graph can be incorporated as the static component of the advertisement. In addition, a dynamic component including a graph of a mother with a child can be associated with the family category that has a young child. In addition, a dynamic component of an older woman's chart may be associated with an age range of 55-65. When the system determines that a certain customer has to receive the announcement of
Tide, the system accesses customer information. Based on the associated priority information and / or customer information, a 60-year-old customer will see Tide's ad with the static components and the dynamic component of the older woman's graphic. As such, the ad can be dynamically generated and presented to all customers where the ad will attract the particular customer who is viewing the ad, since the dynamic components can be tailored to the specific customer who is viewing the ad.
Given the system's real-time capabilities, ad-based return on investment can be realized. As the Personal Purchasing Device and / or the system is storing information related to the advertisement being viewed by the customer, the items being read on the reading device with the scanning device for purchase, and when the items are being read read on the reading device with the scanning device, the system can determine the effectiveness of the ad in real time. The system can process and store information related to how many customers have read the advertised product with the scanning device. If the number is low, then the ad can be considered ineffective. This information can be reported back to the manufacturer and the manufacturer can decide to update the static and / or dynamic components of the advertisement.
Alternatively, a manufacturer can set thresholds and modify the advertisement based on the effectiveness of the advertisement. For example, the manufacturer, user, etc., can establish that an ad must be 30% effective; that out of every 100 customers who see the ad, 30 customers have to buy the advertised item. If this effectiveness is not achieved, the system can automatically modify the graphics of the ad, expand the target audience of the ad, generate a message to the manufacturer warning of the effectiveness of the ad, etc. Alternatively, the system can automatically generate reports for the manufacturer at predetermined times, alerting the effectiveness of the advertisement (s).
Alternatively, the payment for the ad by the manufacturer can be dynamic based on the effectiveness of the ad. For example, the manufacturer may be charged less if only a few customers buy the product after seeing the ad, and may be charged more if many customers purchase the product after seeing the ad.
Alternatively, after seeing the effectiveness of the ad, the manufacturer can determine that certain dynamic components are more effective than other dynamic components, and may decide to modify the priority or categories and customer information that can be used in generating the ad.
In addition, using data stored in data tables, a company can determine whether a customer is traveling to buy products. For example, if a customer with a postal code at a store in a different postal code and purchases products that the customer is not buying from a store located in the customer's postal code, the company may determine that there is a need for a particular product in the customer's postal code. The company can then provide the necessary product at the customer's business establishment, making the customer's shopping experience more productive and increasing sales.
It is realized that other types of dynamic ads can be displayed to the customer based on the customer's stored information. For example, if the customer prepaid their purchases with a Bank of New York card, the system can store this information that the customer maintains an account at Bank of New York. During the customer’s shopping experience, a Bank of New York ad can appear promoting the bank’s services.
Interactive Shopping List Application
The consumer can additionally access his personal shopping list using his Personal Shopping Device. For example, the consumer can generate their shopping list on their home computer and download the shopping list on their security key 140. After the consumer enters security key 140 on the Personal Purchasing Device and after the consumer is verified , the shopping list can be retrieved from security key 140. Alternatively, the consumer can access an application on the application server 120, 122 and enter their shopping list using their home computer. This shopping list can be downloaded to the Personal Shopping Device after the consumer is verified.
Once the shopping list is retrieved, the consumer has the opportunity to add, remove or edit items in the shopping list. Alternatively, the system can retrieve the consumer's purchase history to identify those items that the consumer buys regularly. For example, the system may determine that the consumer buys 1/2 gallon (1.9 liters) of milk each time the consumer purchases. Once the consumer is verified, the system can access the consumer's purchase history and compare items purchased regularly with the items on the consumer's shopping list. If there is an item that the consumer normally buys that is not located on the shopping list, the system can alert the consumer asking if the item should be placed on the shopping list. This can help to ensure that the consumer's shopping list is complete. Additionally, it helps to generate sales for the commercial establishment.
In addition, the consumer has the ability to enter budget information. Upon receipt of budget information, the Personal Purchasing Device can analyze the interactive shopping list and budget information and search the information stored in table B to suggest a list of proposed products that will ensure that the consumer stays within the budget.
As the system stores both shopping list information and information related to items purchased by the consumer, the system can generate reports that show the customer's shopping trends. For example, the system can determine which products the consumer wants to purchase from the shopping list information, and which products the consumer bought and did not buy. In addition, the system can determine the efficiency of the ad based on the items intended for purchase on the shopping list, the ads that were displayed to the consumer and the actual products purchased.
Alternatively, the system can generate the shopping list for the next supermarket visit based on the customer's actual purchase during the current supermarket visit. This list can be modified by the customer at the customer's home using the network application on the application server 120, 122 and / or at the supermarket during the consumer's next visit.
The shopping list can be updated as the consumer is shopping. Each item for consumer purchase is scanned with the scanning device, for example, using a barcode reader on the Personal Shopping Device. The Personal Purchasing Device can transmit the information read from the scanning device to the storage server 110 'or application server 106, 108 to obtain the associated product information. Additionally, the product attribute information can still be accessed. Product information and product attribute information can be transmitted to the Personal Purchasing Device. The consumer shopping list can then be processed to determine whether the product scanned with the scanning device or an associated product is on the list. If the product is on the list, the product is verified as selected for purchase. If the product is not on the list, the product can be added to the list. At the end of the consumer shopping tour, all items in the shopping cart can be added to the consumer shopping list. This list can be stored locally in the personal shopping cart and / or stored on the application server 106, 108, 120, 122.
Price Verification Application
As noted earlier, the Device
Purchasing staff may include a barcode reader. The consumer can read a product with the scanning device to perform a price check. If the consumer wants to discern the cost of a product, the consumer can read with the scanning device, that is, the product's barcode. Barcode information is received on the Personal Purchasing Device. The price information can be stored on the Personal Purchasing Device, it can be stored on the application servers 106, 108 or it can be stored on the temporary storage server 107. If the price information is stored on the application servers 106, 108, or on the temporary storage server 107, the Personal Purchasing Device can transmit the price verification request to the server that stores the price information, that is, payment servers. application 106, 108 or temporary storage server 107. The request is received at the appropriate server, the memory is interrogated and a response can be relayed to the Personal Purchasing Device. The answer can then be displayed to the consumer.
Item Search Application
Each of the products for sale in the store can be stored on the storage server 110, application server 106, 108, application server 120, 122 and / or database 142, 144. Associated with each product can be keywords keys that help identify the product. For example, Tide detergent can be stored and the keywords associated with Tide detergent can be laundry, soap, detergent, etc. The consumer can interrogate the system trying to locate a particular item. The item can be located based on the product, or on the keywords associated with the product. For example, if the customer is looking for Tide detergent, the customer can come in as laundry soap. Based on keywords associated with Tide detergent, including laundry and soap, Tide detergent may appear as an answer to the customer's query.
As another example, the customer can submit a request seeking to find the location of lamp bulbs. Upon submission of the query, the Personal Purchasing Device either searches its own memory, if the information is stored locally, or prepares and submits a query to the application servers 106, 108, or temporary storage server 107, if the information is stored in one of these servers. Upon receipt of the query, the appropriate server fetches your memory and identifies the location of the product within the store. The server then prepares a response to the query and transmits the response to the Personal Purchasing Device. The Personal Shopping Device then displays the location of the product on the Personal Shopping Device monitor. Alternatively, the Personal Shopping Device or the server can calculate a set of directions based on the current position of the Personal Shopping Device where directions can be provided to the consumer. This information can be provided to the customer in a number of ways, including merely identifying the aisle in which the product is located, directions, in text form, to direct the consumer to the product being sought, a map being displayed on the monitor giving the customer a path marked for the product, etc.
Alternatively, in addition to advertisements, a manufacturer may purchase certain keywords that may be associated only with products stored in the system. For example, the Tide detergent manufacturer may purchase laundry as the keyword associated with Tide detergent. No other manufacturer can have the word laundry associated with its products. Each time the customer searches for a product using the keyword laundry, only Tide detergent will appear in the list. This can provide an additional benefit to the manufacturer, since only their product is identified in the search results list, thus reducing competition. Alternatively, manufacturers can identify certain stores where their keywords are associated with certain products. These selected stores can be based on location.
Alternatively, when a customer is looking for a product, and an ad is associated with one of the products in the search results list, the customer may be presented with an ad that matches a product in the search list.
Alternatively, after the system determines which product the customer is looking for, the inventory database, discussed below, can be consulted to determine whether there is stock in the item sought. If there is no stock, the system can suggest a replacement product. Alternatively, the replacement product can be offered with an advertisement and / or coupon as an incentive for the customer to purchase the alternative item. Alternatively, the customer can be provided with a card for another date that can be stored in the system, on the customer's loyalty card, security key, etc. In addition, if the item is a settlement item, the settlement price can additionally be stored and applied during a later shopping tour.
Automatic Scan / Read Application
The consumer can read a product with the scanning device when the product is placed in the cart for purchase. Upon reading with the item's scanning device, the Personal Purchasing Device can store the information indicating that the consumer wants to purchase the product read with the scanning device. At any time, the consumer can review the list of items placed in the cart. This can be beneficial if the cart is particularly full and the consumer is unsure whether a particular item on the shopping list has been picked up. Upon reading with the item's scanning device, the interactive shopping list can be searched to determine whether the item scanned with the scanning device is on the shopping list. If the item read with the scanning device is on the interactive shopping list, the interactive shopping list can be automatically updated and an indication can be made on the interactive shopping list that the item has been picked up for purchase. Upon verification, the invention that identifies the products that were read on the reading device with the scanning device for the Personal Shopping Device and placed on the cart can be transferred to a verification device. This can reduce the time the consumer spends checking out. After a consumer has checked out, the information identifying the purchased products can be transmitted, via application server 106, 108, to application servers 120, 122, for storage in databases 142, 144. Alternatively , application servers 106, 108 can include databases that store information locally. This stored purchase history can be used for many purposes discussed here.
Alternatively, certain products within the store may include an RF ID tag. The RF ID tag can be active or passive. A product on a shelf with the label can be active. When the customer registers the product with the Personal Purchasing Device that is intended for sale, the Personal Purchasing Device can change the RF ID tag to passive. When checking out, the customer's cart can be read with the scanning device to determine if there are any active tags in the shopping cart. An active tag in the customer's shopping cart indicates that the customer has not properly scanned the product for purchase.
Alternative Application Search
The customer can scan with a product's scanning device and look for a similar or cheaper product. For example, the customer can read with the scanning device an item that is 1,814 g (64 ounces) and costs $ 8.00. However, it may be that the consumer may only need 170 g (6 ounces) of the product, or it may be that the consumer does not want to pay $ 8.00. The consumer can select a certain application from the consumer interface on the Personal Purchasing Device where the product directory can be searched to find a similar product that is smaller and / or does not cost as much. Alternatively, the consumer can read a particular product with the scanning device, that is,
Mr. Clean, a cleaning product. The system can identify a similar product that is on sale, or that has a computer generated discount available, and present the alternative to the consumer. The consumer can then take advantage of the information offered to the consumer. For example, the consumer can receive information from the system identifying a computer-generated discount for Lysol bleach. The consumer may decide to use the computer generated discount and purchase Lysol instead of Mr. Clean. Upon reading with the Lysol scanning device, the system can take note of the use of the computer generated discount so that, on checkout, the consumer can receive the discount without having to take coupons, produce any paper notification of the discount, etc.
Revenue Application
In addition to the recipes discussed, the consumer can search for recipes in the memory located on the Personal Purchasing Device and / or application servers 106, 108,
120, 122. The recipes can alternatively be provided by the manufacturer through the manufacturing server 126. By selecting a recipe, the ingredients of the recipe can be placed on the consumer's interactive shopping list. The consumer can make a referral through the consumer interface to remove the item from the interactive shopping list. In addition, the consumer can store the recipe in security key 140 for transfer to the consumer's home computer. Alternatively, the consumer, through the Personal Purchasing Device 102, 104, can send the recipe by email to himself for viewing, for example, at home, or the consumer can direct the recipe to be printed on a localized printer, for example, in the commercial establishment.
Those skilled in the art can realize that the Personal Shopping Device can provide the consumer with the ability to browse and access servers 134, 136 on the Internet to access information including recipes.
Storage server 110, application servers 106, 108 and / or application servers 120, 122 can store information related to recipes. These servers can additionally store, or have access to, data by associating recipe ingredients with certain products in order to assist the customer during the shopping experience. Those products that are associated with the ingredients can be store brand products, name brand products, etc. 0 The customer can be provided with an option to select whether the products associated with the ingredients for the recipe are store branded products or name branded products. For example, if the customer is shopping at Safeway Supermarket, Safeway may want to promote its store branded products. When a customer selects a recipe to view, additional information can be displayed identifying products from the Safeway brand that must be purchased in order for the customer to make the recipe.
Alternatively, the customer may have the option to select certain recipes based on the characteristics of the dishes produced by the recipe. For example, the customer can select a recipe and can additionally select a version of the low sodium recipe, a version of the recipe suitable for diabetics, a version of the low fat recipe, etc. In addition, the system can allow the customer to select how many people are being served and modify the recipe accordingly. For example, if the recipe will serve 4 people, and the customer is served 8 people, the system can automatically double the recipe. Additionally, the products associated with the recipe, taking into account that the recipe has been doubled, can be provided to the customer and / or added to the customer's shopping list.
Additionally, the customer can request a recipe based on other characteristics, including product cost, number of calories per serving, amount of fat per serving, kosher ingredients, etc.
In addition, the system can enable the customer to select a weekend meal plan, weekly meal plan, etc., in which the customer can select various recipes to serve over the weekend, during the week, etc. By selecting the recipes, the associated products can be added to the customer's shopping list, and the meal plan and / or recipes can be stored in the customer's security key or loyalty card, or sent by email to the customer, etc. . The customer can remove these items from the shopping list that the customer has at home.
Alternatively, the system can monitor the selected eating plan to ensure that the selected eating plan is in accordance with a customer's diet. For example, if the customer is on a Weight Watcher diet, the system can count the points per portion of the recipes selected by the customer and notify the customer of that point count, as a running total, as the final total count, etc. .
In addition, the system can store information related to wines that can be associated with recipes. If a customer has selected a certain recipe, the system can additionally recommend a wine 15 that can go well with the selected recipe.
Smart Content
With storage of information related to the products that the consumer placed in the cart, additional resources can be realized. For example, recipe ingredients stored in memory can be searched and associated with items read on the reading device with the scanning device in the customer's shopping cart. For example, if the system determines that the consumer has purchased avocado, onion and tomato, the
Personal Purchasing Device, towards the application server 106, 108, 120 or 122, can alert the consumer to buy lemon and can additionally provide a recipe for guacamole. Additionally, targeted offers, that is, computer-generated discounts, can be made to the consumer. For example, if the consumer has selected a total of $ 75 of merchandise to purchase, the Personal Shopping Device may display an offer to the consumer to access a private network address to receive some
<td>incentive; if the consumer has</td><td>acquired 3</td><td>bags</td><td>in</td>
<td>French fries, the consumer can</td><td>be offered</td><td>with</td><td>one</td>
<td>computer generated discount for</td><td>receive a</td><td>tin</td><td>in</td>
free hot sauce, etc.
Alternatively, the system can offer information to the consumer that is associated with particular products being purchased. For example, if the consumer reads with the Mr. Clean scanning device on the Personal Shopping Device, the system can search its memory and offer cotton swabs to the consumer.
Inventory Management Application
In addition to the information discussed here, inventory information can be maintained on storage server 110, application server 106, 108, application server 120, 122 and / or database 142, 144. This inventory information can be updated in time real as consumers purchase products within the commercial establishment. For example, when a consumer reads with the Bounty paper towel scanning device on the Personal Shopping Device, an inventory database that can be stored on storage server 110, staging server 107, application server 106, 108, application server 120,
122 and database 142, 144 can be updated. Predetermined thresholds can be set so that when a particular product's inventory level falls within the predetermined threshold, the system can alert the user on application server 106, 108, storage server 110 and / or application server 120, 122 to request more of that product. Alternatively, the system can automatically generate a request that can be transmitted via application server 120, 122 to manufacturing server 126 for more of that product.
Similarly, the system can provide predetermined limits to identify when there is an excess stock of a particular item. If the system determines that there is excess inventory, the system can automatically generate a computer-generated discount or advertisement that provides incentives for the consumer to purchase the item in order to reduce the situation of excess inventory. These computer-generated discounts can be offered to consumers using the plurality of methods discussed here.
Alternatively, the manufacturer can pre-define a price where products can be offered to customers at the pre-defined price when an excess stock situation occurs. This reduced price can be offered to customers for a period of time, until the inventory reaches a normal or pre-defined level, etc.
Experienced in the technique can realize that, with the application of the principles discussed here, the owner of the commercial establishment can determine trends, foresee additional purchases and arrangements and quantities of products to be ordered upstream, etc.
Power Management Application
The system may additionally have the ability to monitor the energy level of each of the plurality of personal purchasing devices within or near the commercial establishment. Each Personal Shopping Device can have a battery charge for a particular period of time. Each Personal Purchasing Device can monitor its own energy levels and can communicate energy levels periodically, or upon request, to application servers 106, 108.
Alternatively, the system can be configured so that when the power from the Personal Purchasing Device drops to a predetermined level, an alert can be generated and transmitted to application servers 106, 108. The energy levels can additionally be provided to a consumer so that if a consumer accesses a Personal Shopping Device, and if the energy level becomes low, the consumer can select a different Personal Shopping Device to access. In addition, upon receipt of notification that a Personal Shopping Device is low on energy, store personnel can withdraw the Personal Shopping Device from use and turn on the device for charging.
Counter-Services Application
With the input device provided in the Personal Shopping Device, the consumer can insert an external memory card, that is, a compact flash memory card, a stick-type memory card, a pen drive, etc. to transfer image data. Using the consumer interface provided in the Personal Purchasing Device, the consumer can select the photo processing services that the consumer wants for the transferred image data. The consumer can then submit the image data to the merchant's photo processing service. Since security key 140 can be associated with consumer identification, the time it takes to order prints of image data can be reduced. As such, the consumer can shop at the store while image data is being processed. This reduces the need for the consumer to stay on line to request the image processing service and additionally reduces the amount of information that the consumer may need to feed to request an image processing service.
It can be seen that similar services can be ordered using the Personal Purchasing Device. For example, the consumer can request from flower arranging services that a particular arrangement be prepared. Thus, the consumer can buy while the arrangement is being prepared, thereby accelerating the consumer's shopping experience. Alternatively, the consumer can order a certain cut of meat from the butcher shop using the Personal Shopping Device and so the consumer can pick up his order without having to wait on the line. Similarly, consumers can request movie rental services, coffee, seafood or deli orders, hot food orders, etc.
In addition to the film processing application, the Personal Purchasing Device can enable the customer to select and transmit an order to a section of the bakery and / or a delicatessen section of the business establishment. The customer can access the bakery counter service application, select item (s) to purchase, ie birthday cake, identify the size of the cake, the type of cake, the decoration of the cake, the writing on the cake, etc. Once the customer enters all other information from the bakery, the bakery order is transmitted from the Personal Purchasing Device via storage server 110 or application server 106,. 108 to a computing device physically located in the bakery section of the commercial establishment. The customer's order can appear on a monitor for an employee in the bakery section. The employee then fulfills the customer's order. Once the employee has completed the order, the employee can transmit a message to the customer's personal computing device indicating that the order is ready to be taken. If the customer has already left the store, the customer can be notified by email, phone, etc. that the bakery order is complete.
The Personal Purchasing Device can enable a customer to select and transmit an order to a delicatessen section of the store. The customer can access the delicatessen counter service application, select item (s) to purchase, that is, a party tray, identify the tray size, the contents of the tray, the tray theme, etc. Once the customer enters all the delicatessen order information, the order is transmitted from the Personal Purchasing Device via storage server 110 or application server 106, 108 to a computing device physically located in the delicatessen section of the establishment commercial. The customer's order can appear on a monitor for an employee in the deli section. The employee can then fulfill the customer's order. Once the employee has completed the order, the employee can transmit a message to the customer's personal computing device indicating that the order is ready to be picked up. If the customer has already left the store, the customer can be notified by email, phone, etc. that the delicatessen order is complete.
Alternatively, the Personal Purchasing Device can enable a customer to select and purchase media. For example, the Personal Shopping Device can provide the customer with a list of songs to purchase. The songs can be selected by the customer and transferred to the customer's security key, transmitted to the customer's e-mail, burned on portable storage media within the store,
Alternatively, the Personal Shopping Device can enable a customer to reload a prescription in the pharmacy section of the store. Upon selecting this option, the customer may need to enter the recipe number and order details. The order is transmitted from the Personal Purchasing Device through storage server 110 or application server 106, 108 to a computing device physically located in the pharmacy section of the commercial establishment. The customer's order can appear on a monitor for an employee in the pharmacy section. The employee can then fulfill the customer's order. Once the employee has completed the order, the employee can transmit a message to the customer's personal computing device indicating that the order is ready to be taken. If the customer has left the store, the customer can be notified by email, phone, etc. that the pharmacy order is complete.
Targeted Media Application
The Personal Purchasing Device can additionally provide media information directed to a consumer. For example, if the store is a mechanical equipment store, and the consumer is purchasing a particular tool, the system can provide information to the consumer, that is, how-to video, providing instruction on how to use the tool. This information can be viewed using the Personal Purchasing Device, can be transferred to consumer security key 140 or can be transmitted via consumer email 140, or can be transmitted to the email account for viewing at home.
Safety
It can be seen that security features can be implemented in the Personal Shopping Device and / or in the shopping cart to ensure that all items placed in the shopping cart for purchase are properly read on the reading device with the scanning device. For example, the Personal Shopping Device and / or the shopping cart may incorporate a camera through which, when the camera, analyzing images taken by it, determines that the field of view at the top of the shopping cart has separated, the Personal Purchasing Device determines whether an item has been scanned with the scanning device within a pre-set period of time. If there is no item read with the scanning device, but the field of view breaks, then an alert can be generated on the Personal Purchasing Device asking the customer to scan the item properly for purchase. If the item is not read again with the scanning device within a predetermined time, an alert can be generated and forwarded to the storage server 110 or application server 106, 108 so that a server user can examine the customer's shopping cart and check the output to ensure that all items are properly scanned.
Alternatively, the Personal Shopping Device and / or shopping cart can incorporate a three-dimensional digitizer that reads with the cart's digitizing device, and the items included in it. Reading with the scanning device can be processed to determine whether all items in the cart have been properly read on the reading device with the scanning device. If items are not properly read on the reading device, alerts can be generated to the customer and the user as previously noted.
Report
In addition to the reporting capabilities discussed, it can be seen that, based on the type of data stored in the system and the structures of the data tables discussed here, current and real-time data mining can be performed. Additionally, a company's return on investment can be accurately determined.
For example, consider that customers can be divided into four categories, that is, little shopping / little shopping, little shopping / lots of shopping, lots of shopping / little shopping and lots of shopping / lots of shopping. These categories can be based on predetermined limits based on the number of times a customer goes shopping and how much money he spends during each shopping trip. As customer purchasing information discussed above is obtained from the Personal Purchasing Device and stored in the system, reports can be generated to determine whether customers are moving from one category to another over time, the company can make a return of investment. As historical data is maintained in addition to current data, the precise return on investment values can be calculated.
The return on investment can be determined based on an individual store, a predefined group of stores, a demographic group, etc. The return on investment value can be customized for each company, as each company can establish its own limits for each category.
Conclusion
Modifications and adaptations of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from consideration of the specification and practice of the invention disclosed herein. The description presented of an implementation of the invention has been presented for purposes of illustration and description. It is not exhaustive and does not limit the invention to the precise form revealed. Modifications and variations are possible in light of the precepts presented or can be acquired through the practice of the invention. For example, the implementation described includes software, but systems and methods consistent with the present invention can be implemented as a combination of hardware and software, or hardware only.
In addition, although aspects of the present invention are described to be stored in memory, those skilled in the art realize that these aspects can also be stored on other types of computer-readable media, such as secondary storage devices, for example. , hard drives, floppy disks or CD-ROM; the Internet or other means of propagation;
or other forms of RAM or ROM.
Attached to this disclosure as Appendix A are (1) twenty-six (26) sheets of exemplary displays that can be presented to the consumer consistent with the principles of the present invention; (2) Systems and methods for enabling information management incorporating a personal computing device; user interface / application design; (3) Systems and methods for enabling information management incorporating a personal computing device; hardware application design; (4) Systems and methods for enabling information management incorporating a personal computing device: hardware design; (5) Two (2) information sheets including resources consistent with some embodiments of the present invention; all of these 5 documents are hereby incorporated in full by reference.
Contents6
15 sheets
Sheet 1 Sheet 2 Sheet 3 Sheet 4 Sheet 5 Sheet 6 Sheet 7 Sheet 8 Sheet 9 Sheet 10 Sheet 11 Sheet 12 Sheet 13 Sheet 14 Sheet 15
82 members in 10 offices
Members82
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| WO2006117641A9 | World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) | A9 | |
| EP1875375A1 | European Patent Office (EPO) | A1 | |
| EP1875392A1 | European Patent Office (EPO) | A1 | |
| EP1875423A1 | European Patent Office (EPO) | A1 | |
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| EP1908000A2 | European Patent Office (EPO) | A2 | |
| CN101223516A | China | A | |
| CN101238460A | China | A | |
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| BRPI0610102A2This record | Brazil | A2 | |
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| EP1875392A4 | European Patent Office (EPO) | A4 | |
| US7873543B2 | United States of America | B2 | |
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| EP1875375A4 | European Patent Office (EPO) | A4 | |
| EP1875423A4 | European Patent Office (EPO) | A4 | |
| EP1875424A4 | European Patent Office (EPO) | A4 | |
| EP1875434A4 | European Patent Office (EPO) | A4 | |
| AU2006242968B2 | Australia | B2 | |
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2 legal events, as the office reported them to INPADOC
Over the term
Point at a mark for the eventEvents
| Event | Code | |
|---|---|---|
| Patent lapsed as no evidence of payment of the annual fee has been furnished to inpi [chapter 8.11 patent gazette]LapsedREFERENTE AO DESPACHO 8.6 PUBLICADO NA RPI 2209 DE 07/05/2013.B08K | B08K | |
| Application dismissed because of non-payment of annual fees [chapter 8.6 patent gazette]REFERENTE 7A. ANUIDADE.B08F | B08F |
Numbers
- Publication
- PI0610102
- Application
- 6101020
Titles2
- Portuguese
- SISTEMAS E MÉTODOS PARA GERENCIAR UMA ESTRUTURA HIERÁRQUICA
- English
- SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR MANAGING A HIERARCHICAL STRUCTURE
Classification
- CPC, 14
- G06Q30/0255
- G06Q20/203
- G06Q30/00
- G06Q30/02
- G06Q30/0204
- G06Q30/0281
- G06Q30/0601
- G06Q30/0603
- G06Q30/0621
- G06Q30/0631
- G06Q30/0633
- G06Q30/0641
- G06F16/284
- G06Q10/087
- IPC, 2
- G06F17 30
- G06Q30 00