Claims:I/We Claim:
1. A system (100) for assisting a customer in self-service shopping, the system (100) comprising:
a shopping trolley (102) assigned with a unique identification number, wherein the shopping trolley (102) comprises:
a code scanner (110) configured to scan a unique code associated with products to be purchased; and
a display unit (112) attached to a handle of the shopping trolley (102), and configured to display details and a total cost of the products to be purchased; and
a product information server (104) connected to the shopping trolley (102), wherein the product information server (104) comprises a processing unit (118) configured to:
receive the scanned unique code of the products placed in the shopping trolley (102) from the code scanner (110);
compare the scanned unique code of the products with unique codes present in a memory (120);
display the details and the total cost of the products to be purchased on the display unit (112) based on the compared result;
enable the customer to initiate a request of bill generation by pressing a submit button (116) mounted on the display unit (112);
generate a final bill of the purchased products based on the initiated request of the bill generation; and
enable the customer to make a payment of the generated final bill through a payment server (106) in an online mode.
2. The system (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the processing unit (118) is configured to enable the customer to pay the generated final bill on a cash counter in an offline mode, when the payment server (106) is not working properly.
3. The system (100) as claimed in claim 2, wherein the processing unit (118) is configured to enable a cashier to scan a unique identification number of the corresponding shopping trolley (102) for fetching the final bill from the product information server (104) to receive the payment of the final bill in the offline mode.
4. The system (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the unique code is a barcode.
5. The system (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the processing unit (118) is further configured to transmit the generated final bill on a computing device of the customer through a communication means.
6. A method of assisting a customer in self-service shopping by a system (100), wherein the method comprising steps of:
receiving a scanned unique code of products placed in a shopping trolley (102) from a code scanner (110);
comparing the scanned unique code of the products with unique codes present in a memory (120);
displaying details and a total cost of the products to be purchased on a display unit (112);
enabling the customer to initiate a request of bill generation by pressing a submit button (116);
generating a final bill of the purchased products based on the initiated request of the bill generation; and
enabling the customer to make a payment of the generated final bill through a payment server (106) in an online mode.
7. The method as claimed in claim 6, further comprising a step of enabling the customer to pay the generated final bill on a cash counter in an offline mode, when the payment server (106) is not working properly.
8. The method as claimed of claim 7, further comprising a step of enabling a cashier to scan a unique identification number of the corresponding shopping trolley (102) for fetching the final bill from the product information server (104) to receive the payment in the offline mode.
9. The method as claimed in claim 6, further comprising a step of transmitting the generated final bill on a computing device of the customer through a communication means.
10. The method as claimed in claim 6, wherein the unique code is a barcode.
Date: 02 Dec, 2021
Place: Noida
Nainsi Rastogi
Patent Agent (IN/PA-2372)
Agent for the Applicant , Description:BACKGROUND
Field of Invention
[001] Embodiments of the present invention generally relate to a shopping trolley and particularly to a system and a method for assisting customers in self-service shopping at physical locations.
Description of Related Art
[002] Now a days, shopping has become a daily activity in today’s world. Shopping for merchandise at a physical location involves locating and collecting items and then moving to a check-out station. At the check-out station, the items are weighed/scanned to produce a list of items and a total cost for payment. However, an advancement of technology has significantly raised a standard of living of customers. In recent years, there has been an increasing demand for quick and easy bill payment in supermarkets, due to long queues at the check-out stations. Various systems and methods have been disclosed for overcoming an issue of standing in long queues and wasting time.
[003] Conventionally, the system is provided with a smart shopping cart that is based on Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tag. The smart shopping cart comprises a cart body, a touch screen, a microprocessor, a vehicle unit, a RFID identification antenna and a storage battery. However, such shopping cart uses a complex system to make process rapid through a RFID technology. Moreover, such system does not provide any security assurance as well as each item needs to be tagged with the RFID.
[004] There is thus a need for an advanced and more effective system and method for assisting the customers in self-service shopping at the physical locations that can administer the drawbacks faced by the conventional system.
SUMMARY
[005] Embodiments in accordance with the present invention provide a system for assisting a customer in self-service shopping. The system comprising: a shopping trolley assigned with a unique identification number. The shopping trolley comprises: a code scanner configured to scan a unique code associated with products to be purchased. The shopping trolley further comprises: a display unit attached to a handle of the shopping trolley. The display unit is configured to display details and a total cost of the products to be purchased. The system further comprising: a product information server connected to the shopping trolley. The product information server comprises a processing unit configured to: receive the scanned unique code of the products placed in the shopping trolley from the code scanner; compare the scanned unique code of the products with unique codes stored in a memory; display the details and the total cost of the products to be purchased on the display unit based on the compared result; enable the customer to initiate a request of bill generation by pressing a submit button mounted on the display unit; generate a final bill of the purchased products based on the initiated request of the bill generation; and enable the customer to make a payment of the generated final bill through a payment server in an online mode.
[006] Embodiments in accordance with the present invention further provide a method for assisting a customer in self-service shopping by a system. The method comprising steps of: receiving a scanned unique code of products placed in a shopping trolley from a code scanner; comparing the scanned unique code of the products with unique codes stored in a memory; displaying details and a total cost of the products to be purchased on a display unit; enabling the customer to initiate a request of bill generation by pressing a submit button; generating a final bill of the purchased products based on the initiated request of the bill generation; and enabling the customer to make a payment of the generated final bill through a payment server in an online mode.
[007] Embodiments of the present invention may provide a number of advantages depending on its particular configuration. First, embodiments of the present application may provide a system that may enable a self-service shopping at physical locations.
[008] Next, embodiments of the present invention may provide a system that may work within an area inside a supermarket where people can buy goods with their physical presence and can pay a bill without reaching to a cash counter, thereby saves time.
[009] Next, embodiments of the present invention may provide a system that may enable customers to shop products in an online mode as well as in an offline mode, thereby eliminates dependency of network connectivity such as, the Internet.
[0010] These and other advantages will be apparent from the present application of the embodiments described herein.
[0011] The preceding is a simplified summary to provide an understanding of some embodiments of the present invention. This summary is neither an extensive nor exhaustive overview of the present invention and its various embodiments. The summary presents selected concepts of the embodiments of the present invention in a simplified form as an introduction to the more detailed description presented below. As will be appreciated, other embodiments of the present invention are possible utilizing, alone or in combination, one or more of the features set forth above or described in detail below.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0012] The above and still further features and advantages of embodiments of the present invention will become apparent upon consideration of the following detailed description of embodiments thereof, especially when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, and wherein:
[0013] FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of a system for assisting a customer in self-service shopping, according to an embodiment of the present invention;
[0014] FIG. 2 illustrates components of a processing unit of a product information server of the system, according to an embodiment of the present invention; and
[0015] FIG. 3 depicts a flowchart of a method for assisting the customer in the self-service shopping by the system, according to an embodiment of the present invention.
[0016] The headings used herein are for organizational purposes only and are not meant to be used to limit the scope of the description or the claims. As used throughout this application, the word "may" is used in a permissive sense (i.e., meaning having the potential to), rather than the mandatory sense (i.e., meaning must). Similarly, the words “include”, “including”, and “includes” mean including but not limited to. To facilitate understanding, like reference numerals have been used, where possible, to designate like elements common to the figures. Optional portions of the figures may be illustrated using dashed or dotted lines, unless the context of usage indicates otherwise.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0017] The following description includes the preferred best mode of one embodiment of the present invention. It will be clear from this description of the invention that the invention is not limited to these illustrated embodiments but that the invention also includes a variety of modifications and embodiments thereto. Therefore, the present description should be seen as illustrative and not limiting. While the invention is susceptible to various modifications and alternative constructions, it should be understood, that there is no intention to limit the invention to the specific form disclosed, but, on the contrary, the invention is to cover all modifications, alternative constructions, and equivalents falling within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the claims.
[0018] In any embodiment described herein, the open-ended terms "comprising", "comprises”, and the like (which are synonymous with "including", "having”, and "characterized by") may be replaced by the respective partially closed phrases "consisting essentially of", “consists essentially of", and the like or the respective closed phrases "consisting of", "consists of”, the like.
[0019] As used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an”, and “the” designate both the singular and the plural, unless expressly stated to designate the singular only.
[0020] FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of a system 100 for assisting a customer in self-service shopping, according to an embodiment of the present invention. In an embodiment of the present invention, the system 100 may be configured to assist the customer in the self-service shopping at physical locations. The physical locations may be, but not limited to, supermarkets, shopping malls, shopping complexes, and so forth. Embodiments of the present invention are intended to include or otherwise cover any type of the physical locations from where the customer may purchase products. In an embodiment of the present invention, each of the products available in the corresponding physical locations may be associated with a unique code that may comprise details of the products. The details of the products may comprise, but not limited to, a quantity of the corresponding product, a price of the corresponding product, an expiration date of the corresponding product, and so forth. Embodiments of the present invention are intended to include or otherwise cover any type of the details that may be associated with the corresponding product. The unique code may be, but not limited to, a Quick Response (QR) code, a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) code, and so forth. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the unique code may be a barcode. Embodiments of the present invention are intended to include or otherwise cover any type of the unique code.
[0021] According to embodiments of the present invention, the system 100 may comprise a shopping trolley 102, a product information server 104, and a payment server 106. The shopping trolley 102, the product information server 104, and the payment server 106 may be connected to each other through a network 108.
[0022] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the network 108 may be a data network such as, but not limited to, the Internet, a Local Area Network (LAN), a Wide Area Network (WAN), a Metropolitan Area Network (MAN), and so forth. Embodiments of the present invention are intended to include or otherwise cover any type of the data network, including known, related art, and/or later developed technologies. In another embodiment of the present invention, the network 108 may be a wireless network, such as, but not limited to, a cellular network and may employ various technologies including an Enhanced Data Rates for Global Evolution (EDGE), a General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), and so forth. Embodiments of the present invention are intended to include or otherwise cover any type of the wireless network, including known, related art, and/or later developed technologies. According to an embodiment of the present invention, the shopping trolley 102, the product information server 104, and the payment server 106 may be configured to communicate with each other by communication mediums connected to the network 108. The communication mediums may be for example, but not limited to, a coaxial cable, a copper wire, a fiber optic, a wire that comprise a system bus coupled to a processor of a computing device, and so forth. Embodiments of the present invention are intended to include or otherwise cover any type of the communication mediums, including known, related art, and/or later developed technologies.
[0023] In an embodiment of the present invention, each of the shopping trolley 102 may be assigned with a unique identification number that may be scanned by a cashier available at a cash counter, in case the payment server 106 is facing some network issues. In such embodiment of the present invention, the customer may pay a final bill at the cash counter without standing in a queue as the cashier only needs to scan the unique identification number of the corresponding shopping trolley 102 to fetch the final bill from the product information server 104.
[0024] The shopping trolley 102 may comprise components such as, but not limited to, a code scanner 110, a display unit 112, and a communication interface 114.
[0025] The code scanner 110 may be disposed on the shopping trolley 102, in an embodiment of the present invention. In another embodiment of the present invention, the code scanner 110 may be disposed inside the shopping trolley 102. In an embodiment of the present invention, the code scanner 110 may be configured to scan the unique code associated with the products to be purchased. The code scanner 110 may be configured to scan the unique code automatically upon placing the products in the shopping trolley 102, in an embodiment of the present invention. In another embodiment of the present invention, the code scanner 110 may be configured to enable the customer to hold the products in front of the code scanner 110 to scan the unique code associated with the corresponding products. In such embodiment of the present invention, the customer may scan the unique code prior to place the products in the shopping trolley 102.
[0026] The code scanner 110 may be, but not limited to, a Quick Response (QR) code scanner, a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) scanner, and so forth. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the code scanner 110 may be a barcode scanner. Embodiments of the present invention are intended to include or otherwise cover any type of the code scanner 110, including known, related art, and/or later developed technologies.
[0027] In an embodiment of the present invention, the display unit 112 may be fixedly attached to a handle of the shopping trolley 102. In another embodiment of the present invention, the display unit 112 may be removably attached to the handle of the shopping trolley 102. The display unit 112 may be configured to display a list of products along with details of the products, in an embodiment of the present invention. In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, the display unit 112 may also be configured to display a total cost of the scanned products to be purchased. The display unit 112 may be configured to display the total cost of the scanned products so that the customer can add or extract some of the products in and/or from the shopping trolley 102, if the total cost exceeds a budget of the customer. The display unit 112 may be, but not limited to, a touch screen display, a Liquid Crystal Display (LCD), an Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED), and so forth. Embodiments of the present invention are intended to include or otherwise cover any type of the display unit 112, including known, related art, and/or later developed technologies.
[0028] Further, in an embodiment of the present invention, the display unit 112 may be provided with a submit button 116 that may be pressed by the customer, upon reviewing the list of products displayed on the display unit 112. The submit button 116 may be pressed by the customer to initiate a request for the final bill, in an embodiment of the present invention. The submit button 116 may be of any type such as, but not limited to, a text button, a ghost button, and so forth. Embodiments of the present invention are intended to include or otherwise cover any type of the submit button 116, including known, related art, and/or later developed technologies.
[0029] The communication interface 114 may be configured to enable the components of the shopping trolley 102 to communicate with the product information server 104 and the payment server 106 of the system 100 over the network 108, according to embodiments of the present invention. The communication interface 114 may be, but not limited to, a modem, a network interface card such as an Ethernet card, a communication port, and/or a Personal Computer Memory Card International Association (PCMCIA) slot, an antenna, a Radio Frequency (RF) transceiver, amplifiers, a tuner, oscillators, a digital signal processor, a coder-decoder (CODEC) chipset, a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card, and a local buffer circuit. Embodiments of the present invention are intended to include or otherwise cover any type of the communication interface 114, including known, related art, and/or later developed technologies.
[0030] The product information server 104 may be a network of computers, a software framework, or a combination thereof, that may provide a generalized approach to create a server implementation. The product information server 104 may be, but not limited to, personal computers, laptops, mini-computers, mainframe computers, any non-transient and tangible machine that can execute a machine-readable code, cloud-based servers, distributed server networks, or a network of computer systems. Embodiments of the present invention are intended to include or otherwise cover any type of the product information server 104 including known, related art, and/or later developed technologies. The product information server 104 may be realized through various web-based technologies such as, but not limited to, a Java web-framework, a .NET framework, a personal home page (PHP) framework, or any web-application framework. Embodiments of the present invention are intended to include or otherwise cover any type of the web-based technologies including known, related art, and/or later developed technologies. The product information server 104 may be maintained by a third-party entity that facilitates operations of the system 100. The product information server 104 may include a processing unit 118 and a memory 120, in an embodiment of the present invention.
[0031] Further, the processing unit 118 may include suitable logic, instructions, circuitry, interfaces, and/or codes for executing various operations, such as displaying output through the display unit 112. The processing unit 118 may be configured to perform the operations associated with the system 100 by communicating commands and/or instructions over the network 108. The processing unit 118 may be, but not limited to, an Application-Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) processor, a Reduced Instruction Set Computer (RISC) processor, a Complex Instruction Set Computer (CISC) processor, Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGA), and the like. Embodiments of the present invention are intended to include or otherwise cover any type of the processing unit 118 including known, related art, and/or later developed technologies. Further, components of the processing unit 118 may be explained in conjunction with FIG. 2.
[0032] The memory 120 may be a non-transitory data storage medium that may be configured to store the logic, the instructions, the circuitry, the interfaces, and/or the codes of the processing unit 118 for executing the various operations associated to the system 100, according to an embodiment of the present invention. The memory 120 may be, but not limited to, a Random-Access Memory (RAM) device, a Read Only Memory (ROM) device, a flash memory, and so forth. Embodiments of the present invention are intended to include or otherwise cover any type of the memory 120 including known, related art, and/or later developed technologies.
[0033] In an embodiment of the present invention, the payment server 106 may facilitate a payment transaction by a transfer of information between a payment portal and a front-end processor. The payment portal may be, but not limited to, websites, a mobile phone, and so forth. Embodiments of the present invention are intended to include or otherwise cover any type of the payment portal.
[0034] FIG. 2 illustrates a block diagram of the components of the processing unit 118 of the product information server 104, according to an embodiment of the present invention. The components may be, but not limited to, a code receiving module 200, a data processing module 202, a user interface module 204, a bill generation module 206, and a payment module 208.
[0035] In an embodiment of the present invention, the code receiving module 200 may be configured to receive the scanned unique code of the products placed in the shopping trolley 102 from the code scanner 110 of the shopping trolley 102, in an embodiment of the present invention. The code receiving module 200 may be configured to transmit the scanned unique code to the data processing module 202.
[0036] The data processing module 202 may be configured to process the scanned unique code of the products to retrieve the details of the products to be purchased. The data processing module 202 may be configured to compare the scanned unique code of the products with the unique codes stored in the memory 120 of the product information server 104. In an embodiment of the present invention, the data processing module 202 may be configured to retrieve the details of the products based on the scanned unique codes and compared result. In such embodiment of the present invention, the data processing module 202 may also be configured to calculate the total cost of the products to be purchased, in an embodiment of the present invention. The data processing module 202 may be configured to transmit the retrieved details and the total cost of the products to the user interface module 204.
[0037] Further, the user interface module 204 may be configured to display the retrieved details of the products and the total cost on the display unit 112 of the shopping trolley 102. The user interface module 204 may be configured to enable the customer to initiate a request of bill generation, when the customer is satisfied with the total cost of the products to be purchased. The user interface module 204 may be configured to enable the customer to initiate the request of the bill generation by pressing the submit button 116, in an embodiment of the present invention.
[0038] In an embodiment of the present invention, if the user interface module 204 determines that the request of the bill generation is initiated by the customer within a pre-defined amount of time, then the user interface module 204 may be configured to generate a bill generation signal. The pre-defined amount of time may be, but not limited to, 30 seconds, 1 minute, and so forth. The user interface module 204 may be configured to transmit the bill generation signal to the bill generation module 206. In another embodiment of the present invention, if the user interface module 204 determines that the request of the bill generation is not initiated by the customer within the pre-defined amount of time, then the user interface module 204 may be configured to enable the customer to add or extract some of the products in and/or from the shopping trolley 102.
[0039] In an embodiment of the present invention, the bill generation module 206 may be configured to generate the final bill based on the received bill generation signal. The bill generation module 206 may be configured to transmit the generated final bill on a computing device of the customer through a communication means. The communication means may be, but not limited to, a text message, an electronic mail, and so forth. Embodiments of the present invention are intended to include or otherwise cover any type of the communication means including known, related art, and/or later developed technologies. The final bill may comprise a payment link through which the customer can pay the final bill, in an embodiment of the present invention.
[0040] The payment module 208 may be configured to enable the customer to make a payment of the final bill through the payment server 106, in an embodiment of the present invention. In an embodiment of the present invention, the payment module 208 may be configured to enable the customer to click on the payment link provided with the final bill that may further redirect to the payment server 106 for completing the payment in an online mode.
[0041] In another embodiment of the present invention, the payment module 208 may be configured to enable the customer to pay the final bill on the cash counter, when the payment server 106 is not working properly. In such embodiment of the present invention, the customer may proceed to the cash counter, where the cashier may need to scan the unique identification number associated with the corresponding shopping trolley 102. The cashier may scan the unique identification number for fetching the final bill from the bill generation module 206 to receive the payment in an offline mode.
[0042] FIG. 3 depicts a flowchart of a method 300 for assisting the customer in the self-service shopping by the system 100, according to an embodiment of the present invention.
[0043] At step 302, the system 100 may receive the scanned unique code of the products placed in the shopping trolley 102 from the code scanner 110.
[0044] At step 304, the system 100 may compare the scanned unique code of the products with the unique codes stored in a memory 120.
[0045] At step 306, the system 100 may display the details and the total cost of the products to be purchased on the display unit 112 based on the compared result.
[0046] At step 308, the system 100 may enable the customer to initiate the request of the bill generation by pressing the submit button 116 mounted on the display unit 112, when the customer is agreed with the details and the total cost of the products.
[0047] At step 310, the system 100 may generate the final bill of the purchased products based on the initiated request of the bill generation.
[0048] At step 312, the system 100 may check whether the payment server 106 is working or not. The method 300 may proceed to a step 314, when the payment server 106 is working. Otherwise, the method 300 may proceed to a step 316.
[0049] At the step 314, the system 100 may enable the customer to make the payment of the generated final bill through the payment server 106 in the online mode.
[0050] At the step 316, the system 100 may enable the customer to pay the final bill on the cash counter in the offline mode, where the cashier may scan the unique identification number of the corresponding shopping trolley 102 for fetching the final bill to receive the payment of the final bill in the offline mode.
[0051] Embodiments of the invention are described above with reference to block diagrams and schematic illustrations of methods and systems according to embodiments of the invention. While the invention has been described in connection with what is presently considered to be the most practical and various embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the disclosed embodiments, but on the contrary, is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.
[0052] This written description uses examples to disclose the invention, including the best mode, and also to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the invention, including making and using any devices or systems and performing any incorporated methods. The patentable scope the invention is defined in the claims, and may include other examples that occur to those skilled in the art. Such other examples are intended to be within the scope of the claims if they have structural elements that do not differ from the literal language of the claims, or if they include equivalent structural elements within substantial differences from the literal languages of the claims.