Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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SECURITY SYSTEMS FOR INHIBITING THEFT
OF GOODS FROM RETAIL STORES
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
THIS INVENTION relates to security systems for inhibiting theft of
goods from retail stores.
BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION
A commercially used system for inhibiting the theft of goods from retail
stores comprises tagging each article with a tag which, unless deactivated by
an
authorized employee, triggers an alarm at the store exit. The tag is tuned to
react to
signals emitted by security devices located at the exits of the retail store.
The
signals can, for example, be radio frequency signals at 58kHz. Upon being
subjected to a signal of this frequency, the tag vibrates transmitting a
signal to a
receiver of the adjacent security device whereupon an alarm is activated. To
deactivate the tag its response frequency is altered using suitable equipment.
For
example, the response frequency of the tag can be changed from 58kHz to 60kHz.
When the article with the deactivated tag attached is taken out of the retail
store, the
tag remains passive as it now requires a signal of 60kHz to activate it. The
response frequency of the tag can subsequently be changed back to 58kHz
thereby
enabling the tag to be used again. This feature is particularly necessary when
goods, such as video cassettes, are repeatedly rented out but must be
protected
whilst in the store.
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This system can be circumvented when the cashier at
the checkout is in collusion with the customer. The simplest
way of defeating the system is for the tag on the article to be
deactivated but not rung up on the till or "swiped" over the
bar code reader. Hence the article does not appear on the
customer's till slip but can still safely be taken out of the
store. The present invention seeks to counter this type of
theft.
Another problem that retail outlets have is theft of
monies paid over by customers to cashiers. One way in which a
cashier can steal is, after finalizing a transaction, not to
close the cash drawer fully. The next customer's goods are
then "swiped" over the bar code reader, not as a sale but as a
price enquiry. This results in an entry on the till slip but
nothing on the journal roll. The customer is thus satisfied
that the correct amounts have been charged, nothing has been
entered on the journal roll and the cashier can keep the cash
knowing that there is no imbalance in the records and no cash
shortage in the drawer. The present invention also seeks to
make thefts of this type more difficult to perpetrate
successfully.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to one aspect of the present invention,
there is provided a checkout system to non-invasively interface
a bar code reader to an anti-theft tag deactivator, comprising:
a bar code reader for reading indicia associated with an
article and generating a first signal indicating a successful
read of the indicia; non-invasive interface means for sensing
said first signal disposed within a preselected distance of
said bar code reader, said sensing means generating a second
signal upon sensing said first signal, said means for sensing
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said first signal and said means for generating said second
signal are electrically separate; and, an anti-theft tag
deactivator, said anti-theft tag deactivator being activated
for a predetermined period when triggered by said second
signal.
According to another aspect of the present invention,
there is provided a method to non-invasively interface a point-
of-sale reader to an anti-theft tag deactivator, comprising:
reading indicia associated with an article and generating a
first signal; non-invasively sensing said first signal and
generating a second signal wherein said first signal is
electrically separate from said second signal; and receiving
said second signal and deactivating an anti-theft tag.
BREIF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
According to one aspect of the present invention
there is provided a checkout system for a retail store, the
system including:
a bar code reader which generates a signal each time
there is a successful swipe across the reader, and which signal
is used to cause an audible "beep" to be emitted; and
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an anti-theft tag deactivator which is switched into an enabled condition for
a
predetermined period each time said signal is generated.
According to a further aspect of the present invention there is provided
a checkout system for a retail store, the system comprising;
a bar code reader inciuding means for generating a signal each time there is
a successful swipe across the reader, the reader including means for emitting
an
audible sound each time said signal is generated;
a control unit;
means for feeding an operating signal to said control unit each time the
successful swipe signal is generated; and
an anti-theft tag deactivator connected to said control unit and having an
enabled condition in which it deactivates a tag presented thereto and a
disabled
condition in which it does not deactivate a tag presented thereto, said unit
generating an enable signal which switches said deactivator to its enabled
condition
for a predetermined period of time upon an operating signal being fed to the
control
unit.
Said operating signal can be tapped-off the bar code reader's
electronic circuitry or an acoustic pick-up can be used to detect said sound
and
generate said operating signal. If an acoustic pick-up is used it can be a
microphone attached to the housing of the bar code reader.
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An advantage of using an acoustic pick-up is that it prevents the
necessity of tampering with the bar code reader's circuitry. However, the
frequency
of the acoustic signal used in commercial bar code readers varies which can
complicate tuning the acoustic pick-up to the correct frequency.
According to a further aspect of the present invention there is provided
a checkout system for a retail outlet, the system comprising a cash drawer and
means for producing a first signal indicative of the cash drawer being fully
closed, a
bar code reader which generates a second signal each time that an article is
"swiped" across it and the bar code is read successfully, and means responsive
to
said signals for establishing an alarm condition in the event that a second
signal is
received in the absence of a first signal.
According to another aspect of the present invention there is provided
a method of countering theft of an article from a retail store which article
carries a
tag that, unless deactivated, triggers an anti-theft alarm at a store exit,
the method
comprising swiping the article across a bar code reader to read a bar code
carried
by the article, using the signal generated by the bar code reader upon a
successful
swipe to enable a tag deactivator for a predetermined period of time, and
disabling
said deactivator at the end of said predetermined period of time.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
For a better understanding of the present invention, and to show how
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the same may be carried into effect, reference will now be made, by way of
example,
to the accompanying drawings in which:-
Figure 1 is a pictorial view of a checkout at a retail store;
Figure 2 is a diagrammatic representation of a checkout; and
Figure 3 is a block diagram.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Referring firstly to Figures 1 and 2, the checkout illustrated comprises
a bar code reader 10 over which articles being checked out are swiped. If the
bar
code reader 10 fails successfully to read the bar code, which can happen for a
number of reasons, the bar code reader 10 remains entirely passive and does
not
react to the fact that an article has been swiped. The article has to be
swiped until
there is a successful read. The cashier and customer know that this has
happened
because the bar code reader 10 generates a signal which is fed to a speaker or
piezo electric device 12 and is emitted as an audible beep.
Reference numeral 14 designates an anti-theft tag deactivator. The
bar code reader 10 and deactivator 14 are placed adjacent one another so that
the
cashier, in one sweeping motion along the path indicated at P (Figure 2), can
move
the article across the bar code reader 10 and then bring the tag within the
field
generated by the deactivator 14.
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A processing unit 16 (which will be described in more detail hereinafter
with reference to Figure 3) is connected by a line 18 to an acoustic pick-up
20. The
pick-up 20 is attached to the casing 22 of the bar code reader 10 adjacent the
speaker or piezo electric device 12 which emits the audible beep. The device
12
and the pick-up 20 are preferably on the rear of the casing 22 of the reader
10.
The unit 16 receives a signal each time an audible beep is "heard" by
the pick-up 20. For a period of, for example, two seconds after the signal
from the
pick-up 20 reaches the unit 16, the unit 16 generates a signal which is fed
along a
line 24 to a port on the deactivator 14. This signal switches the deactivator
14 to its
enabled condition in which it will deactivate a tag, and holds it in that
condition for
the duration of the signal. The duration of the signal is long enough to
enable the
article to be moved along the path designated P but too short to allow another
article
to be moved into range of the deactivator's field whilst bypassing the bar
code
reader 10.
In summary, each successful swipe across the bar code reader 10
enables the deactivator 14 for a brief period of time. Any effort by the
cashier to
move two articles past the deactivator 14 after having swiped only one of them
over
the bar code reader 10 is difficult and moreover can be detected on
surveillance
cameras.
Many bar code readers include a LED, usually green, which lights up
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to give a visual indication of a successful swipe. The signal to this LED can
be
tapped to provide the signal which enables the deactivator 14. Some bar code
readers have a port into which a remote speaker can be plugged so that the
"beep"
signal can be emitted at some remote point. The signal at this port can also
be used
for the purpose of enabling the deactivator 14. It will be understood from the
above
that the location at which the "successful swipe" signal is picked up is not
important.
It can be tapped-off at any suitable point in the bar code reader's circuitry,
or picked-
up acoustically. The method chosen depends on how it is most convenient to do
it
with the specific bar code reader that is being used.
The beep picked up by the pick-up 20 can be used, in conjunction with
a microswitch 26 on a cash drawer 28, to detect fraudulent activities based on
the
cashier deliberately failing to shut the drawer 28 after a transaction. The
unit 16
receives two signals. The one received from the microswitch 26 along the line
30
indicates if the drawer 28 has been closed or left open. The other signal is
received
along the line 18 and indicates that an article has been swiped over the bar
code
reader 10. This combination of a signal received along the line 30 indicating
that the
drawer 28 is open and a signal received along the line 18 indicating that an
article
has been swiped is used to establish an alarm condition. This is because
failure to
close the drawer 28 but to swipe articles, unless it happens infrequently and
is
genuinely by accident, has to be taken as an indication that possibly a
fraudulent
scheme is underway.
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Turning now to Figure 3, the unit 16 is illustrated as is the acoustic
pick-up 20, the line 24 and the deactivator 14. Between the pick-up 20 and the
unit
16 there is a two stage amplifier 32 with gain control and rectification. The
output of
the amplifier 32 is fed to the unit 16 as a control pulse.
A digital band pass control 34 is connected to the unit 16 and can be
adjusted to tune the unit 16 to the frequency of the audio signal. A further
control 36
is provided for adjusting the time for which a pulse remains on the line 24
after an
input pulse is received at the unit 16 from the amplifier 32.
In the event that the sales area is noisy, and difficulties are
encountered in picking-up the audio signal, a signal can be picked up at 38
from a
suitable location in the circuitry of the bar code reader. This signal may, on
a
successful read, go from low to high or high to low. This signal replaces the
signal
from the audio pick-up and enables the tag deactivator 14.
The unit 16, which can be a programmable controller, can have a so-
called jug plug socket 40 into which a programmed jug plug 42 can be inserted.
This overrides the unit 16 and results in a pulse on line 24 which remains on
line 24
until the jug plug 42 is removed.
A port 44 of the unit 16 has the line 30, and hence the micro switch 26
on the drawer 28, connected to it.
