Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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Method and System for Generating a Personalized Shopping List
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Field of the Invention:
The present invention relates generally to a method and system for generating
a
shopping list, and more specifically to a method and system for generating a
personalized
shopping list delivered to a customer at a retail store location.
Discussion of the Baclc r-g ound
As every grocery shopper knows, using a shopping list can make the task of
shopping
for groceries easier and results in fewer forgotten items. However, generating
a hand written
shopping list is time consuming and such lists can be difficult to maintain
over the period of
time prior to the shopping event for which the list is intended. Moreover,
products on these
hand written shopping lists are typically listed in random order which may
result in the
consumer spending extra time searching areas of the retail store during the
shopping event.
In addition, it is well known to provide purchase incentives and
advertisements to
consumers based on the particular consumer's purchasing history and/or
purchase items in
the consumer's current transaction. This form of targeted marketing has a
disadvantage in
that the marlceter providing the targeted advertisement of purchase incentive
cannot know
precisely when the consumer is in need of the product that is the object of
the advertisement
or purchase incentive, or precisely when the customer will partalce in a
shopping event.
Therefore, the targeted items may be delivered to the consumer long before the
consumer
shops for the marketed product. Thus, current targeted advertisements have the
disadvantage
in that the effectiveness of the message of the advertisement may fade in the
interim time
between the consumer receiving the advertisement and shopping for the product
associated
with the advertisement. Moreover, targeted purchase incentives may be lost or
discarded
during this interim time.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, one object of this invention is to provide a method, system and
computer program product for generating a personalized shopping list to be
delivered to the
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consumer at a retail store location.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a method and system for
organizing the consumer's personalized shopping list in a way that makes
shopping easier.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a method and system
for
delivering targeted purchase incentives and targeted advertisements to the
consumer at the
retail store location just prior to the consumer's shopping event.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a method and
system for
delivering targeted purchase incentives and targeted advertisements to the
consumer at the
retail store location based on items identified by the consumer to be items
desired to be
purchased during the shopping event.
These and other objects are achieved by providing a novel method, system, and
computer program product for generating and printing a shopping list.
According to one aspect of the invention, a system, computer program product
and
method for generating a personalized shopping list are provided. The method,
on which the
system and computer program product are based, includes electronically
receiving a customer
identifier and a product identifier, generating a shopping list including a
product associated
with the product identifier, and storing the shopping list as a personalized
shopping list
associated with the customer identifier. The method may fiuther include
delivering the
personalized shopping list to a customer at a retail store location based on
the customer
identifier. Data related to the personalized shopping list and/or product
location may be
transmitted and received via a wide area network such as the Internet and the
personalized
shopping list may be sorted according to a predetermined or a selected sorting
criteria
including product group and/or product location. Moreover, advertisements and
purchase
incentives may be generated and delivered to the customer along with the
personalized
shopping list based on the customer identifier and/or the product identifier.
According to another aspect of the invention, a kiosk, computer program
product and
method for providing a personalized shopping list are provided. The method, on
which the
kiosk and computer program product are based, includes receiving a customer
identifier,
obtaining a personalized shopping list associated with the customer
identifier, and delivering
the personalized shopping list to a customer associated with the customer
identifier at a retail
store location. The customer identifier is received by either a manual input
from a customer
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or an electronic input from a hand held device, and a product identifier may
be received along
with the customer identifier. The personalized shopping list is obtained via a
wide area
network such as the Internet or a local area network and may be sorted
according to a
predetermined or preselected sorting criteria. Moreover, advertisements and
purchase
incentives may be obtained based on the customer identifier and /or product
identifier. The
personalized shopping list advertisements, and purchase incentives may be
delivered by
electronically transmitting to a hand held device via one of a hardwired and
wireless medium,
or by printed hardcopy.
According to yet another aspect of the invention, a retail store computer,
computer
program product and method fox generating advertisements and purchase
incentives to be
delivered with a personalized shopping list are provided. The method, on which
the retail
store computer and computer program product are based, includes monitoring an
electronic
transaction of a customer obtaining a personalized shopping list, generating
advertisements
and a purchase incentives, and delivering the advertisements and a purchase
incentives to the
customer at a retail store location along with the personalized shopping list.
As a result of the
monitoring, a customer identifier and product identifier are determined and
purchase
incentives and/or advertisements are generated based on the customer
identifier and product
identifier determined. When the product identifier is used, the purchase
incentives and
advertisements are generated based on a recorded purchase history associated
with the
customer identifier. When the product consumer identifier is used, the
personalized shopping
list is searched for a trigger item; and when the trigger item is found
purchase incentives and
advertisements associated with the trigger item are delivered along with the
personalized
shopping list to the customer at the retail store location. The monitoring
step may also be
used to determine a sorting criteria and the personalized shopping list may be
sorted
according to the sorting criteria determined.
According to still another aspect of the invention, a hand held device,
computer
program product and method for obtaining a personalized shopping list are
provided. The
method, on which the hand held device and computer program product are based,
includes
electronically transmitting a customer identifier to a computer system
associated with a retail
store location and electronically receiving at the retail store location a
personalized shopping
list associated with the customer identifier. A product identifier and sorting
criteria may also
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be transmitted to the computer system in which case the personalized shopping
list includes a
product associated with the product identifier and is sorted according to the
sorting criterial
transmitted. Moreover, advertisements and purchase incentives based on the
product
identifier and/or customer identifier may be received along with the
personalized shopping
Iist, and aII transmission and reception of data is accomplished via a
hardwired and/or
wireless medium.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
A more complete appreciation of the invention and many of the attendant
advantages
thereof will be readily obtained as the same becomes better understood by
reference to the
following detailed description when considered in connection with the
accompanying
drawings, wherein:
Figure 1 is a system for generating a personalizes shopping list according to
an
embodiment of the present invention;
Figure 2 is a block diagram of a hand held device used according to an
embodiment of
the present invention;
Figure 3 is a schematic illustration of a system for delivering taxgeted
purchase
incentives and/or advertisements along with a personalized shopping list,
according to an
embodiment of the present invention;
Figure 4A is a product identifier table for associating product identifiers
with a
product according to an embodiment of the present invention;
Figure 4B is a shopping list table for associating customer identifiers
(CID's) with
current shopping list items according to an embodiment ~f the present
invention;
Figure 4C is a shopping Iist history table for associating CID's with past
shopping lists
generated by customers associated with the lists according to an embodiment of
the present
invention;
Figure 4D is a product sorting table for associating a product identifier with
a sorting
characteristic according to an embodiment of the present invention;
Figure 4E is a predetermined purchase incentive/advertisement table for
associating a
predetermined purchase incentive and/or advertisement with a CID according to
an
embodiment of the present invention;
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Figure 4F is a trigger item table for associating trigger items with purchase
incentives
and/or advertisements according to an embodiment of the present invention;
Figure 5 is a flow chart describing a process for generating a personalized
shopping
list using a customer computer according to an embodiment of the present
invention;
Figure 6 is a flow chart describing a process for generating a personalized
shopping
list using a hand held device according to an embodiment of the present
invention;
Figure 7 is a flow chart describing a process for generating a sorted
personalized
shopping list according to an embodiment of the present invention;
Figure 8 is a flow chart explaining how purchase incentives and/or
advertisements are
delivered along with a personalized shopping list according to an embodiment
of the present
invention;
Figures 9A and 9B are exemplary purchase incentives that may be delivered with
a
personalized shopping list according to an embodiment of the present
invention;
Figures 9C is an exemplary advertisement that may be delivered with a
personalized
shopping list according to an embodiment of the present invention; and
Figure 10 is a schematic illustration of a computer system programmed to
perform
one or more of the special purpose functions of the present invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Referring now to the drawings, wherein like reference numerals designate
identical or
corresponding parts throughout the several views, and more particularly to
Figure 1 thereof, a
system illustrative of the present invention is shown. The system includes a
wide area
network (WAN) such as the Internet 101; customer computer 103; customer
computer 105
equipped with product scanner 107; a shopping list server 109; a store
database 111; a
shopping list database 113; an advertiser's server 115; one or more retail
stores 119 each
having one or more kiosks 121 with a data transfer unit 123, a customer
interface 125, and a
printer 127; and a hand held device 201 which may be coupled to the kiosk 121
via a
communication link 129.
Each customer or consumer is provided with a customer identification (CID)
that
identifies the particular consumer. The CID can be any identifier that is
scanned, read, or
otherwise entered into a computer system for generating a personalized
shopping list.
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Preferably, the CID is represented as a bar code so that it can be quickly
scanned, although
any other type of machine-readable (or non-machine readable) implementations
for storing or
displaying identif cations may be used, including magnetic strip and computer
or memory
chips on a card (e.g., smart cards). Examples of possible CIDs are credit card
numbers, debit
card numbers, social security card numbers, driver's license numbers, checking
account
numbers, street addresses, names, e-mail addresses, telephone numbers,
frequent customer
card numbers, shopper card identifications (SCIDs), or shopper loyalty card
numbers issued
by one of the retail stores 119, although any suitable form of identification
may be used.
The customer computers 103 and 105, the shopping list server I09, the
advertiser's
server 115, and the kiosk 121 may each be implemented as a general purpose
computer (e.g.,
the computex 1001 of Figure 10) and may be appropriately programmed to
communicate with
one another over a wide area network (WAN) such as the Internet 101. The
Internet 101
includes various networks and gateways for linking together various computer
networks and
computers such as the customer computers 103, 105, sexvers 109, 115, and kiosk
121.
The customer computers 103 and 105 may be any computer that one or more
consumers can access, such as home or office computers. The customer computers
103 and
105 may also be implemented as interactive television sets or other structure
suitable for
accessing remote computers via the Internet 101. Interactive television
systems are described
in U.S. Patent Nos. 4,847,700, 5,721,583, and 5,552,735. U.S. Patent Nos.
4,847,700,
5,721,583, and 5,552,735 and all references cited therein are incorporated
herein by
reference. The customer computers 103 and 105 may be progxammed with any
suitable Web
browser software that permits the customer computers I03 and 105 to retrieve
Web pages via
the Internet 101 from remote computers or servexs such as the shopping list
server 109 and/or
the advertiser's server 115. The Web browser software may also be used to
transmit
information provided by a consumer to a remote computer such as the shopping
list server
109.
The product scanner 107 coupled to customer computer 105 is any one of a
variety of
bar code scanning devices for scanning and decoding bar codes such as the UPC
and EAN
codes on product packaging. A basic product scanner 107 consists of a decoder
and a
scanner; and a cable may also be required to interface the decodex to a
computer or terminal.
The basic operation of the product scanner 107 is to scan a bar code symbol
and provide an
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electrical output that corresponds to the bars and spaces of the bar code. A
decoder takes the
digitized bar space patterns, decodes them to the correct data, and transmits
the data to the
computer over wires or wireless, immediately or on a batch process. The
product scanner
107 may be implemented as a fixed reader or portable reader. The fixed bar
code reader
remains attached to the computer and transmits one data item at a time as the
data is scanned.
Fixed bar code readers include wands chaxge coupled device (CCD) scanners, and
laser
scanners. Alternatively, the product scanner 107 may be a portable bar code
reader for
storing information remotely and subsequently downloading the stored
information in the
customer computer. The portable bar code reader is a battery operated device
that includes a
memory for storing bar code information remotely from the customer computer.
This data
can then be transferred to the customer computer 103 and/or 105 when needed
and imported
into a database, spreadsheet, or other desktop application. The portable
device typically
includes an LCD display for displaying user instructions. Exemplary bar code
readers are
described in U.S. Patents 5,988,507; 6,021,946; and 6,032,862, each of which
is incorporated
herein by reference.
The shopping list server 109 is a Web server programmed to receive, store,
and/or
transmit various types of information, including, product identifiers,
products, information for
identifying consumers, and past and current shopping lists, although the
shopping list server
109 may also be implemented using any type of computer. The advertiser's
server 115 may
be a Web server programmed to send and receive information relating to
promotions to and
from a remote computer such as the shopping list server 109 and/or kiosk 121.
As used
herein, the term "promotion" refers to any offer, advertisement, incentive,
coupon,
commercial, or communication for promoting one or more goods and/or services.
Therefore,
the term "promotion" includes targeted purchase incentives and advertisements.
The
advertisers server 115 may communicate with the shopping list server 109
and/or kiosk 121
directly or by way of the Internet 101. The shopping Iist server 109 and the
advertiser's
server 115, may be appropriately programmed with server software for
delivering Web pages
to remote clients or computers such as the customer computers 103 and 105.
Each of the store database 111 and the shopping list database 113 may be
implemented using any desired structure including any type of computer
connected to any
type of storage device including magnetic disks such as one or more hard disk
drives, optical
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disks, magneto-optical disks, memory chips, or other desired storage devices.
The shopping
list database 113 is a file that includes records containing information for
identifying
consumer products, associating CIDs with a current or past shopping list, and
delivering
targeted purchase incentives and advertisement. Records in the shopping list
database 113
contain fields together with a set of operations for searching, sorting,
recombining, and other
database functions. The shopping database 113 may be implemented as two or
more
databases, if desired.
The store database 111 is a file that includes records containing information
for
generating a sorted personalized shopping list at the kiosk 121 and may also
include records
for delivering targeted purchase incentives and advertisements to the consumer
at the kiosk
121. The store database 111 also includes operations for searching, sorting,
recombining, and
other database functions, and may be implemented as two or more databases, if
desired.
The retail store 119 may be any retail location in which retail transactions
are made by
consumers. The store 119 includes one or more kiosks 121. Kiosk 121 is any
small structure
and/or electronic unit for transacting with a customer. Each kiosk includes a
corresponding
data transfer unit 123, a customer interface 125 and a printer 127. The kiosk
121 is coupled
to the Internet 101 as well as the store database 111. It is to be understood
that the retail store
119 is a retail More location including, for example a bmlding or similar area
for making
purchase transactions as well as any parking area, walking area, resting area,
or any other area
associated with the area for making purchase transactions. Moreover, kiosk 121
may be
located anywhere in this broad area for making purchases of retail items.
According to an
embodiment of the present invention, a customer inputs a CID through the
customer interface
125 and receives a printed shopping list from printer 127. Alternatively, the
customer may
input a CID and download the shopping list to hand held device 201 by way of
the data
transfer unit 123 as will be described below.
The data transfer unit 123 is used to exchange data relating to a personalized
shopping
list with hand held device 201 via two-way communication link 129 which is
implemented as
a hard wire or wireless medium. Shopping list items and/or taxgeted purchase
incentives
and/or advertisements are uploaded or downloaded by the data transfer unit 123
in response
to receiving commands from the shopping list servex 109, kiosk 121 and/or hand
held device
201, for example. Data transfer unit 123 may be implemented as a data port for
transmitting
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and receiving data via a hard wired medium, or as a wireless transceiver such
as an infrared
transmitter and detector or a device for implementing Bluetooth radio link
technology.
Bluetooth is a technology specification for small form factor, low cost, short
range xadio links
between mobile PCs, mobile phones, and other portable devices. Alternatively,
the data
transfer unit 123 may be implemented as any combination of suitable devices
fox providing
two-way data communication coupling 129 so as to provide compatibility with a
variety of
hand held devices. According to one embodiment, data transfer unit 123 sends
and receives
electrical, electromagnetic or optical signals that carry digital data streams
representing
various types of information related to a personal shopping list and targeted
marketing.
The customer interface 125 of kiosk 121 provides customer with a means for
mamually inputting information into kiosk 121 and may include a display for
prompting the
user to input information or select an option. For example, the customer
interface 125 may
include a keypad that allows a customer to input his or her CID and to select
options from a
menu displayed on a screen. Printer 127 is any one of a variety of
conventionally known
printing devices and may be integral to the kiosk 121 or a portable printing
device coupled to
the kiosk 121.
Moreover, it is to be understood that the kiosk 121 is an active device which
includes
a memory and a processor fox storing and processing data related to generating
a personalized
shopping list and/or delivering purchase incentives and advertisements to a
customer.
Alternatively, however, kiosk 121 may be an interface device which transfers
information to
a computer system that is associated with the retail store, via a local area
network (LAN), for
example, and includes a memory and a processor for storing and processing data
related to
generating a personalized shopping list and delivering purchase incentives
and/or
advertisements to a customer.
It is to be understood that the system in Figure 1 is for exemplary purposes
only, as
many variations of the specific hardware and software used to implement the
present
invention will be readily apparent to one having ordinary skill in the art.
For example, the
functionality of the shopping list server 109 and the kiosk 121 may be
combined in a single
device. To implement these variations as well as other variations, a single
computer (e.g., the
computer system 1001 of Figure 10) may be programmed to perform the special
purpose
functions of two or more of the devices shown in Figure 1. On the other hand,
two or more
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programmed computers may be substituted for any one of the devices shown in
Figure 1.
Principles and advantages of distributed processing, such as redundancy and
replication, may
also be implemented as desired to increase the robustness and performance of
the system, for
example.
Figure 2 is a block diagram of an exemplary hand. held device to be used
according to
an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 is intended to represent any
one of a
variety of small screen computers such as the hand held computer sold under
the trademark
PalmPilot by Palm, Inc., or a hand held computer described in any one of U.S.
Patent
Numbers, 4,545,023, 5,133,076, and 5, 900,875, for example. U.S. Patent
Numbers,
4,545,023, 5,133,076, and 5, 900,875 axe incorporated herein by reference.
Additionally, the
hand held device 201 may be a personal data assistant (PDA), cellular phone,
or any other
portable hand held device capable of uploading, downloading, storing, and
manipulating
digital information.
Preferably, hand held device 201 includes a bus 203 or other communication
mechanism for communicating information, and a processor 205 coupled with bus
203 for
processing the information. Hand held device 201 also includes a memory unit
207, such as a
random access memory (RAM) or other dynamic storage device (e.g., dynamic RAM
(DRAM), static RAM (SRAM), synchronous DRAM (SDRAM), flash RAM), coupled to
bus
203 for storing information and instructions to be executed by processor 205.
In addition,
memory unit 207 may be used for storing temporary variables or other
intermediate
information during execution of instructions to be executed by processor 205.
Memory unit
207 may further include a read only memory (ROM) or other static storage
device (e.g.,
programmable ROM (PROM), erasable PROM (EPROM), and electrically erasable PROM
(EEPROM)) for storing static information and instructions for processor 205.
The ROM may
be depicted as a separate memory unit. A storage device 21 l,~such as a
magnetic disk, may
be provided coupled to bus 203 for storing information and instructions.
Hand held device 201 also includes a display unit 213, such as a liquid
crystal display
(LCD), coupled to bus 203 for displaying information to a user of hand held
device 201. The
hand held device 201 includes an input device 215, such as an alpha-numeric
keypad and/or
cursor control, for communicating information and command selections to
processor 205.
The hand held device 201 also includes an interface 217 coupled to bus 203.
Interface
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217 provides a two-way data communication coupling 129 to data transfer unit
123 of the
kiosk 121 or a computer system such as the computer system 1001 illustrated in
Figure 10.
Interface 217 may be a data port for transmitting and receiving data via a
wire medium.
Alternatively, interface 217 is a wireless transceiver such as an infrared
transmitter and
detector, a device for implementing Bluetooth short range radio link
technology, or any
combination of devices for providing two-way data communication coupling 129
so as to
provide, compatibility with a variety of kiosks. Interface 2'17 is for sending
and receiving
electrical, electromagnetic or optical signals that carry digital data streams
representing
various types of information.
Figure 3 shows a computerized system for delivering targeted purchase
incentives
and/or advertisements to the customer in the retail store along with the
personalized shopping
list according to an embodiment of the invention. The system of Figure 3
includes a host
computer 301, a global purchase database 303, a retail store computer 307, and
a local
purchase database 309 used with the shopping list server 109, the store
database I I 1, the
hand held device 201, and the one or more kiosks 121, in each retail store 119
shown in
Figure 1.
The host computer 301 is any suitable workstation, server, or other device for
communicating with the xetail store computer 307 and for storing information
in and
retrieving information from the global purchase database 303. The host
computer 301 also
determines purchase incentives and advertisements to be sent to customers in
the retail store
1 I9 according to one embodiment. The host computer 301 preferably
communicates with
shopping list server 109 and advertiser's server 115 via Internet 101 or
directly to provide
targeted purchase incentives and/or advertisements according to the present
invention. It
should be understood that the functions of the shopping list server 109 and
host computer 301
may be performed by a single general purpose computer such as computer system
1001 of
Figure 10, for example. Moreover, the host computer 301 communicates with the
retail store
computer 307 using any suitable protocol and may be implemented using the
computer
system 1001 of Figure 10, for example.
The global puxchase database 303 is a file that includes records containing
information for providing targeted purchase incentives and advertisements
along with the
personalized shopping list according to the present invention. This
information includes
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information of each purchase made by a customer in the retail store 119 and
any other retail
store associate with the shopping list server 109 and/or host computer 301.
Such information
may include, but is not limited to the shelf keeping unit (SKU), brand, size,
weight, price,
date and time of purchase, and customer identifier (CID) of the customer
making the
purchase, for example. Portions of this information are obtained fiom bar
codes on purchase
items, which are scanned by a scanning terminal at a checkout counter of
retail store 119
during a customer transaction. Records in the global purchase database 303
contain fields
together with a set of operations for searching, sorting, recombining, and
other database
functions. The global purchase database 303 may be implemented as two or more
databases,
if desired. One or more of U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,832,457; 5,649,114; 5,430,644; and
5,592,560
describe techniques for collecting customer purchase history information and
for storing such
information in databases such as the global purchase database 303 and the
local purchase
database 309, for example. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,832,457; 5,649,144; 5,430,644; and
5,592,560
are incorporated herein by reference. Additionally, techniques for collecting
customer
purchase information and for storing such information in databases, such as
the global
purchase database 303 and the store database 313, are described in other
patents owned by
Catalina Marketing and/or Catalina Marketing International. Each patent owned
by Catalina
Marketing and/or Catalina Marketing International is incorporated herein by
reference.
The retail store computer 307 may be implemented using the computer system
1001
of Figure 10, for example, or any other suitable PC, work station, server, or
device for
communicating with the host computer 301, for storing and retrieving
information in the local
purchase database 309 and/or the store database 11 l, and for monitoring data
transmitted
between the shopping list server 109 and kiosk 121. According to one
embodiment, the retail
store computer 307 determines and delivers purchase incentives and/or
advertisements along
with the personalized shopping list to kiosk 121.
The local purchase database 309 is a file that includes records containing
information
for providing purchase incentives and advertisements according to the present
invention. The
records in the local purchase database 309 contain fields for associating bar
codes with
products in the retail store 305 (e.g., by using UPC, JAN, and/or EAN codes)
and associating
customer identifiers with purchase incentives. The local purchase database 309
also includes
operations for searching, sorting, recombining, and other database functions.
The local
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purchase database 309 may be implemented as two or more databases, if desired.
Periodically, (e.g., daily) sales transaction information stored in the local
purchase database
309 is retrieved by the retail store computer 307 and sent to the host
computer 301, which
uses the information to update the purchase history information stored in the
global purchase
database 303.
As discussed, the retail store 119 includes one or more kiosks 121. Each kiosk
121
preferably includes a corresponding printer 127, a customer interface 125, and
a data transfer
unit 123. The data transfer unit I23 is coupled to the retail store computer
307 and provides a
two-way data communication coupling 129 with hand held device 20I .
Information relating
to a personalized shopping list is exchanged between shopping list server 109
and the kiosk
I2I by way of the retail store computer 307 so that the retail store computer
can monitor such
information. If there are multiple kiosks within the retail store 119, then
each kiosk 121 is
preferably arranged on a loop with the host computer 301 and/or shopping list
server 109.
The retail store computer 307 is located in front of the host computer 301
and/or shopping list
server on the loop so that information transmitted from the kiosks to the
shopping list server
109 is monitored by the retail store computer 307. In an embodiment wherein
targeted
purchase incentives and/or advertisements are delivered along with the
personalized shopping
list, store database 111 may be connected to the kiosk 121 by way of the
retail store computer
307. Alternatively, the store database 111 may be directly connected to kiosk
I21 as shown
in Figure 1.
As with the system of Figure 1, it is to be understood that the system in
Figure 3 is for
exemplary purposes only, as many variations of the specific hardware and
software used to
implement the present invention will be readily apparent to one having
ordinary skill in the
art. For example, the functionality of the retail store computer 107 and the
kiosk 121 may be
combined in a single device. To implement these variations as well as other
variations, a
single computer (e.g., the computer system 1001 of Figure 10) may be
programmed to
perform the special purpose functions of two or more of the devices shown in
Figure 3. On
the other hand, two or more programmed computers may be substituted for any
one of the
devices shown in Figure 3. Principles and advantages of distributed
processing, such as
redundancy and replication, may also be implemented as desired to increase the
robustness
and performance of the system, for example.
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The present invention stores information relating to consumer identifications,
product
identifiers, consumer products, advertisements, and purchase incentives, for
example. This
information is stored in one or more memories such as a hard disk, optical
disk, magneto-
optical disk, and/or RAM, for example. One or more databases, such as the
shopping list
database 113 and store database 111 may store the information used to
implement the present
invention. The databases are organized using data structures (e.g., records,
tables, arrays,
fields, graphs, trees, and/or lists) contained in one or more memories, such
as the memories
listed above or any of the storage devices listed below in the discussion of
Figure 10, for
example.
Figures 4A-4F, depict data structures used for implementing a system for
generating a
personalized shopping list and delivering target purchase incentives and/or
advertisements
along with the shopping list according to an embodiment of the present
invention. The data
structures are depicted in a relational format, using tables, whereby
information stored in one
column (i.e., field) of a table is mapped or linked to information stored in
the same row (i.e.,
record) across the other columns) of the table. These data structures are used
by the shopping
list server 109, the advertiser's server 115, the hand held device 201, the
host computer 301,
the retail store computer 307, and/or retail store kiosk 121 to generate a
personalized
shopping list according to the present invention and to deliver purchase
incentives and
advertisements with the shopping list.
Figure 4A is a product identifier table 401 that includes a field 403 for
storing product
identifiers and a field 405 for storing product names associated with the
product identifier in
the field 403. Each retail product has a unique product identifier such as a
product package
bar code. To illustrate the use of product identifier table 401, Figure 4A
includes three
exemplary entries. The first entry of Figure 4A shows that field 403 may
contain the number
"12345" as a product identifier, and in the same record, field 405 may contain
the entry "XYZ
frozen carrots" as a corresponding retail product. The retail store table 401
also includes the
product identifiers "8765" and "x23y86" and the corresponding entries (i.e.
the entry in the
same record) "boneless pork chops" and "brand A cheddar cheese" respectively
in field 405.
Table 401 may also include a product description or any other information
associated with
the product identifier in field 403. Thus, the retail store table 401
associates each product
identifier with a particular product and any other information specific to the
product. The
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product identifier table 401 is preferably stored in the shopping list
database 113 but may be
stored in the store database 111 and the local purchase database.
Figure 4B is a shopping list table 407 that includes a field 409 for storing
CIDs and a
field 411 for storing current shopping list items associated with the CID.
Shopping list table
407 stores CIDs of many different customers and shopping lists associated with
each CID.
The shopping list items in table 407 may be in the form of products or product
identifiers.
Thus, as seen in the exemplary entries of Figure 4B, the first entry in table
407 associates
brand A cheddar cheese and XYZ frozen carrots as well as other products that
make up the
consumer's shopping list with the customer identifier 071870. The second entry
of table 407
associates a shopping list including ABC cola, boneless pork chops and product
identifier
12345 which, as seen in Figure 4A, corresponds to "XYZ frozen carrots" with a
different
customer having CID 090269. Shopping list items table 407 may be stored in the
shopping
list database 113 the local purchase database 309 and/or the store database
111.
Once the customer generates and prints a shopping list, the list may then be
archived
in a shopping list history table 408 which includes a field 410 for CIDs, and
a field 412 for
past shopping lists associated with the CIDs as seen in Figure 4C. The past
shopping list may
be stored as a date when the list was printed or generated. Thus, the shopping
list history
table 408 associates a CID with one or more shopping lists of a consumer
associated with the
CID. When the customer associated with the past shopping List requests the
List, the shopping
list server 109 associates the date with a group of products in the list. The
shopping list
history table 468 is preferably stored in the shopping list database 113.
Figure 4D is a product sorting table 4I3 including a field 415 for storing
product
identifiers, a field 417 for storing product categories, and an field 419 for
storing product
locations within retail store 119. As discussed above, the product identifier
in field 415 may
be bar codes or other information that identifies a product. When the shopping
list server 109
sends product identifiers of shopping list items to the kiosk 121, the kiosk
121 delivers a
sorted personalized shopping list to the customer for convenience. For
example, Figure 4D
shows product identifier 12345, which as seen in Figure 4A corresponds to
frozen carrots, as
being a frozen food located in aisle 12. Similarly, product identifiers 8765
and FF2081
correspond to a meat at the meat counter and a frozen food in aisle 13
respectively. Thus, if a
consumer's shopping list includes items 12345, 8765, and FF2081 and the
consumer request
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that the list be sorted by product category, the shopping list delivered to
the consumer would
group the products corresponding to 12345 and FF2081 together because these
products are
in the same category of frozen foods. In a preferred embodiment, the sorting
criteria stored in
fields 417 and 419 are product categories and product locations respectively,
however, it is to
be understood that the product items may be grouped in any way that provides
convenience
for the customer. For example, the products may be listed in terms of price or
prioritized
based on criteria predetermined by the customer. The product sorting table is
preferably
stored in the store database 111, or similar storage space associated with
retail store 119.
Figure 4E is a predetermined purchase incentive/advertisement table 421 that
includes
a field 423 for storing CIDs and a field 425 for storing predetermined
purchase incentives
and/or advertisements associated with the CID. The predetermined purchase
incentive
advertisement table 421 stores CIDs of many different customers and purchase
incentives
and/or advertisements associated with each CID. Thus, as seen in the exemplary
entries of
Figure 4E, the first entry in table 421 associates predetermined purchase
incentives with the
CID 071870 referred to in Figure 4A, while the second entry of table 421
associates a
predetermined advertisement with a different customer having CID MMM765. The
predetermined purchase incentives and advertisements in. field 425 may be
determined based
on purchase history of the customer obtained by analysis of, for example,
purchase data such
as the location of the purchase, a description of the items purchased, the
price of each item
purchased, date and time of the transaction, and any other desired information
of customers'
transactions.
Figure 4F is a trigger item table 427 including a field 429 for storing
trigger items and
a field 431 for storing purchase incentives and or advertisements. The trigger
items in field
429 may be bar codes or other product identifiers. When product identifiers
are sent from the
shopping list server 109 to the kiosk 121 as part of a consumer shopping list,
the product
identifiers of the shopping list are monitored by the retail store computer
307. If a monitored
product identifier matches a product identifier of a trigger item in field
429, then the
corresponding purchase incentives) and/or advertisements in the field 431 are
delivered to
the consumer at the kiosk I21 along with a personalized shopping list. Thus,
the trigger item
table 427 associates trigger items with purchase incentives and advertisements
to be delivered
to a customer whose shopping list includes one or more of the trigger items in
the field 429.
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In a preferred embodiment, the purchase incentives and advertisements stored
in field
431 are for products that are complements of, in competition with, or in some
way related to
the purchase trigger items stored in field 429. The first entry of Figure 4F
illustrates an
example of a purchase incentive for a product in competition with a trigger
product. In this
example, "brand A cola" in field 429 is a shopping list item that provides a
trigger for a
purchase incentive of "50 cents off brand B cola" in f eld 43 l, brand B cola
being in
competition with brand A cola. Similarly, trigger item "brand T tea" in field
429 triggers an
advertisement for "brand X sweetener" in field 431, sweetener being ordinarily
used with tea
and therefore a complement item of tea. Thus, if a customer's shopping list
includes both
brand A cola and brand T tea, product identifiers to these items will be
delivered to the kiosk
121 and a purchase incentive for 50 cents off brand B cola and an
advertisement for brand X
sweetener will be delivered to the kiosk 121 along with the shopping List. How
the purchase
incentives and advertisements in fields 425 and 431 are provided in response
to CIDs and a
trigger items in field 423 and 429 respectively will be further described
below.
The data structures embodied by the present invention include the data
structures
shown in Figures 4A through 4F, as described above. Alternatively, any other
desired
manner of implementing the data structures embodied by the present invention
may be
equivalently implemented so that the desired functionality and corresponding
practical
application are achieved.
According to one embodiment of the present invention, a consumer generates a
personalized shopping list using a desktop computer, and receives a printed
copy of the
shopping list at the kiosk 121 in retail store 119, for example. Figure 5 is a
flowchart
explaining the process for generating a printed personalized shopping list
according to one
embodiment of the present invention. In step 501, the consumer inputs a CID
and shopping
list items into customer computer 103 or 105, typically located within the
consumer's home.
The CID may be input manually, by scanning a card or other medium having the
customer's
CID printed thereon in bar code format, or by swiping a magnetic
identification card in a
magnetic card reader connected to the customer computer. Similarly, the
product identifiers
of shopping list items may be manually input to the customer computer or input
by use of
product scanner 107. Preferably a consumer generating a personalized shopping
list uses
product scanner I07 connected to customer computer 105 to first scan the bar
code of the
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consumer's CID card and then to scan the package bar codes such as UPC bar
codes of
shopping list products.
In step 503, the shopping list server 109 is accessed from the desktop
computer l OS
for example. This is done by using the web browser on the customer computer l
OS to locate
the URL of the shopping list server 109. Once the shopping list server 109 has
been
accessed, in step SOS the CID and product identifiers associated with the
shopping list items
are electronically transmitted to the shopping list server 109 via the
Internet 1 Ol . The
electronic transmission may be made as products are input into the desktop
computer 103, or
in bulk after several products have been stored in the desktop computer I 03.
Moreover, the
consumer may access the shopping list server 109 first and then input the
consumer's CID
and shopping list items directly to the shopping list server 109 without
saving these items to
customer computer lOS
As the CID and product identifiers are transmitted to the shopping list server
109, the '
shopping list server 109 creates a personalized shopping Iist associated with
the CID and
stores the list in the shopping list database 113. The shopping list server
109 may store the
shopping list as a list of product identifiers such as UPC bar codes
associated with a CID or,
preferably, as a list of products understandable to the consumer. In the
latter situation, the
shopping list database 113 contains product identifier table 401 for
associating the product
identifier scanned by the consumer with corresponding products. Thus, as
product identifiers
and CIDs axe transmitted to the shopping list server 109 the shopping list
table 407, of Figure
4B is populated and stored in shopping list database 113 or any other suitable
storage space.
The customer may modify the shopping list before using the list at a retail
store. As
shown by the decision bloclc 507, if the customer wishes to add to the
shopping list, steps SO1
through SOS are repeated as more products are scanned. electronically
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consumer to retrieve one of his or her past shopping lists which can then be
modified to
create a cus~rent shopping list.
Once the customer has input all products for a particular shopping event into
the
shopping list server 109, the customer inputs his or her CID at the kiosk 121
located in a
particular retail store 119 as seen in step 509. The CID may be entered by
swiping a
magnetic card, by scanning an ID card, or by manually inputting the CID on a
numeric key
pad on customer interface 125 of the kiosk 121 for example. In this step, the
customer may
also enter into the kiosk 121, a desired sorting criteria for the shopping
list desired as will be
described below. Alternatively, a sorting criteria may be associated with the
CID and
transmitted with the CID and product identifiers in step 505 described above.
The kiosk 121
then accesses the shopping list server 109 via the Internet 101 in a manner
similar to that
described above, and the entered CID is transmitted over the Internet 101 to
the shopping list
server 109. The shopping list server 109 then references the shopping list
table 307 stored in
the shopping list database 113 and retrieves the product identifiers
associated with the CID
entered in step 509. The shopping Iist associated with the CID is then
electronically
transmitted to the kiosk 121 via Internet 101 as shown in step 513. The
shopping list may be
transmitted as a list of products in which case the shopping list server 109
converts any bar
codes on the list to products using product identifier table 401 stored in the
shopping list
database 113. Alternatively, this conversion is made at kiosk 121 or a
computer associated
with the kiosk after electronic transmission of the list.
Once the product identifiers have been transmitted to kiosk 121, the kiosk
determines
whether the customer associated with the CID entered in step 509 also entered
a sorting
criteria as indicated by decision 515. If a sorting criteria was entered, then
the kiosk 121
prints the shopping list according to the criteria entered as shown in step S
17 and detailed in
Figure 7. If no sorting criteria was entered, then the list is printed in a
random or
predetermined order as seen in step 519. In this way, the customer obtains a
printed
personalized shopping list at the kiosk 121 in the retail store just prior to
the customer's
shopping event.
According to another embodiment, the customer receives a printed copy of a
past
shopping list. According to this embodiment, the customer inputs his or her
CID, as well as a
sorting criteria if desired, into a retail store kiosk 121. The kiosk 121 then
accesses the
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shopping list history table 40~ stored in the shopping list database, store
database, or other
suitable database, and provides the customer with a past shopping list
associated with the
entered CID. In this way, the customer who has not had time to generate a
current shopping
list may obtain a past shopping list to help the customer recall items that
may need to be
purchased in the current shopping event.
According to yet another embodiment of the present invention, the shopping
list may
be generated and retrieved by use of hand held device 201 as shown by the flow
chart in
Figure 6. According to this embodiment, the consumer inputs his or her
customer identifier
and product identifiers into the hand held device 201 as in step 601. This may
be done
manually or by scanning product identifiers if the hand held device 201 is
equipped with a
bar code scanner. In addition, the user of the hand held device may input a
sorting criteria
into the hand held device at the time of inputting the product identifiers and
CID. Upon
entry, CID and product identifiers are stored in memory unit 207 and/or
storage device 211
via the interface 217 and bus 203 of the hand held device 201. Thus, the hand
held device
201 stores the shopping list table 407 which is populated by the user entries
to the hand held
device 201. The shopping list table 407 stored within the memory of the hand
held device
201 preferably includes a list of products (i.e., product descriptions) so
that the consumer can
easily identify the products when reviewing the shopping list on the hand held
device 201.
Therefore, hand held device 201 may access product identifier table 401
located on an
external storage space, such as shopping Iist database 113, in order to
convert product
identifiers such as bar codes input into the hand held device 201 by scanning,
into products.
Alternatively, product identifier table 401 may be stored in the memory unit
207 or storage
device 211. Still alternatively, the shopping list items may remain as bar
codes stored in the
hand held device 201 until the hand held device is interfaced with the kiosk
121 as will be
described.
After the product identifiers and sorting criteria are stored in the hand held
device
201, the customer may view the shopping list on the display 213 of hand held
device 201.
The product identifiers may be viewed on display 213 individually or in
tabular format as
seen in Figure 4B, for example, allowing a user of the hand held device 201 to
view several
product identifiers at one time. Input device 215 of hand held device 201
allows a user of the
hand held device 201 to communicate command selections to the processor 205
via the bus
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203, for selecting, deleting, grouping and otherwise modifying the shopping
list items stored
in memory of hand held device 201. For example, a customer using hand held
device 201
may view all shopping list items, group the items to be deleted, and retain
the remaining
items. Additionally, if the customer wishes to add to the shopping list, the
customer may
return to step 601 and input further product identifiers for the items added
to the list as shown
by the decision block 603.
Once the customer has input all of the product identifiers for a particular
shopping
event into the hand held device 201, the customer interfaces the handheld
device 201 with the
kiosk 121 at the retail store 119 as shown in step 605. The interfacing step
may be a physical
connection of the hand held device with the kiosk 12I, or a wireless link
between the hand
held device 201 and the kiosk 121. With the hand held device 201 interfaced
with the kiosk
121, the hand held device 201 electronically transmits the CID and shopping
list items from
the hand held device to the kiosk I21 as shown in step 607. Also during this
step, the kiosk
121 receives sorting criteria if requested by the customer. In a preferred
embodiment, the
sorting criteria is input into the hand held device and transmitted to the
kiosk 121 with the
CID and shopping list items as shown in Figure 6. Alternatively, when a
physical connection
is made with the kiosk 121, the user can manually enter the sorting criteria
into the kiosk 121
by selecting from a menu, for example. Similarly, the customer's CID and asry
other
information may be manually input at the kiosk 121 at the time of interfacing
the hand held
device 201 with the kiosk 121.
After the kiosk 121 receives the CID and product identifiers, the shopping
list server
is accessed via Internet 1 Ol in the step 609 and the products associated with
the product
identifiers are electronically transmitted to the kiosk 121 as in step 611.
During this step, any
product identifiers stored in hand held device 201 as bar codes axe converted
to products
understandable to the consumer by the shopping list server 109 accessing the
product
identifier table 401 as discussed with respect to Figure 4A.
The kiosk 121 then groups the shopping list according to the sorting criteria
as seen in
step 615, and electronically delivers the personalized shopping list to the
consumer according
to the entered criteria as shown in step 617. In this way, the customer
obtains a personalized
shopping list grouped according to a sorting criteria for customer
convenience. In a preferred
embodiment, the steps 605 through 617 are performed automatically when the
consumer
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comes within a predetermined distance of kiosk 121. That is, when the consumer
enters retail
store 119 carrying hand held device 201, the hand held device automatically
interfaces with
kiosk 121, electronically transmits CID and product identifiers and sorting
criteria stored in
the hand held device 201 to the kiosk 121, and the kiosk 121 automatically
transmits a sorted
personalized shopping list of products back to hand held device 201.
Figure 7 is a flow chart showing the process of sorting product identifiers
according to
a sorting criteria selected by the consumer generating a personalized shopping
list. In the
preferred embodiment, this function is performed in the retail store 119 as
the information
necessary to sorting the shopping list may be specific to each retail store.
In grouping
products according to a sorting criteria as shown m steps 517 and 615 of
Figures 5 and 6
respectively, the kiosk 121 first determines the sorting criteria entered by
the consumer by
manual or electrical input to the kiosk 121 as discussed with respect to
Figures 5 and 6. In
step 703, the kiosk 121 accesses sorting table 413 from the store database
111. Each product
identifer in the current shopping list table 407 is then matched with
the,product identifiers in
the sorting criteria table 413 as shown in step 705, and corresponding sorting
data for the
selected sorting criteria is collected by the kioslc 121. With sorting data
obtained for each
product on the shopping list associated with the CID entered into the kiosk
121, the kiosk 121
then groups the products on the list having the same sorting data and sends
the data to the
printer or hand held device as shown in steps 519 and 6I7 in Figures 5 and 6
respectively.
Thus, the kiosk 121 provides a personalized shopping Lisa sorted according to
the consumer's
requested sorting criteria.
In addition to providing a personalized shopping list, targeted purchase
incentives and
advertisements may be delivered from kiosk 121 to the consumer along with the
list. Thus,
the present invention in one embodiment, delivers targeted purchase incentives
and
advertisements to the consumer in the retail store 119 just prior to the
consumer's shopping
event. The actual purchase incentives and advertisements are preferably
provided to the
shopping list server 109 and/or host computer 301 from advertiser's server 115
for delivery to
the consumer.
Figure 8 is a flow chart explaining the process for delivering purchase
incentives and
advertisements to a customer along with the personalized shopping list
according to an
embodiment of the invention. In step 80I, and referring to Figure 3, the
retail store computer
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307 monitors the customer's transaction with kiosk 121 in retail store 119.
During the
transaction, the customer inputs a CID and receives either a printed
personalized shopping list
or down loads the shopping list into a hand held device 201 as discussed in
Figures 5 and 6.
The retail store computer 307 monitors the communication between kiosk 121 and
shopping
list server 109 and is therefore informed of the CID and each product identif
er on the
shopping list of the customer associated with the CID. The purchase incentives
and
advertisements to be delivered to the consumer at kiosk 121 are then
determined in step 803.
This step may be performed by the retail store computer 307, the host computer
301, and/or
the shopping list server 109. The purchase incentives and advertisements are
determined
based on the customers purchase history and/or the items on the customer's
shopping list as
will be discussed. In step 805, the purchase incentive and/or advertisements
are delivered to
the customer and either printed at printer 117 or downloaded via the data
transfer unit 123 at
kiosk 121.
According to an embodiment, Figure 8's step 803 of determining purchase
incentives
and advertisements to be delivered to the customer at kiosk 121 is
accomplished according to
predetermined purchase incentives and advertisements obtained based on the
customer's
purchase history. In this embodiment the host computer 301 polls the retail
store computer
307 in each of the retail stores 119 for purchase history information to
update the purchase
history information stored in the global purchase database 303. The host
computer 301
generates behavioral information from the purchase history information stored
in the global
purchase database 303. This behavioral information may be any information that
a market
researcher (i.e., surveyor) wishes to use to determine whether a targeted
purchase incentive
should be delivered to a customer. Examples of behavioral information are
whether a
customer has purchased at least five pounds of dog food per month for the last
year, whether
the customer has purchased cold medicine in the last week, and whether the
customer
consistently purchases lactose-free milk.
The host computer 301 compares the behavioral information generated to
purchase
criteria stored in global purchase database 303 and associated with a
particular purchase
incentive and/or advertisement. If the behavioral information of any customer
meets the
purchase criteria, then the customer's CID is stored in f eld 423 and the
corresponding
purchase incentive and/or advertisement is stored in the field 425 of the
predetermined
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purchase incentive/advertisement table 421. In this manner, the predetermined
purchase
incentive/advertisement table 421 is populated with CIDs and associated
purchase incentives
to be delivered to the corresponding customers.
The host computer 301 delivers the predetermined purchase
incentive/advertisement
table 421 to the retail store 119. If desired, the table 421 is broken up into
separate
predetermined purchase incentive/advertisement tables for each retail store
119. If desired,
only the CIDs of customers that frequent the corresponding retail store 119
are provided to
each retail store 119 in order to reduce the effect of storage and
transmission constraints. The
predetermined purchase incentive/advertisement table 421 is received by the
retail store
computer 307 at the retail store 119 and stored in the local purchase database
309 and/or store
database 111.
When a customer prints a shopping list in the retail store 119, the customer
CID is
transmitted from the kiosk 121, through the retail store computer 307 and/or
host computer
301, to the shopping list server. The retail store computer determines the CID
and in turn
uses the CID to determine whether the same CID exists in field 423 of the
predetermined
purchase incentive/advertisement table 421. If the CID is found in field 423,
then the
corresponding predetermined purchase incentives) and advertisements) in field
425 are
delivered to the kiosk 121. The predetermined purchase incentives and
advertisements are
then either printed on the printer 127 with a printed shopping list or
transmitted over
communication coupling 129 to interface 217 of hand held device 201. In the
case of the
hand held device 201, the predetermined purchase incentives and advertisements
are
transferred through bus 203 into memory unit 207 of hand held device 201 where
they may
be reviewed and modified as discussed with regard to Figure 6. In this maimer,
the purchase
incentives and advertisements targeted to the customer whose CID was input at
kiosk 121 are
delivered to the customer at the kiosk 121 just prior to the shopping event.
In another embodiment, Figure 8's step 803 of determining purchase incentives
to be
delivered to the customer's hand held device 201 is accomplished according to
trigger items
on a shopping list generated by the customer. In this embodiment, the retail
store computer
307 receives trigger items, and purchase incentives and advertisements, which
are stored in
the local purchase database 309. The trigger items and purchase incentives may
be
downloaded from the host computer 301 or shopping list server 109, input by
hand, or
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transferred by any other suitable means to the retail store computer 307
(e.g., by floppy disk
or via a connection to another computer). The trigger items, purchase
incentives, and
advertisements are stored in the purchase trigger table 427 in fields 429 and
431 respectively.
The trigger items correspond to information of a current shopping list. For
example, the
trigger items may be bar code information or UPC information associated with
corresponding
purchase incentives and/or advertisements 431. Thus, each purchase trigger may
identify one
or more products.
As discussed, the retail store computer 307 monitors information of a consumer
transaction at the kiosk 121. The retail store computer 307 compares the
product identifying
information of the current shopping list with the trigger item stored in the
field 429. If there
is a match between any of the trigger items in the field 479 and the
information of the current
shopping list monitored by the retail store computer 307 (e.g., if a product
identified by the
trigger item is on the shopping list), then the retail store computer 307
electronically
transmits the corresponding purchase incentive and/or advertisement in the
field 431 to the
kiosk I2I where the purchase incentive or advertisement is either printed or
delivered to the
hand held device 201. In this manner, the purchase incentives corresponding to
trigger items
of a current shopping list are delivered to the customer at the kiosk 121.
Figures 9A and 9B are examples of purchase incentives that may be delivered to
a
consumer. As shown in these figures, each purchase incentive includes a reward
to be
received by the customer, and may or may not include a loyalty condition to be
satisfied by
the customer in order to receive the reward. The loyalty condition indicates
what a person
must do to receive the reward. The reward may be a check, coupon, discount,
certificate,
redeemable medium, and/or other positive benefit to a person who meets the
condition. For
example, piwchase incentive 901 of Figure 9A includes reward 903 (50ø off
brand B cola)
which has no loyalty condition associated with it. A customer that makes a
purchase of brand
B cola at a retail store 119 that accepts the purchase incentive will receive
a 50ø discount
without any further action. Figure 9B shows a purchase incentive 905 having a
reward 907
and a loyalty condition 909. The reward of "one gallon of milk for 5 cents" is
given to the
customer only if the condition of spending "$25 this week" is satisfied.
The purchase incentives 901 is preferably a remarkable offer designed cause a
customer to switch to a particular brand of product or to promote brand
loyalty for a product.
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In the case of causing a customer to switch brands, the puxchase incentive is
preferably
triggered by the purchase of a competitor brand as discussed with respect to
Figure 4F above.
Purchase incentive 905 is a remarkable offer designed to keep customers coming
back to the
store 119. According to an embodiment of the invention, the rewards relating
to store loyalty
are for staple items such as milk, eggs, bread, etc. to encourage customers to
do all of their
grocery shopping at the store 119 rather than shop for specific items only.
However, it is to
be understood that each puxchase incentive may be tailored to suit different
purposes, as
desired.
Figure 9C is an exemplary advertisement 9I 1 that may be delivered to the
customer at
kiosk 121 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The
advertisement includes
a message 913 designated to promote a particular brand and product. Thus, as
seen in Figure
9C, brand X sweetener is promoted to the consumer as being just one calorie.
The rewards, conditions, and advertisements shown in Figures 9A, 9B, and 9C
may
involve subject matter other than groceries and retail stores. Moreover, the
purchase
incentives and advertisements may include other information not shown in
Figures 9A, 9B,
and 9C and the other information may include information related or unrelated
to the
customer's purchases ox shopping list items.
Portions of the invention may be conveniently implemented using conventional
general purpose computers or microprocessors programmed according to the
teachings of the
present invention, as will be apparent to those skilled in the computer art.
Appropriate
software can be readily prepared by programmers of ordinary skill based on the
teachings of
the present disclosure, as will be apparent to those skilled in the software
art.
Figure 10 illustrates a computer system 1001 upon which an embodiment
according to
the present invention may be implemented. Computer system 1001 includes a bus
1003 or
other communication mechanism for communicating information, and a processor
1005
coupled with bus 1003 for processing the information. Computer system 1001
also includes
a main memory 1007, such as a random access memory (RAM) or other dynamic
storage
device (e.g., dynamic RAM (DRAM), static RAM (SRAM), synchronous DRAM (SDRAM),
flash RAM), coupled to bus 1003 for storing information and instructions to be
executed by
processor 1005. In addition, main memory 1007 may be used for storing
temporary variables
or other intermediate information during execution of instructions to be
executed by
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processor 1005. Computer system 1001 further includes a read only memory (ROM)
1009 or
other static storage device (e.g., programmable ROM (PROM), erasable PROM
(EPROM),
and electrically erasable PROM (EEPROM)) coupled to bus 1003 for storing
static
information and instructions for processor 1005. A storage device 1011, such
as a magnetic
disk or optical disc, is provided and coupled to bus 1003 for storing
information and
instructions.
The computer system 1001 may also include special purpose logic devices (e.g.,
application specific integrated circuits (ASICs)) or configurable logic
devices (e.g., generic
array of logic (GAL) or reprograxnmable field programmable gate arrays
(FPGAs)). Other
removable media devices (e.g., a compact disc, a tape, and a removable magneto-
optical
media) or fixed, high density media drives, may be added to the computer
system 1001 using
an appropriate device bus (e.g., a small computer system interface (SCSI) bus,
an enhanced
integrated device electronics (IDE) bus, or an ultra-direct memory access
(DMA) bus). The
computer system 1001 may additionally include a compact disc reader, a compact
disc
reader-writer unit, or a compact disc juke box, each of which may be connected
to the same
device bus or another device bus.
Computer system 1001 may be coupled via bus 1003 to a display 1013, such as a
cathode ray tube (CRT), for displaying information to a computer user. The
display 1013
may be controlled by a display or graphics card. The computer system includes
input
devices, such as a keyboard 1015 and a cursor control 1017, for communicating
information
and command selections to processor 1005. The cursor control 1017, for
example, is a
mouse, a trackball, or cursor direction keys for communicating direction
information and
command selections to processor 1005 and for controlling cursor movement on
the display
1013. In addition, a printer may provide printed listings of the data
structures shown in
Figures 3A through 3F, or any other data stored and/or generated by the
computer system
1001.
The computer system 1001 performs a portion or alI of the processing steps of
the
invention in response to processor 1005 executing one or more sequences of one
or more
instructions contained in a memory, such as the main memory 1007. Such
instructions may
be read into the main memory 1007 from another computer-readable medium, such
as storage
device 1011. One or more processors in a mufti-processing arrangement may also
be
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employed to execute the sequences of instructions contained in main memory
1007. In
alternative embodiments, hard-wired circuitry may be used in place of or in
combination with
software instructions. Thus, embodiments are not limited to any specific
combination of
hardware circuitry and software.
As stated above, the system 1001 includes at least one computer readable
medimn or
memory programmed according to the teachings of the invention and for
containing data
structures, tables, records, or other data described herein. Stored on any one
or on a
combination of computer readable media, the present invention includes
software for
controlling the computer system 1001, for driving a device or devices for
implementing the
invention, and for enabling the computer system 1001 to interact with a human
user, e.g., a
customer. Such software may include, but is not limited to, device drivers,
operating
systems, development tools, and applications software. Such computer readable
media
further includes the computer program product of the present invention for
performing all or
a portion (if processing is distributed) of the processing performed in
implementing the
invention.
The computer code devices of the present invention may be any interpreted or
executable code mechanism, including but not limited to scripts, interpreters,
dynamic link
libraries, Java classes, and complete executable programs. Moreover, parts of
the processing
of the present invention may be distributed for better performance,
reliability, and/or cost.
The term "computer readable medium" as used herein refers to any medium that
participates in providing instructions to processor 1005 for execution. A
computer readable
medium may take many forms, including but not limited to, non-volatile media,
volatile
media, and transmission media. Non-volatile media includes, fox example,
optical, magnetic
disks, and magneto-optical disks, such as storage device 1011. Volatile media
includes
dynamic memory, such as main memory 1007. Transmission media includes coaxial
cables,
copper wire and fiber optics, including the wires that comprise bus 1003.
Transmission
media also may also take the form of acoustic or light waves, such as those
generated during
radio wave and infrared data communications.
Common forms of computer readable media include, for example, hard disks,
floppy
disks, tape, magneto-optical disks, PROMS (EPROM, EEPROM, Flash EPROM), DRAM,
SRAM, SDRAM, or any other magnetic medium, compact disks (e.g., CD-ROM), or
any
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other optical medium, punch cards, paper tape, or other physical medium with
patterns of
holes, a carrier wave (described below), or any other medium from which a
computer can
read.
Various forms of computer readable media may be involved in carrying out one
or
more sequences of one or more instructions to processor 1005 fox execution.
For example,
the instructions may initially be carried on a magnetic disk of a remote
computer. The remote
computer can load the instructions for implementing all or a portion of the
present invention
remotely into a dynamic memory and send the instructions over a. telephone
line using a
modem. A modem local to computer system 1001 may receive the data on the
telephone line
and use an infrared transmitter to convert the data to an infrared signal. An
infrared detector
coupled to bus 1003 can receive the data carried in the infrared signal and
place the data on
bus 1003. Bus 1003 carries the data to main memory 1007, from which processor
1005
retrieves and executes the instructions. The instructions received by main
memory 1007 may
optionally be stored on storage device 1011 either before or after execution
by processor
1005.
Computer system 1001 also includes a communication interface 1019 coupled to
bus
1003. Communication interface 1019 provides a two-way data communication
coupling to a
network link 1021 that is connected to a local network (e.g., LAN 1023), For
example,
communication interface 1019 may be a network interface card to attach to any
packet
switched local area network (LAN). As another example, communication interface
1019 may
be an asymmetrical digital subscriber line (ADSL) card, an integrated services
digital
network (ISDN) card or a modem to provide a data communication connection to a
corresponding type of telephone line. Wireless links may also be implemented.
In any such
implementation, communication interface 1019 sends and receives electrical,
electromagnetic
or optical signals that carry digital data streams representing various types
of information.
Network link 1021 typically provides data communication through one or more
networks to other data devices. For example, network link 1021 may provide a
connection
through LAN 1023 to a host computer 1025 or to data equipment operated by a
service
provider, which provides data communication services through an IP (Internet
Protocol)
network 1027 (e.g., the Internet 101). LAN 1023 and IP network 1027 both use
electrical,
electromagnetic or optical signals that carry digital data streams. The
signals through the
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various networks and the signals on network link 1021 and through
communication interface
1019, which carry the digital data to and from computer system 1001, are
exemplary forms of
carrier waves transporting the information. Computer system 1001 can transmit
notifications
and xeceive data, including program code, through the network(s), network link
1021 and
communication interface 1019.
Obviously, numerous modifications and variations of the present invention are
possible in light of the above teachings. It is therefore to be understood
that within the scope
of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as
specifically
described herein.
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