Retail store customer access control and automated resource management system
AssigneeWhiteborad, LLC
InventorNicholas Keith Kolegraff
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An automated resource management system for a retail business includes a point-of-sale system and an access control system in communication with the point-of-sale system. The access control system can be configured to detect, and/or receive a signal from, an electronic device associated with a customer of the retail store, such as a cellular phone. Upon automatic detection of a billable event (e.g., retrieving an item from a vending machine) while the access control system determines that the user is within the retail store, automatic billing or invoicing of the customer by the point-of-sale system can occur.
Claims20
An automated resource management system for automatic billing of customers in a retail store, the automated retail management system comprising:
- a point-of-sale system;
- and
- an access control system communicably coupled to the point-of-sale system and comprising:
- a processing device;
- and
- a memory device storing executable instructions that when accessed by the processing device instantiate an occupancy engine configured to:
- receive an input from an electronic device associated with the customer;
- determine that the customer is present within the retail store after receiving the input;
- wirelessly track a location of at least one of the electronic device or the customer within the retail store as the customer moves within the retail store;
- determine that a billable action by the customer has occurred while the customer is within the retail store;
- in response to determining that the billable action has occurred, performing at least one of:
- updating a tab of the customer based on the billable action;
- or
- initiating, with the point-of sale system, billing of the customer for the billable action.
An automated resource management system for automatic billing of customers in a retail store, the automated retail management system comprising:
- a point-of-sale system;
- a video capture system;
- and
- an access control system communicably coupled to the point-of-sale system and the video capture system, the access control system comprising:
- a processing device;
- and
- a memory device storing executable instructions that when accessed by the processing device configure the access control system to:
- wirelessly receive an input corresponding to a request to access the retail store;
- accessing a customer database to identify a customer based on the input;
- permitting access at an entryway of the retail store to the customer;
- track a location of the customer within the retail store based on input received from the video capture system;
- determine that a billable action by the customer has occurred;
- and
- initiate, with the point-of sale system, billing of the customer for the billable action in response to determining that the billable action has occurred.
An automated resource management system for automatic billing of a customer in a retail store, the automated retail management system comprising:
- a point-of-sale system;
- a video capture system;
- an access control system communicably coupled to the video capture system and the point-of-sale system, the access control system comprising:
- an actuator positioned at an entryway of the retail store and configured to:
- permit ingress to the retail store by a customer;
- and
- permit egress of the retail store by the customer;
- a wireless receiver configured to receive identity information corresponding to a customer, the identity information received from a portable electronic device;
- wherein:
- the access control system is configured to:
- track a location of the customer within the retail store based at least in part on input received from the video capture system;
- determine that a billable action by the customer has occurred in the retail store;
- and
- initiate, with the point-of sale system, billing of the customer for the billable action in response to one of:
- determining that the billable action has occurred;
- or
- the actuator permitting egress of the retail store by the customer.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.