Shopping cart
AssigneeToshiba Tec Kabushiki Kaisha
InventorMasatoshi NISHIDA
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
According to one embodiment a shopping cart includes an imaging unit configured to acquire images of a surface at a location of the shopping cart and a controller. The controller is configured to detect a boundary pattern in images acquired by the imaging unit. The boundary pattern is painted or drawn on the surface at a boundary between a first area and a second area. Based on the detected boundary pattern the controller determines whether the shopping cart has been moved from the first area to the second area or from the second area to the first area. The controller then controls mobility of the shopping cart based on whether the shopping cart has been moved from the first area to the second area or from the second area to the first area.
Claims20
A shopping cart, comprising:
- an imaging unit configured to acquire images of a surface at a location of the shopping cart;
- a controller configured to:
- detect a limitation pattern in images acquired by the imaging unit, the limitation pattern being on the surface at a boundary between a first area and a second area;
- determine based on the detected limitation pattern whether the shopping cart has been moved from the first area to the second area or from the second area to the first area;
- and
- control mobility of the shopping cart based on whether the shopping cart has been moved from the first area to the second area or from the second area to the first area.
A shopping cart with a cart-based point-of-sale terminal, the shopping cart comprising:
- a plurality of wheels for moving on a floor surface;
- a camera positioned to acquire images of the floor surface;
- a mobility control device configured to lock and unlock the wheels to alter the mobility of the shopping cart on the floor surface;
- and
- a controller including a memory unit and configured to:
- detect a limitation pattern on the floor surface in the images of the floor surface acquired by the camera;
- determine whether the shopping cart has moved from a first side of the limitation pattern to a second side of the limitation pattern or from the second side to the first side based on a pre-stored orientation for the limitation pattern in the memory unit;
- control the mobility control device to begin to lock the wheels after the shopping cart has moved from the first side to second side of the limitation pattern;
- and
- control the mobility control device to unlock the wheels after the shopping cart has moved from the second side to the first side of the limitation pattern.
A shopping cart movement control system, comprising:
- a limitation pattern drawn on a surface at a boundary between a first area and a second area, the limitation pattern comprising a pair of parallel lines, each line in the pair being distinguishable from the other by at least one of color or pattern;
- a plurality of shopping carts intended for use in the first area but not in the second area, each shopping cart comprising:
- an imaging unit configured to acquire images of the surface at a present location of the shopping cart;
- a controller configured to:
- detect the limitation pattern in images acquired by the imaging unit;
- determine based on the detected limitation pattern whether the shopping cart has been moved from the first area to the second area or from the second area to the first area;
- and
- control mobility of the shopping cart based on whether the shopping cart has been moved from the first area to the second area or from the second area to the first area.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.