Interactive electronic shopping system and method
OwnerJohn A. Kenneyinventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An interactive electronic shopping system and method create a virtual shopping facility from an actual shopping facility, such as a grocery store, restaurant, or office. A shopper at a computer or other suitable display device can move through the virtual shopping facility and see replicas of what would be seen in moving through the actual shopping facility. Various lists of items selected for purchase can be made, and predetermined lists and information can be displayed. Changes in the actual shopping facility, such as a change in a display of goods, can be accommodated by replacing prior data with new data so that the virtual shopping environment is kept current with the actual shopping facility.
Claims7
A food vending method, comprising:
- maintaining an actual operating food vendor at a physical location, the food vendor having a customer service area;
- converting at the customer service area actual images of the customer service area and food served therein into encoded digital signals;
- storing the encoded digital signals in a computer storage medium;
- and
- providing for remote computer communication link access to the stored encoded digital signals such that transmissions over the communication link responsive to the stored encoded digital signals display on a monitor of a computer at a location remote from the physical location of the food vendor a continuous motion visual representation of movement and food within the customer service area enabling a person viewing the monitor to have a visual experience of walking in the customer service area of the actual operating food vendor, sitting down at a table, and opening a menu as if the person were in the physical location of the actual operating food vendor.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.