Methods and apparatus for product price verification and information display

A customer price verification and information display station comprising:

• a radio frequency identification (RFID) reader for transmitting RFID interrogation signals to an RFID tag affixed to a particular product specimen presented by a customer at said station, and receiving an RFID return message from the RFID tag affixed to the particular product specimen presented by the customer;
• a processor for processing the RFID return message to extract product description and price information for the product to which the RFID tag is affixed, the processor being further operative to extract non-price information relating to the particular product specimen presented including either a date of manufacture, an expiration date, or a verification of authenticity;
• a display module directing the processor to activate pixels indicated in a pixel map, the pixel map generated by a server for the display station in response to the RFID return message sent to the server by the display station;
• and
• a display for displaying the extracted information including either a date of manufacture, an expiration date, or a verification of authenticity, wherein the pixel map comprises data indicating a location and characteristics of pixels making up the display and the processor activates the pixels in the pixel map to control the display, and the server configured to provide visual features to associated extracted information with the pixel map and display registers in which to store the visual features;
• a barcode scanner for scanning a barcode affixed to the particular product specimen;
• and
• a motion sensor for detecting the presence of the customer approaching the station;
• wherein when the motion sensor detects the presence of the customer, the processor is configured to activate the barcode scanner, and when the bar code scanner detects the barcode, the processor is configured to activate the RFID reader for broadcasting the signal.

A method of customer price verification and product information display, comprising the steps of:

• controlling a radio frequency identification (RFID) reader to transmit an RFID interrogation signal to an RFID tag affixed to a particular product specimen presented for verification and receive an encoded RFID return message from an RFID tag storing information relating to the particular product specimen presented for verification, the encoded RFID return message including non-product category information relating to the particular product specimen presented for verification;
• controlling a radio frequency communication module to relay the encoded RFID return message to a data processing server for decoding;
• controlling the radio frequency communication module to receive a transmission from the server including decoded data from the encoded RFID return message organized and formatted to include formatting codes for controlling a price verification and product information display;
• controlling a processor to drive the price verification and product information display to display the information provided by the transmission including said non-product category information in conformity with the formatting codes, wherein the formatting codes are generated by the server and processed to the display and include one or more font sizes, font styles for displaying the decoded data, codes indicating attention catching features when displaying, and designation of display registers in which the formatting codes are to be stored;
• detecting, by a motion sensor, the presence of a customer approaching with the particular product specimen having a barcode affixed thereto;
• and activating, in response to detecting the presence of the custom by the processor, the bar code scanner;
• detecting, by the barcode scanner, the presence of the barcode for the particular product specimen;
• and
• activating, in response to the detection of the barcode by the processor, the RFID reader for transmitting the RFID interrogation signal.