A new patent, US20230368624A1, promises to solve one of the most common problems faced by customers and retailers: tracking and calculating the cost of items picked up from large packages in the store. In a world where quick and efficient shopping experience is becoming a norm, traditional methods of shopping can often feel tiring and time-consuming.
This core problem presents a range of issues for both customers and retailers. For customers, the time-consuming process of manually tracking goods and waiting in a queue for billing is an added hassle, especially during peak shopping times. For retailers, keeping an eye on every customer’s movement, to prevent theft while ensuring a satisfying shopping experience, is notoriously difficult. Furthermore, rapidly changing product displays can often lead to nonuniform compliance with product-related guidelines, which can be a source of confusion for customers and staff alike.
The patent presented by TRAX TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS titled "Enabling Frictionless Shopping of Products from Bulk Packaging", aims to solve this problem by creating a system that leverages image processing and sensor technology to track what people take out of big packages in a store. In this system, cameras click pictures of the shopper and the packages while sensors record the number of items the shopper took from the packages. This information then updates a virtual shopping basket for the shopper, indicating the quantity and types of goods they've chosen.
With this type of technology, shopping could transform dramatically. Customers could walk into a store, pick up items from large packages or boxes, and just walk out without having to wait in a queue for billing. Their virtual shopping basket will be updated in real time, making the process of shopping swift and smooth. This might promote even higher customer satisfaction levels and ensure a surge in return visits to the store.
For instance, imagine walking into a grocery store, picking apples from a large crate and walking out, with your bill already calculated and paid for via the app linked to the virtual shopping basket – a true embodiment of 'frictionless' shopping.
However, readers must note that this is still a patent and there's no guarantee if or when such technology will make its way into our lives. There are risks and challenges linked with technology implementation at such a large scale, but if successful, it could revolutionize the way we shop today.
P.S. While the patent is published, there is no certainty that the product will appear in the market as often patents never make it from planning to production.