System, method, and non-transitory computer-readable storage media for allowing a customer to place orders remotely and for automatically adding goods to an order based on historical data

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9805409-B2
Application number	US-201414549292-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 20, 2014
Priority date	Nov 20, 2014
Publication date	Oct 31, 2017
Grant date	Oct 31, 2017

Abstract

Techniques for allowing a customer to order goods on-line or remotely and to pick-up the goods at a desired location or store are disclosed. The techniques include receiving a customer order. The customer order includes at least one good. The techniques further include populating a virtual basket with a preset list of goods as a function of reference time data and time data associated with the preset list of goods.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A system, comprising:
an information server including a memory device configured to store information related to customer orders and information associated with each customer in an associated customer record, each customer record including a preset list of goods and associated time data;
an order server in communication over a network with the information server and being associated with a facility, the order server being configured to receive a customer order, the order server being further configured to store the customer order in the memory device, wherein the order server is configured to establish reference time data associated with the customer order, to compare the reference time data with the time data associated with the preset list of goods, and to populate a virtual basket with the preset list of goods if the reference time data matches the time data associated with the preset list of goods;
an order fulfillment system coupled to the order server and to the information server and being located at the facility, the order fulfillment system being configured to receive the customer order placed by a customer and to assist in assembling the customer order for the customer;
an optical sensor located at a predetermined location within an order pick-up area associated with the facility to capture images of license plates of motor vehicles entering the order pick-up area; and
an optical character recognition unit coupled between the order server and the optical sensor and configured to receive the images from the optical sensor to establish an associated motor vehicle license plate number for each captured image and to send the associated motor vehicle license plate number to the order server;
wherein:
the order server compares the associated motor vehicle license plate numbers with an associated customer motor vehicle license plate number; and
if the associated customer motor vehicle license plate number matches one of the associated motor vehicle license plate numbers received from the optical character recognition unit, the order server provides instructions for the customer order to be delivered to a motor vehicle associated with the customer.

2. The system, as set forth in claim 1 , wherein specific goods in the preset list of goods, once added to the virtual basket, may be deleted, by the customer, from the virtual basket.

3. The system, as set forth in claim 1 , wherein the customer record associated with the customer may include a plurality of preset lists of goods, each of the plurality of preset lists of goods having associated time data.

4. The system, as set forth in claim 3 , wherein the order server may add more than one preset list of goods to the virtual basket.

5. The system, as set forth in claim 1 , wherein the customer, using a customer device, modifies the preset list of goods.

6. The system, as set forth in claim 1 , wherein the customer, using a customer device, creates an additional preset list of goods.

7. The system, as set forth in claim 1 , the order server being configured to automatically create a new preset list of goods based on customer historical order information.

8. The system, as set forth in claim 7 , wherein the order server is further configured to suggest the new preset list of goods to the customer via a customer device and to allow the customer to reject, modify, or accept the new preset list of goods.

9. The system, as set forth in claim 1 , wherein the time data associated with the preset list of goods is a delivery date.

10. The system, as set forth in claim 1 , wherein the time data associated with the preset list of goods is an order date.

11. A method, comprising:
storing, in a memory device on an information server, information related to customer orders and information associated with each customer in an associated customer record, each customer record including a preset list of goods and associated time data;
receiving, by an order server over a network, from a customer, using a customer device coupled to the order server and the information server and associated with a facility, a customer order;
establishing, by the order server, reference time data associated with the customer order;
comparing, by the order server, the reference time data with the time data associated with the preset list of goods;
populating, by the order server, a virtual basket with the preset list of goods if the reference time data matches the time data associated with the preset list of goods;
storing, by the order server, the customer order in the memory device;
receiving, at an order fulfillment system, the customer order placed by the customer, from the order server and assisting assembly of the customer order for the customer;
providing an optical sensor located at a predetermined location within an order pick-up area associated with the facility to capture images of license plates of motor vehicles entering the order pick-up area;
providing an optical character recognition unit coupled between the order server and the optical sensor and configured to receive the images from the optical sensor to establish an associated motor vehicle license plate number for each captured image and to send the associated motor vehicle license plate number to the order server; and
comparing by the order server the associated motor vehicle license plate numbers with an associated customer motor vehicle license plate number; and if the associated customer motor vehicle license plate number matches one of the associated motor vehicle license plate numbers received from the optical character recognition unit, the order server provides instructions for the customer order to be delivered to a motor vehicle associated with the customer.

12. The method, as set forth in claim 11 , wherein specific goods in the preset list of goods, once added to the virtual basket, may be deleted by the customer from the virtual basket.

13. The method, as set forth in claim 11 , wherein the customer record associated with the customer may include a plurality of preset lists of goods, each of the plurality of preset lists of goods having associated time data.

14. The method, as set forth in claim 13 , wherein more than one preset list of goods may be added, by the order server, to the virtual basket.

15. The method, as set forth in claim 11 , wherein the customer, using the customer device, modifies the preset list of goods.

16. The method, as set forth in claim 11 , wherein the customer, using the customer device, creates an additional preset list of goods.

17. The method, as set forth in claim 11 , further including: automatically creating a new preset list of goods based on customer historical order information.

18. The method, as set forth in claim 17 , further including: suggesting, by the order server, the new preset list of goods to the customer via the customer device: and allowing the customer to reject, modify, or accept the new preset list of goods.

19. The method, as set forth in claim 11 , wherein the time data associated with the preset list of goods is a delivery date.

20. The method, as set forth in claim 11 , wherein the time data associated with the preset list of goods is an order date.

21. One or more non-transitory computer-readable storage media, having computer-executable instructions embodied thereon, wherein when executed by at least one processor, the computer-executable instructions cause the at least one processor to:
store, in a memory device of

Assignees

• Wal Mart Stores Inc

Inventors

• Carr David Jon
• Ramsden Richard Mark

Classifications

• G06Q30/0635 Primary

  replenishment orders; recurring orders · CPC title