560results about "Alarm indicators" patented technology

The present invention relates generally to a consumer interactive shopping and marketing system. The system includes a portable data terminal for communicating information over a communication network. The present system has aspects that may be used within a shopping establishment or at a user's home.

Methods, systems, and devices are disclosed for transforming product code snapshots into real-time, offer-driven electronic purchase transaction notifications that minimize fraud. In one embodiment, a smart phone scans a product identifier from a product package, a server accesses a products database for product purchase offers associated with the product identifier, a user authorizes a credit card from his or her wallet to charge, and then product purchase offers or other credit card offers (for loyalty points or otherwise) are provided to the user mobile device. After a user has purchased an item while in the aisle of the store, the user's smart phone displays a barcoded electronic receipt that can be scanned by the exit so that the consumer can walk out with the produce. In some embodiments, a video chat is requested by a customer service representative and a transaction risk score is lowered based on acceptance of the video chat.

A system and method for capturing image data captures images responsive to programmed sequences. The sequences are performed on a periodic basis as well as in response to inputs corresponding to alarm conditions and transactions conducted at automated banking machines or other devices. Image data may also be captured in response to image conditions including the sensing of motion or the loss of usable video from selected cameras. Image data is stored in connection with data corresponding to circumstances associated with each triggering event. Stored image data may be searched by one or more parameters. Parameters include data stored in association with each image, types of events causing image data to be stored, as well as other image conditions in stored images.

To utilize credit, a user possesses credit card 10 and mobile station 50. Location matching server 70 detects a location of mobile station 50 which a user possesses, and a shop which accepts credit utilized by the user. If these locations do not accord, it is judged that a user at a shop possesses credit card 10 but does not possess mobile station 50, and so is not the proper owner of credit card 10.

A fraud prevention system for notifying subscribers of the system, which may be financial institutions; such as banks, brokerage houses, and credit unions; law enforcement agencies; retail stores; and others, of the occurrence of a fraudulent act so that the unaffected subscribers may take appropriate action to prevent the same perpetrator or other perpetrators from committing other fraudulent acts. The fraud prevention system includes a central operating system for receiving reports of fraudulent activity and making those reports available to subscribers of the system. The fraud prevention system also includes at least one display device for displaying the reports of fraudulent activity.

Systems and methods for monitoring token access transactions are provided. In one embodiment, the invention provides receiving transaction records for a plurality of bank card transactions, wherein the transaction records include transaction information and infrastructure information; determining whether a reportable event has occurred based on the transaction information with the transaction records; and providing an alert representing the reportable event.

A method and system are provided for counting moving objects in a digital video stream. In contrast to known computationally-expensive methods, areas of motion are determined by threshold subtracting a current video frame from a short term average video scene. An object box surrounding an object is determined by threshold subtracting the current video frame from a long term average video scene. Coordinates of the moving object are identified by associating the area of motion with the object box, if it overlaps the area of motion, to define a moving object box. An event counter can be incremented when the moving object box is in a buffer zone in the current frame, and was in a detection zone in an earlier frame, and was initially detected in a buffer zone on the opposite side of the detection zone.

Methods and computer readable media for recognizing and identifying items located on the belt of a counter and / or in a shopping cart of a store environment for the purpose of reducing / preventing bottom-of-the-basket loss, checking out the items automatically, reducing the checkout time, preventing consumer fraud, increasing revenue and replacing a conventional UPC scanning system to enhance the checking out speed. The images of the items taken by visual sensors may be analyzed to extract features using the scale-invariant feature-transformation (SIFT) method. Then, the extracted features are compared to those of trained images stored in a database to find a set of matches. Based on the set of matches, the items are recognized and associated with one or more instructions, commands or actions without the need for personnel to visually see the items, such as by having to come out from behind a check out counter or peering over a check out counter.

Detection of an omitted process in an event having of a sequence of processes includes: receiving video of an action area; receiving transaction data regarding a transaction occurring at the action area; detecting at least two different actor motion states in the video; detecting an event based on the motion states; and detecting the omitted process based on the detected event and the transaction data.

Systems and methods for recognizing and identifying items located on the lower shelf of a shopping cart in a checkout lane of a retail store environment for the purpose of reducing or preventing loss or fraud and increasing the efficiency of a checkout process. The system includes one or more visual sensors that can take images of items and a computer system that receives the images from the one or more visual sensors and automatically identifies the items. The system can be trained to recognize the items using images taken of the items. The system relies on matching visual features from training images to match against features extracted from images taken at the checkout lane. Using the scale-invariant feature transformation (SIFT) method, for example, the system can compare the visual features of the images to the features stored in a database to find one or more matches, where the found one or more matches are used to identify the items.

A method and apparatus for integrated ATM surveillance of an area of interest, such as an automated teller machine (ATM), is presented. An embodiment includes a surveillance system for an ATM utilizing multiple cameras aimed at the user, the card slot, the cash dispenser, the surrounding areas and internally in the card reader (to link the card used to the ATM user). The cameras are constantly powered and begin to record images after a sensor is activated. A buffer of recorded imagery is maintained such that when the sensors are activated, the video processing equipment can store a pre-defined amount of time before the sensor is activated. The buffer allows for the video capture of events just prior to the activation of the sensor. A time stamp and any other relevant data from the cameras may also be included with the stored recorded video.

Systems for deterring theft of retail products. Systems of this invention provide theft deterrent dispensing modules for dispensing products and may incorporate theft deterrent measures including mechanical deterrents, time delays and sound. The dispensing modules may include one or more pusher assemblies for dispensing product. Certain systems of this invention may also include a lockout feature, so that only one pusher assembly may be activated to dispense a product at one time.

Registry verification is used in a mechanized store. A camera is used to count a first number of items taken by a user. Radio frequency tags are used to determine a second number of items. The first number of items is compared to the second number of items to reduce a likelihood of errors.

A theft deterrent system and method at a product display area. In a preferred embodiment, the system displays video of customers on a public view monitor (PVM) located near the product display area in response to detecting customer interactions with the products in the product display area. The system also provides target advertising via audio messages and video messages displayed on the PVM in response to detecting the interactions. The system enhances customer shopping experience by providing welcoming messages as the customers approach the product display area while also deterring would-be thieves, and provides upsell capability by sending audio and video advertising messages for related products to the PVM in response to product retrieval attempts such as “reach-ins” or selection of the products.

A system for responding to a duress identification made at a biometric identification site. The system may include a processor, a memory, a biometric reader for collecting biometric information about a user, wherein the biometric information is used for determining if the user is an authorized user of the system. The system may also include a set of instructions stored in the memory, the set of instructions executable by the processor to determine whether the biometric information represents a normal identification or a duress identification; if the biometric information represents a duress identification, the system may initiate an emergency response, such as (for example) triggering a silent alarm.

An apparatus, system and method for multimedia capturing, logging and retrieval are disclosed. The apparatus provides time synchronized voice and data interactions capturing and logging, secured playback and retrieval functionality for dispute resolution, for detecting negative and positive conduct, for business analysis and performance, and for quality management. The apparatus provides for synchronization and association of multi-media interactions for financial transactions in order to provide for the retrieval, playback, and review of the transaction-specific events in their temporally correct and integrated sequence.

A handheld combined electronic article surveillance (EAS) and barcode scanner device. The device may be configured for wireless communication with a point of sale network so that is entirely portable within a protected area. The device may include a capacitor disposed in handle at a proximal end of the device and an antenna may be disposed at a distal end of the device. A base station may be provided for receiving the device.

Systems for deterring theft of retail products. Systems of this invention provide theft deterrent cabinets for dispensing products and may incorporate theft deterrent measures including mechanical deterrents, time delays and sound.

An item velocity monitoring system is provided which interfaces with a consumer retail store that has several cash registers that are tied into a “point of sale” store controller. The item velocity monitoring system is capable of detecting when sales (or other movement activities) of an item are occurring too quickly, or too slowly. The item velocity monitoring system is first “trained” in a learning mode of operations, during which item patterns and group patterns are evaluated and placed into a pattern database. The system then compares the observed item velocity to its model probability velocity, and if the observed item velocity deviates beyond the statistical model, a “velocity event” is generated, declaring one of the above selling “too quick” or “too slow” conditions. Once a velocity event is detected, an event handling routine displays the event, and can transmit the event information over a network (including the INTERNET) to a remote computer for additional analysis or record keeping. A “Loyalty Out-of-Stock System,” (LOSS) is incorporated in the above item velocity monitoring system which automatically detects when items for sale are out-of-stock (OOS), discovers the reasons for these “stock-outs,” and determines how customers react to these stock-outs. The LOSS operates on store data and models the expected item movement rate for each item under varying time-of-day, day-of-week, price, promotion, season, holiday, and market conditions; detects items that are moving abnormally slowly, thereby identifying items that may be improperly displayed; provides early warning that an item may go out-of-stock (OOS) by detecting items with abnormally high movement; detects and reports on items that are OOS at retail stores; summarizes OOS events for the store and retail chain management, and for suppliers, thereby identifying items that are over-stocked (too few OOS events), under-stocked (too many events), badly re-stocked (too long events); analyzes the OOS events to find patterns that explain why OOS's are occurring; and determines the impacts of these OOS events on store customers, thereby measuring losses to the retailer and supplier, and establishing the loyalty of consumers to the item, brand, and chain.

A method and system for self-checkout of items from a retail or non-retail establishment is disclosed. The system verifies security by comparing a measured physical characteristic of an item with the stored security characteristic for that item and determining if the measured physical characteristic is within an operator-modifiable tolerance range. The operator-modifiable tolerance range is different for different of items in the store. Moreover, a stored security characteristic of an item can be updated automatically. In addition, the system includes a dynamic-weight scale that reports a measured weight before the scale settles.

A total property security system may be implemented to conduct security and surveillance operations. The system includes security operations centers that are connected to one or more sensors and vehicles for collecting and transmitting surveillance data to a database hosted on cloud services. The collected surveillance data is analyzed in order to automatically deploy security measures and / or recommend courses of action using a rules engine that can be configured to client-specific or user-specific security needs. The cloud services can provide a set of application program interface services that can act on the surveillance operations center. Sensor fusion data and other surveillance data can be also transmitted to vetted monitoring service providers on a subscription basis to provide physical security services to the area within the property perimeter. During the subscription period, the selected monitoring service providers can obtain time-based encryption token for accessing surveillance data.

A store surveillance system, a warning device for use in such system, a store surveillance control method, and program-based instruction implementations of such method facilitate the detection of fraudulent activity in a retail store, supermarket, or other type of store. A store management server has a pattern storage unit that stores occurrence patterns of specific events that occur in a store; a POS terminal that executes a product transaction process; a employee surveillance camera that monitors component factors of the occurrence patterns; and a card reader. In some embodiments, when the POS terminal executes a predetermined exception process, the store management server issues a warning conditionally upon whether event occurrence conditions detected by the employee surveillance camera and card reader match a fraudulence pattern stored as an occurrence pattern, or do not match a normal pattern stored as an occurrence pattern