Shopping cart collection system and shopping cart collection method

Abstract

To provide techniques for allowing retrieval of shopping carts.SOLUTION: A shopping cart retrieval system comprises: a cart pusher 124 configured to push a plurality of aligned, nested shopping carts 108; and a navigational cart 112 having a position sensor and configured to be pushed via a first cart 108' of the plurality of shopping carts 108 by the cart pusher 124 and to direct the plurality of shopping carts 108 to a predefined location in accordance with output of the position sensor while being pushed.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application generally relates to automatically retrieving shopping carts from areas such as parking lots.

Background Art

[0002] Shopping carts are widely used in retail stores such as grocery stores, department stores, and home centers. Shoppers usually pick up a cart near the entrance of the store. The shopper puts items in the cart to shop and finally takes the selected items to the checkout counter to make a payment. In many cases, the purchased items are put back into the cart, and the cart is used to carry the items to the car.

[0003] Previously, shoppers would leave the empty cart beside their car and run away. This is very problematic for several reasons. The cart may move if placed on an incline or pushed by the wind. If the cart moves, it can be an obstacle to the driver and there is a great risk of it contacting the parked car and causing damage. Therefore, stores have staff to retrieve carts from the parking lot. Currently, most shopping carts are nested. That is, they are sized and structured so that carts can be inserted into each other in a chain. This allows for space savings during storage and transportation. Also, one person can collect multiple carts and connect them in a nested manner, and then take the carts back to the store all at once for reuse.

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] The problem to be solved by the invention is to provide a technology capable of retrieving shopping carts.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0005] The shopping cart collection system according to the embodiment includes a cart pusher that pushes a plurality of shopping carts arranged in an aligned and nested manner, and an induction cart that has a position sensor and is pushed through the leading cart of the plurality of shopping carts by the cart pusher, and guides the plurality of shopping carts to a predetermined location according to the output of the position sensor while being pushed.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0006]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Modes for Carrying Out the Invention

[0007] The systems and methods disclosed in this specification will be described in detail by way of examples and with reference to the drawings. It should be understood that modifications to the disclosed and described examples, arrangements, configurations, components, elements, devices, devices, methods, systems, etc. can be suitably made and can be modified to suit a particular application. In this disclosure, even if specific technologies, arrangements, etc. are specifically shown, they are either related to the specific examples presented or are merely general descriptions of such technologies, arrangements, etc. Even if specific details or examples are specifically shown, unless otherwise specifically stated, they are not intended to be essential or to be construed as being so limited, nor should they be so construed.

[0008] In a retail store, a fenced area is installed in the parking lot where customers can safely place shopping carts after removing items from them. The fence is made of metal rails and fences, and some are sized to fit within one parking space. By dispersing the fences within the parking lot, they can be returned to a location relatively close to the parked cars. Even if shopping carts are sometimes scattered in the parking lot, the recovery is faster, and the damage and risks caused by moving shopping carts are reduced. Even with such improvements, there is a limit to the number of shopping carts that a store employee can connect and transport in one round.

[0009] In a method using motor drive, a motor-driven cart pusher is placed at the end of a nested chain of shopping carts. The store employee connects the cart pusher to the rear of a long line of nested shopping carts. The employee goes to the front of the line and connects the cart pusher to a remote control device. The employee moves the line of shopping carts while manually guiding the leading shopping cart in the desired direction, and stops and removes the cart pusher when the arrangement of the shopping carts is complete.

[0010] Even with such a method, manual operation by a person is required. Human resources are generally the largest expense for a company. Furthermore, employees will not prefer to collect shopping carts in bad weather. During thunderstorms, there is a risk of strong winds and lightning strikes, and it may be dangerous to be outdoors.

[0011] Exemplary embodiments of the present application provide an automatic shopping cart collection system in which shopping carts returned by customers to a linear fence or a cart storage area are automatically transported to a desired location. This system uses existing navigation and autopilot technologies to guide the shopping carts to a predetermined location.

[0012] Exemplary embodiments include a cart lane or cart storage area where a shopper returns a shopping cart. In this system, a cart pusher is used at the rear end of a nested column of shopping carts, and a lead cart or guiding cart is used at the front. Any type of remotely operable electric cart pusher can be used. For example, commercially available cart pushers, including remotely operable ones, are manufactured by companies such as Dane Technologies, CDS, Inc., and Eagle Parts & Products, Inc.

[0013] An intelligent guiding cart is equipped with a navigation system including a position sensor for guiding a path from one location to another. It also has an automatic steering device and sensors for predicting and avoiding collisions. The guiding cart eliminates the need for human control. Exemplary embodiments of the guiding cart can be realized with existing robot navigation devices such as autonomous warehouse robots that function as AGVs (Automated Guided Vehicles). Suitable AGVs autonomously travel along paths made of wires, magnetic strips, tracks, floor-embedded sensors, and other physical guiding devices. Other suitable AGVs use cameras, lidars, infrared rays, and other advanced technologies to move through the work space, identify obstacles, and avoid collisions. For example, there are products from Prime Robotics, I AM Robotics, and 6 River Systems. Note that a position sensor as part of the navigation system can be, for example, a digital camera. The guiding cart adjusts its path according to the detected objects based on the images captured by the digital camera.

[0014] Exemplary embodiments of this specification include one or more electronic beacons such as BLE (Bluetooth (registered trademark) Low Energy) beacons that can transmit data. A standard BLE beacon has a reach of approximately 70 meters. A long-range beacon can reach up to 450 meters. The beacon, or beacon array, can provide information regarding direction to a guided cart. The known location information associated with the beacon can guide the guided cart to a specific location. If a store has multiple entrances and thus multiple cart storage areas, the shopping cart can be guided to one of two or more locations by selectively or alternately activating the beacon. Also, navigation can be suitably implemented by performing triangulation between signals received from multiple transmitters or by using GPS information.

[0015] Figure 1 is an exemplary embodiment of an automatic shopping cart collection system 100 capable of collecting a row 104 of nested shopping carts 108. An intelligent guided cart 112 is coupled to the first cart 108' of the row 104. The guided cart 112 includes a digital video camera 116 and an antenna 120 for transmitting an operation command (operation instruction) to a motorized remotely operable cart pusher 124 via an antenna 128. The cart pusher 124 is coupled to the last cart 108" of the row 104. When coupled, the cart pusher 124 pushes all the shopping carts and the guided cart 112 to a desired location under the navigation control of the guided cart 112. The guided cart 112 is preferably capable of wireless data communication via a Bluetooth (registered trademark) connection to a Bluetooth (registered trademark) access point or via a BLE beacon 132. The above-described operation command is preferably transmitted at predetermined preset collection times. Examples of the collection time include 15 minutes. The collection time can be set and changed as appropriate.

[0016] FIG. 2 shows an exemplary embodiment of an automatic shopping cart collection system 200 associated with a retail store 204 including a parking lot 208. The cart lane 212 is formed by a fence enclosure that is linear and open at both ends, and is preferably formed by parallel handrails 216, 220. The handrails 216, 220 are installed at intervals such that the carts are aligned linearly when the cart is returned to the fence enclosure opening 224 by the customer. The guiding cart 228 is disposed at the front end 232 of the cart lane 212. When the shopping cart 236 is transported to the cart storage area 240, the cart pusher 244 is disposed behind the shopping cart 236 at the opening 224. The guiding cart 228 wirelessly activates the cart pusher 244. If there is no customer, the shopping carts 236 are pushed into each other to be nested. When nesting is achieved, the guiding cart 228 begins to move by the force of the cart pusher 244. The guiding cart 228 recognizes the surrounding environment and guides the nested row of shopping carts 236 to the cart storage area 240, and preferably stops the cart pusher 244 upon arrival. The guiding cart 228 can change the path, stop, or start the cart in order to avoid obstacles such as pedestrians, vehicles, or other carts based on input from a camera or other sensors.

[0017] Also, the automatic shopping cart collection system 200 includes a digital camera 250 that images the shopping carts 236 within the cart lane 212. The captured image of the cart lane 212 captured by the camera 250 is transmitted to the guiding cart 228 by the wireless data communication described above. The guiding cart 228 that has acquired the captured image can monitor the shopping carts 236 within the cart lane 212.

[0018] Examples of the monitoring here include counting the number of shopping carts 236 by performing known image processing on the captured image. For example, the guiding cart 228 determines whether the counted number of shopping carts 236 is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold (e.g., 30). If it is equal to or greater than the predetermined threshold, it is determined that the cart lane 212 is full, and the guiding cart 228 moves to the head position of the cart lane 212 and transmits an operation command to the cart pusher 244.

[0019] As another example of monitoring, measuring the length of a column of a plurality of connected shopping carts 236 can be mentioned. For example, the guiding cart 228 determines whether the measured length is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold value, and performs the above-described processing and the like according to the determination result. The threshold value here is preferably set to a length equal to or less than the length of the cart lane 212. For example, when the length of the cart lane 212 is 30 m, it may be set to about 25 m.

[0020] Also, since the shopping cart 236 is not necessarily in a packed state within the cart lane 212, the guiding cart 228 may transmit an operation command to the cart pusher 244 every predetermined pressing time (for example, 1 minute) set in advance. In this case, the cart pusher 244 can press the shopping cart 236 to make it in a packed state. Thereby, when the above-described monitoring is based on the length of the shopping cart 236, it is possible to avoid a situation where the intervals between the carts are actually separated and the number of collected shopping carts 236 is not the desired number of carts. The pressing time can be appropriately set and changed.

[0021] Next, FIG. 3 shows an example of a digital device system suitably provided with functional components of a leading cart or a guiding cart such as the guiding cart 112 in FIG. 1 or the guiding cart 228 in FIG. 2. One or more processors such as those exemplified by the processor 304 are included. Each processor is preferably associated with a non-volatile memory such as a read-only memory (ROM) 310 and a random access memory (RAM) 312 via a data bus 314.

[0022] The processor 304 is also communicably connected to a storage device interface 306 and reads and writes to a storage device system 308 preferably configured by a hard disk, an optical disk, a solid state disk, or other suitable storage device selected by those skilled in the art.

[0023] Processor 304 is also communicatively connected to a network interface controller (NIC) 330, which provides a data path to any suitable network or device connection, such as a suitable wireless data connection via wireless network interface 338. A suitable data connection with the cart pusher is made through direct wireless data communication. The digital data connection is preferably made via Bluetooth®, optical data transmission, Wi-Fi Direct®, or other wireless or remote control protocols. A suitable data connection with the digital camera for monitoring the shopping cart is made through wireless data communication.

[0024] Processor 304 is also communicatively connected to a user input / output (I / O) interface 340 that provides data communication with user peripheral devices such as touch display 344 via display generator 346, and with a keyboard, mouse, trackball, touch screen, etc. Each functional unit is preferably configured by an intelligent component unit including various suitable hardware or software platforms. Also, a steering control interface 350 for determining the position of the wheels of the guided cart is communicatively connected to processor 304 to direct the nested rows of shopping carts to a desired location. Environmental recognition for navigation is obtained via a sensor interface 354 that preferably incorporates inputs from devices such as digital camera 358, radar or lidar 362, or any other suitable sensor 366.

[0025] FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the guided cart according to the present embodiment. The guided cart according to the present embodiment includes a determination unit 501, an acquisition unit 502, a guidance unit 503, a command generation unit 504 (generation unit), and a transmission unit 505 as functions. These functions can be realized by the cooperation of the hardware shown in FIG. 3, particularly processor 304 and random access memory 312.

[0026] The determination unit 501 performs various determination processes performed by the guiding cart, such as determination regarding monitoring of the shopping cart 236 in the cart lane 212 based on the captured image of the digital camera 250, and determination of whether or not a predetermined time has been reached. The acquisition unit 502 acquires data from an external device capable of communicating with the guiding cart, such as acquisition of the captured image of the digital camera 250 and acquisition of the beacon. The guiding unit 503 guides the shopping cart according to the beacon data and adjusts the guiding path according to the position sensor. The command generation unit 504 generates an operation command. The transmission unit 504 transmits the generated operation command to the cart pusher, etc.

[0027] Figure 5 is a flowchart 400 of an exemplary embodiment of the automatic shopping cart collection system. The process starts at block 404 and proceeds to block 408 where the customer returns the cart to the cart lane. This cart lane is preferably configured as a linear fence enclosure, and its width is such that when the cart is pushed from behind, the carts are naturally nested. Next, at block 412, it is checked by the determination unit 501 whether the cart lane is full. If it is not full (block 412, NO), a check is performed by the determination unit 501 at block 416 to determine whether the regular collection time has been reached. If the cart lane is not full and the regular collection time has not been reached (block 416, NO), the system returns to block 408 to accept the next cart in the cart lane.

[0028] When the cartridge lane is full (block 412, YES), or when the regular collection time has arrived (block 416, YES), the system proceeds to block 420, and the guiding cart is positioned by the guiding unit 503 to contact the first cart in the cartridge lane. In one embodiment, the guiding cart is first placed in an empty or nearly empty enclosure, and can be connected when it contacts the first cart in the nested row of carts. Also, the guiding cart may move to a non-empty enclosure and be positioned at a location to contact the first cart when needed. Also, it may be manually positioned to contact the first cart in the cartridge lane. In another example, the guiding cart may include a braking mechanism to prevent the cart from moving when pushed from behind. This is helpful when the nesting is incomplete and the cart pusher pushes to complete the nesting.

[0029] Next, in block 424, the cart pusher is arranged at a position where it can contact and push the last cart in the cart lane. The cart pusher may be manually positioned or may include an autonomous navigation function similar to that which operates when the guided cart positions itself. Next, in block 428, it is checked by determination unit 501 whether the target position of the guided cart has been set. If the target position of the guided cart has been set (block 428, YES), the process proceeds to block 432, where an operation command is generated by command generation unit 504, transmitted to the cart pusher by transmission unit 505, and the cart pusher is activated. If the target position has not been set (block 428, NO), or if a new target position is required, in block 436, the target position information is preferably wirelessly acquired by acquisition unit 505 via a Bluetooth (registered trademark) data connection. This target position information can be acquired from the transmitting device, for example, by the transmission unit 505 transmitting information indicating that the target position has not been set to an information processing device such as a server or PC (Personal Computer) installed in the store, a server of another store via a network, a cloud server, etc. The guiding unit 503 guides the nested row of shopping carts to the target position in block 440. When the target position is reached, in block 444, both the cart pusher and the guided cart are detached from the nested row of shopping carts, and in block 448, they return to the cart lane designated for another collection operation. The process preferably ends in block 452 or returns to block 408 for the next collection operation.

[0030] In addition, in the present embodiment, although it has been described that each function described with reference to FIG. 4 is realized by the guidance cart, it may be realized not only by the guidance cart but also by any one of the cart pusher, or an external processing device (communication device) capable of communicating with these, or a combination thereof. For example, when each function is realized by the card pusher and guidance by the guidance cart is performed, a guidance operation command for operating the guidance cart may be transmitted from the card pusher to the guidance cart. When each function is realized by the external processing device, the external processing device may transmit an operation command to the card pusher and a guidance operation command to the guidance cart. As another example, the external processing device may be responsible for acquiring the captured image of the digital camera 250 and monitoring the cart lane based on the captured image, and transmit a guidance operation command based on the determination result of the monitoring from the external processing device to the guidance cart, and the guidance cart may transmit the operation command to the card pusher. The external processing device described here includes, for example, an information processing device such as a server or a PC installed in the store, a server of another store via a network, a cloud server, and the like.

[0031] Although specific embodiments have been described above, the embodiments are merely illustrative and do not limit the scope of the invention. The novel embodiments described above can be realized in various other forms, and furthermore, various omissions, substitutions, and changes can be made to the embodiments described in this specification without departing from the gist of the present invention. These embodiments or modifications are included within the scope and gist of the invention and within the scope of the claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A cart pusher for pushing a plurality of shopping carts arranged in a nested manner; An induction cart having a position sensor, being pushed by the cart pusher through the leading cart of the plurality of shopping carts, and guiding the plurality of shopping carts to a predetermined location according to the output of the position sensor while being pushed; A generation unit that generates an operation instruction for starting a pushing operation of pushing the plurality of shopping carts by the cart pusher; A determination unit that determines at least one of whether the plurality of shopping carts is a predetermined number and whether the length of a cart group composed of the plurality of shopping carts is a predetermined length based on an imaging image of a cart lane including the plurality of shopping carts imaged by a camera; Comprising; The cart pusher pushes the plurality of shopping carts based on the operation instruction; The generation unit generates the operation instruction when at least one of the cases where the determination unit determines that the plurality of shopping carts is a predetermined number and the case where the length of the cart group composed of the plurality of shopping carts is a predetermined length; A shopping cart collection system characterized by the above.

2. The generation unit is included in any one of the induction cart, the cart pusher, and a communication device that can communicate with at least the cart pusher; When the operation instruction is generated by the induction cart or the communication device, it is transmitted to the cart pusher; The shopping cart collection system according to Claim 1, characterized by the above.

3. The generation unit generates the operation instruction at a predetermined interval in a state where the induction cart is stationary; The cart pusher pushes the plurality of shopping carts each time the operation instruction is generated; The shopping cart collection system according to Claim 1 or Claim 2, characterized by the above.

4. A cart pusher for pushing a plurality of shopping carts arranged in a nested manner; An induction cart having a position sensor, being pushed by the cart pusher through the leading cart of the plurality of shopping carts, and guiding the plurality of shopping carts to a predetermined location according to the output of the position sensor while being pushed; A generation unit that generates an operation instruction for starting a pushing operation of pushing the plurality of shopping carts by the cart pusher at a predetermined interval; Comprising; The cart pusher pushes the plurality of shopping carts based on the operation instruction; A shopping cart collection system characterized by the above. Step of determining at least one of whether the plurality of shopping carts is a predetermined number and whether the length of the cart group composed of the plurality of shopping carts is a predetermined length based on an imaging image of a cart lane including the plurality of nested and aligned shopping carts imaged by a camera; Step of generating an operation instruction for starting a pushing operation of pushing the plurality of shopping carts by a cart pusher when at least one of the cases where it is determined that the plurality of shopping carts is a predetermined number and the case where it is determined that the length of the cart group composed of the plurality of shopping carts is a predetermined length; Step of connecting the leading cart of the plurality of shopping carts to a guiding cart; Step of connecting the last cart of the plurality of shopping carts to the cart pusher; Step of starting a pushing operation of pushing the plurality of shopping carts by the cart pusher based on the operation instruction; Step of guiding the plurality of shopping carts to a predetermined place by the guiding cart A shopping cart collection method, characterized by including the above.

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