Broker System for Seamless Online-Physical Session Integration
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Solution Overview
Problem
There is a need for seamless integration of online and physical facility experiences, allowing users to seamlessly transition between online sessions and physical interactions, such as self-checkout processes, without requiring manual re-entry of account information or session details.
Innovation Solution
An integration system comprising a first computing system, a second computing system, and a broker system, where the second computing system in a physical facility displays a graphical user interface that includes a machine-readable element encoded with its identification, allowing users to scan this element using their mobile device, which communicates with a broker system to access and integrate online session information from a first database into the physical facility's interface.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If users manually re-enter account information and session details at physical facilities, then system integration complexity is reduced, but user convenience and transaction efficiency deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a broker system as an intermediary component that mediates between the online system (first computing system) and the physical facility system (second computing system). The broker system receives machine-readable input from users, translates it into account identifiers, and retrieves corresponding online session information to integrate into the physical facility interface. This intermediary architecture enables automatic integration of online and physical experiences without requiring users to manually re-enter information, while distributing system complexity across specialized components rather than concentrating it in a single integrated system.
2Ease of operation
If online session information is automatically integrated into the physical facility interface, then user convenience improves, but information security and system reliability worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by requiring users to explicitly scan or input machine-readable identifiers before any online session information is retrieved or integrated. The broker system validates these identifiers against the first computing system before proceeding with information retrieval. This preliminary authentication step ensures that only authorized users can access their online session data, maintaining information security while enabling convenient automatic integration for verified users.
3Adaptability or versatility
If a broker system is introduced to mediate between online and physical systems, then system adaptability and integration capability improve, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The broker system is designed as a universal intermediary that can handle multiple types of machine-readable inputs (barcodes, QR codes, NFC tags) and translate them into various account identifier formats. It can retrieve and integrate different types of online session information (shopping carts, reservations, tickets) into the physical facility interface. This multi-functional design consolidates what could be multiple specialized integration systems into a single versatile component, reducing overall system complexity while maintaining high adaptability.
Data Source
AI summary
Automated integration systems and methods using a broker system to enable the integration of a user's stored online session with a current session on a computing device in a physical facility are discussed.