Display management systems
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Solution Overview
Problem
Retail stores face significant costs and inefficiencies in inventory management due to manual labor requirements for counting products on shelves, product theft, inaccurate tracking of inventory levels, and ineffective promotional display analysis, leading to excess inventory and wasted shelf space.
Innovation Solution
A display management system with a mechanism that moves in response to product removal, generating electronic data for real-time inventory tracking, theft detection, and promotional analysis using sensor assemblies and pusher assemblies with indicia strips to determine product positions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If manual inventory counting is performed, then inventory levels can be determined, but significant manual labor is required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces manual mechanical counting with an automated sensor-based detection system. Sensors mounted on shelves detect product presence and removal automatically, eliminating the need for manual inventory counting while maintaining accurate inventory level tracking.
Solution Approach 2:
The inventory system performs self-monitoring through sensors that automatically detect product removal and generate alerts. The system serves itself by continuously tracking inventory levels without requiring human intervention for counting or data collection.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If in-store cameras are used to monitor theft, then theft detection is attempted, but cameras often do not observe theft clearly enough to catch or prosecute the thief
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces sensors as intermediary detection devices mounted directly on shelves and products. These sensors detect product removal at the source with high precision, serving as an intermediary between the theft act and the central monitoring system, providing clearer and more reliable detection data than remote cameras.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary detection by monitoring product presence continuously before theft occurs. Sensors detect when products are removed from shelves and generate immediate alerts, enabling preventive action before the thief can complete the theft or escape.
3Productivity
If product is placed in multiple promotional locations, then customer awareness increases, but it becomes difficult to determine the effectiveness of a particular promotional display
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments promotional displays into individually trackable units with unique identifiers. Each promotional location and display is equipped with sensors that independently monitor product movement, allowing the system to attribute sales and customer interactions to specific promotional locations and measure their individual effectiveness.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements feedback by continuously collecting data from sensors at each promotional location and providing real-time information about product removal, customer interest, and display performance. This feedback enables marketers to evaluate and optimize the effectiveness of each promotional display.
4Reliability
If excess inventory is maintained to ensure shelves are stocked, then product availability is ensured, but shelf space is wasted and inventory costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements real-time feedback through sensors that continuously monitor inventory levels and provide data to the central system. This feedback enables dynamic inventory management, allowing the system to maintain optimal stock levels that ensure product availability while minimizing excess inventory and shelf space waste.
Solution Approach 2:
The system transitions from static inventory management to dynamic monitoring. Sensors enable real-time detection of product removal and automatic generation of restocking alerts, allowing inventory levels to be dynamically adjusted based on actual demand and availability, rather than maintaining fixed excess stock.
Data Source
AI summary
Sensor-equipped display management systems and methods that may be used to calculate a number of products removed from a display management system based upon motion of one or more mechanisms within the display management system. Additionally, the systems and methods may be used to detect patterns from the sensor data, which may be indicative of attempted theft of products stored within the display management system. Audible and/or visual notifications can be provided when an attempted theft is detected.