Multi-Session Retail Purchase Linking via Single Transaction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Retail customers face inconvenience in purchasing additional items within a single shopping session without having to exit and reenter a retail facility, as existing systems do not efficiently manage multiple purchase sessions or link them as a single transaction, leading to increased communication bandwidth and potential delays.
Innovation Solution
A system that enables customers to initiate and link multiple purchase sessions as a single transaction through mobile devices, using a distributed communication network, allowing for seamless addition of items to a virtual cart and streamlined checkout processes, including the use of QR codes and APIs to manage inventory and transactions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If customers complete separate purchase sessions without linking them, then each session can be processed independently, but the customer must exit and reenter the facility and communication bandwidth increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple separate purchase sessions into a single linked transaction. The system receives session notifications for additional purchase sessions, links them to previous sessions, and processes them as a single transaction, allowing customers to add items without exiting the facility and reducing total communication bandwidth usage.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary actions by establishing session notifications and pre-linking purchase sessions before the customer completes all purchases. The purchase control circuit receives session notifications and establishes links between sessions in advance, streamlining the checkout process.
2Reliability
If multiple purchase sessions are processed as separate transactions, then security checks can be performed for each session, but communication bandwidth increases and processing time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple purchase sessions into a single transaction while maintaining security. The purchase control circuit links sessions and performs a single authentication process that covers all linked sessions, reducing communication bandwidth and processing time while maintaining security through unified transaction verification.
Solution Approach 2:
The single transaction structure serves multiple functions by handling multiple purchase sessions simultaneously. The authentication process becomes universal, applying to all linked sessions at once, which improves processing efficiency without compromising the security verification required for each session.
3Productivity
If the system links multiple purchase sessions as a single transaction, then communication bandwidth is reduced and processing is streamlined, but the system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the purchase process into distinct sessions that can be independently initiated, while the purchase control circuit manages the linking of these sessions. This segmentation allows the system to handle multiple sessions through a standardized interface, reducing overall system complexity despite the multi-session capability.
Data Source
AI summary
Some embodiments provide systems to device in purchasing retail items, comprise: a product database; a transaction database; and a mobile purchase control circuit configured to: receive a session notification from a mobile customer computing device to initiate an additional purchase session; establish, in response to the session notification, a second purchase session, and link the first and second purchase sessions as a single transaction; incorporate into a second virtual cart, associated with the second purchase session and different than a first virtual cart associated with the first purchase session, item identification information for each of one or more items identified, through the customer computing device, by the customer and intended to be purchased by the customer in association with the second purchase session; and cause a final authentication of the single transaction in authenticating at a single time of both the first session and the second session.