Virtual Shopping Area for Immersive Merchant Browsing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Online commerce lacks the immersive and interactive elements of in-person shopping, making it cumbersome for consumers to discover and purchase goods and services, as users are overwhelmed by numerous options and lack the sensory experiences that traditional shopping provides.
Innovation Solution
Creating a virtual shopping area on a computing device that generates a list of relevant merchants based on user queries and constraints, allowing for a three-dimensional virtual space where users can browse and interact with merchants, view item details, and make purchases, with optional features like location mapping and unified interfaces across merchants.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If consumers browse through numerous online merchant options using search engines, then they can access a wide variety of merchants and products, but the process becomes cumbersome and overwhelming
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple merchant interfaces and browsing functions into a single unified virtual shopping area. Instead of requiring users to separately visit different merchant websites and search engines, the system combines all merchant options into one integrated virtual environment that can be accessed through a single interface, thereby simplifying the shopping process while maintaining access to diverse merchant options.
Solution Approach 2:
The virtual shopping area acts as an intermediary between consumers and multiple merchants. Rather than directly interacting with numerous separate merchant interfaces, users interact with the virtual shopping area which mediates access to all underlying merchant options, making the process more manageable and less overwhelming.
2Adaptability or versatility
If each merchant has a separate interface and user profile, then each merchant can maintain their own branding and product lines, but users face complexity in navigating multiple interfaces
Solution Approach 1:
The system merges multiple separate merchant interfaces into a single unified virtual shopping area interface. Each merchant maintains their own storefront and product offerings within this unified environment, allowing merchant independence while presenting a consistent, simplified interface to users that eliminates the complexity of navigating multiple separate interfaces.
3Adaptability or versatility
If online commerce provides extensive product options, then consumers have more choices, but users become overwhelmed and may not know which options are relevant
Solution Approach 1:
The virtual shopping area applies local quality by organizing the extensive product variety into distinct merchant-specific zones or storefronts. Each merchant area presents their products in a localized context that is relevant to that merchant's offerings, making it easier for users to navigate and identify relevant options without being overwhelmed by the total variety across all merchants.
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed herein are systems, methods, and computer readable-media for creating a virtual shopping area. The method includes receiving a query from a user and an automated input specific to the user from a computing device, generating a list of merchants based on the query and the automated input, generating a virtual shopping area from the list of merchants and based on one or more constraints, and displaying the virtual shopping area on the computing device. One optional step is presenting to the user an interface to purchase query-related items from merchants in the virtual shopping area. The method optionally includes receiving an indication of intent to purchase an item from the user, displaying an image of the item to the user, and dynamically updating the displayed image of the item as the user specifies item-specific details. The list of merchants can be restricted to merchants geographically close to the user.