Wireless Inventory Notification System for Retail Out-of-Stock Detection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Retailers face challenges in providing customers with out-of-stock inventory items, as existing systems lack efficient mechanisms for customers to locate and obtain products that are not available in sufficient quantities or not stocked at all in brick-and-mortar stores.
Innovation Solution
A system and method that utilizes a database to associate product codes with store codes and inventory numbers, allowing customers to wirelessly transmit information to determine product availability and receive notifications on mobile devices about the availability of out-of-stock items across different stores, enabling alternatives such as in-store delivery, substitute products, or ordering from other locations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If retailers maintain traditional brick-and-mortar stores with physical shelving, then customers can physically select and purchase items, but customers cannot obtain items that are out-of-stock or not sufficiently stocked
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a wireless communication system as an intermediary between customers and out-of-stock inventory. The system receives wireless signals from mobile devices, queries inventory databases, and transmits notification messages back to customers, enabling them to obtain out-of-stock items without physical presence at the store.
Solution Approach 2:
The system provides multiple functions through a single platform: it can notify customers of out-of-stock items, provide alternative product suggestions, enable remote ordering, and facilitate inventory checking across multiple store locations, making the solution adaptable to various customer needs.
2Loss of information
If retailers implement a system to track inventory across multiple stores, then customers can locate out-of-stock items at other locations, but the system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple functions into a unified system: inventory tracking across stores, wireless communication capabilities, database querying, and customer notification are merged into a single integrated platform that processes requests and provides comprehensive inventory information.
Solution Approach 2:
The system enables customers to independently query inventory status and receive notifications about out-of-stock items without requiring retailer staff intervention. The automated database querying and message transmission allow customers to obtain information on their own.
3Productivity
If retailers provide real-time inventory notifications to customers, then customer satisfaction improves, but the time and resources required to manage inventory information increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by maintaining up-to-date inventory databases and automatically querying them when customers send wireless requests. This pre-established infrastructure allows for rapid response times without requiring manual inventory checking at the moment of customer inquiry.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements a feedback loop where customer requests trigger automated inventory checks, and results are transmitted back to customers via notification messages. This automated feedback mechanism provides real-time information without requiring continuous manual monitoring by staff.
Data Source
AI summary
In a system and method for obtaining out of stock inventory at a retail enterprise, stored product codes are associated with one or more store codes and each associated store code is associated with an inventory number. The product codes identify products for sale, the store codes identify stores that normally stock the identified products and each inventory number identifies the number of the products in inventory at each store. In response to a wirelessly received product code, store code and customer code, a processor determines the stored product code that matches the wirelessly received product code, the associated store code that matches the wirelessly received store code and its associated inventory number, and controls a communication circuit to wirelessly transmit a notification message to the mobile communication device that transmitted the codes. The notification message illustratively relates to the availability within the retail enterprise of the identified product.