Claims
- 1. A market research system comprising:
- a plurality of cooperating retail stores in a market research test area, each of said stores having at least partially automated first means for processing retail sales transactions in the normal operation of said retail store,
- non-invasive automated second means disposed in each of said stores for monitoring said first means in a substantially totally passive manner and for collecting market research data based on said retail sales transactions, said second means including sensor means for monitoring and for detecting said processed retail sales transactions and processor means coupled to said sensor means for processing said detected retail sales transactions,
- said first means operating independently of said second means, said second means operating responsive to said first means without requiring any responsive operation by said first means and without requiring any modification of said first means, and
- automated third means remotely located from said plurality of retail stores for receiving said market research data from said plurality of retail stores and for storing said market research data for subsequent use by market researchers.
- 2. A market research system as recited in claim 1 wherein said sensor means for monitoring said first means includes an antenna.
- 3. A market research system as recited in claim 2 wherein said first means generates first electrical signals relating to said retail sales transactions and wherein said antenna is physically disposed in the vicinity of said first means for enabling at least portions of said first electrical signals to be detected by said antenna.
- 4. A market research system as recited in claim 3 wherein said second processor means further includes microprocessor means for processing and storing retail sales transaction data detected by said antenna, said microprocessor means being otherwise adapted to process and store said retail sales transaction data independently of said first means.
- 5. A market research system as recited in claim 4 wherein said second means further includes adapter means for adapting said second means to a particular first means in said store in which said second means is disposed for enabling said microprocessor to process said retail sales transaction data detected by said antenna.
- 6. A market research system as recited in claim 4 wherein said second means further comprises communications modem means for enabling said second means to transfer said market research data to said third means.
- 7. A market research system as recited in claim 4 wherein said third means further comprises means for remotely reprogramming said microprocessor.
- 8. A market research system as recited in claim 1 further comprising means for transferring said market research data from said second means to said third means.
- 9. A market research system as recited in claim 8 wherein said transferring means comprises a telephone connection between said second means and said third means.
- 10. A market research system as recited in claim 8 wherein said transferring means comprises a radio frequency modem disposed in at least one of said plurality of retail stores for transferring market research data over-the-air from said second means.
- 11. A market research system as recited in claim 8 wherein said transferring means comprises a data communications network for transferring said market research data from said second means to said third means via an earth orbiting satellite.
- 12. A market research system as recited in claim 1 wherein said third means comprises automated central processing means for processing said market research data and data storage means for storing said market research data.
- 13. A market research system as recited in claim 1 wherein said market research test area comprises an entire country.
- 14. A market research system as recited in claim 1 wherein said first means comprises at least one optical UPC scanner and an automated scanner controller, said scanner and said controller being interconnected by a digital data store communications loop.
- 15. A market research system as recited in claim 14 wherein said second means includes sensor means for monitoring said store loop, said sensor means including antenna means for detecting digital data present on said store loop representative of said retail sales transactions.
- 16. A market research system as recited in claim 1 wherein said second means further includes microprocessor means for processing said digital data detected by said antenna means, said microprocessor means being otherwise adapted to collect said retail sales transaction data represented by said digital data independently of said first means.
- 17. A market research system comprising
- a plurality of cooperating retail stores in a market research test area, each of said stores having at least partially automated first means for processing retail sales transactions in said store,
- non-invasive automated second means disposed in each of said stores for monitoring said first means in a substantially totally passive manner and for collecting market research data based on said retail sales transactions, said second means including sensor means for monitoring said first means, said sensor means including an antenna, said second means further including microprocessor means for processing and storing retail sales transaction data detected by said antenna, said microprocessor means being otherwise adapted to process and store said retail sales transaction data independently of said first means, and said microprocessor including a central processing unit, variable memory means and retail sales transaction data storage means, said second means further including adapter means for adapting said second means to a particular first means in said store in which said second means is disposed for enabling said microprocessor to process said retail sales transaction data detected by said antenna, and
- automated third means remotely located from said plurality of retail stores for receiving said market research data from said plurality of retail stores and for storing said market research data for subsequent use by market researchers,
- said first means operating independently of said second means, and said first means generating first electrical signals relating to said retail sales transactions,
- wherein said antenna is physically disposed in the vicinity of said first means for enabling at least portions of said first electrical signals to be detected by said antenna, and
- wherein said second means further comprises interface means disposed between said sensor means and said adapter means for supplying electrical power to said sensor means and for supplying second electrical signals representative of said first electrical signals to said adapter means.
- 18. A market research system as recited in claim 17 wherein said electrical power and said second electrical signals are transmitted simultaneously between said sensor means and said interface means over the same electrical conductors.
- 19. A market research system as recited in claim 18 wherein said sensor means includes high pass filter means for suppressing spurious signals and impedance matching means for interconnecting said antenna and said high pass filter means.
- 20. A market research system as recited in claim 19 wherein at least one of said high pass filter mens and said impedance matching means comprises an operational amplifier that is powered by said electrical power from said interface means.
- 21. A market research system as recited in claim 20 wherein both of said high pass filter means and said impedance matching means comprise operational amplifiers that are powered by said electrical power from said interface means.
- 22. A market research system as recited in claim 17 wherein said interface means comprises power supply means for supplying low voltage direct current power to said sensor means and amplifying means for amplifying at least portions of time varying signals received from said sensing means.
- 23. A market research system as recited in claim 22 wherein said interface means further comprises means for suppressing spurious time varying signals and for increasing the rise times of non-spurious time varying signals.
- 24. A market research system as recited in claim 23 wherein said suppressing means comprises at least one Schmitt Trigger device.
- 25. A market research system as recited in claim 22 wherein said interface means further comprises line driver means for providing a digital logic signal of a required amplitude from said interface means to said adapter means.
- 26. A market research data collection system comprising
- a plurality of cooperating retail stores, each of said stores having automated first means for processing retail sales transactions in said store, said first means comprising at least one point-of-sale scanner and an automated scanner controller, said scanner and said controller being interconnected by a digital data store communications loop,
- non-invasive automated second means disposed in each of said stores for monitoring said store loop in a substantially totally passive manner and for collecting market research data based on said retail sales transactions, said second means including antenna means physically disposed adjacent to a portion of said store loop for detecting digital data present on said store loop representative of said retail sales transactions, said second means further including microprocessor means, including a central processing unit, variable memory means and retail sales transaction data storage means, for processing said digital data detected by said antenna means, said microprocessor means being otherwise adapted to collect said retail sales transaction data represented by said digital data independently of said first means, said second means further including adapter means for adapting said second means to a particular first means in said store in which said second means is disposed for enabling said microprocessor to process said digital data detected by said antenna means, and
- third means remotely located from said plurality of retail stores for receiving said market research data from said plurality of retail stores and for storing said market research data
- wherein the only electrical signal connection between said first means and said second means is through said antenna means, and wherein said antenna means comprises part of a sensor assembly disposed adjacent to said portion of said store loop for monitoring said digital data present on said store loop and wherein said second means further comprises interface means disposed between said sensor assembly and said adapter means for supplying low voltage, direct current electrical power to said sensor assembly and for supplying time varying electrical signals representative of said digital data detected by said antenna means to said adapter means.
- 27. A market research data collection system as recited in claim 26 wherein said electrical power and said electrical signals are transmitted simultaneously between said sensor assembly and said interface means over the same electrical conductors.
- 28. A retail store data collection system for use in a retail store having at least one Point-Of-Sale scanner and a scanner controller interconnected by a store data communications loop comprising:
- sensor means disposed in the vicinity of a portion of said store loop for monitoring and for detecting data signals present on said store loop,
- memory means coupled to said sensor means for storing information in response to the detection of said data signals by said sensor means, and
- said sensor means and said memory means operating responsive to said scanner and scanner controller and without requiring any responsive operation by said scanner and said scanner controller and without requiring any modification of said scanner and said scanner controller.
- 29. A retail store data collection system as recited in claim 28 wherein said data signals present on said store loop comprises digital data signals.
- 30. A method of collecting market research data from a plurality of cooperating retail stores, each store of said plurality of stores having at least one Point-Of-Sale scanner and a scanner controller and a store digital data communications loop interconnecting said scanner and said scanner controller, said method comprising the steps of
- disposing non-invasive sensor means in each of said stores for monitoring and for detecting in a substantially totally passive manner with respect to said scanner and said scanner controller and said store loop digital data present on said store loop, said detected digital data being representative of retail sales transactions in said store,
- detecting said digital data present in said store loop,
- storing information in response to the detection of said digital data in a memory, said memory being separate from said scanner and said scanner controller in said store, said sensor means and said memory operating responsive to the normal retail sales operations of said scanner and said scanner controller in said retail store and
- transmitting said information from said retail store to a remote central location, said transmitted information for processing, storage and use by market researchers.
- 31. A method of collecting market research data concerning retail sales transactions occurring in each store of a plurality of cooperating retail stores, each cooperating retail store having a first automated system for processing the retail sales transactions, said method comprising the steps of:
- monitoring said first automated system and detecting in a substantially totally passive manner electrical data signals present in said store representative of said retail sales transactions,
- storing information in response to the detection of said electrical data signals in a memory, said memory being located in said store and being separate from said first automated system in said store for processing said retail sales transactions and the normal operations of said store and
- periodically sending said information stored in said memory from said store to a remote location for subsequent use by market researchers.
- 32. A market research data collection system comprising
- a plurality of cooperating retail stores, each store of said plurality of stores having automated first means for processing retail sales transactions in said store, said first means comprising at least one Point-Of-Sale optical scanner and an automated scanner controller and a digital data store communications loop interconnecting said scanner and said controller,
- non-invasive automated second means disposed in each store of said plurality of stores for monitoring said store loop and for collecting information based on said retail sales transactions useful in performing "market basket" analyses, said second means including sensor means for monitoring and for detecting digital data present on said store loop, said detected digital data being representative of said retail sales transactions, and said second means otherwise operating independently of said scanner and said scanner controller and said store loop and without requiring any responsive operation by said scanner and said scanner controller and without requiring any modification of said scanner and said scanner controller and
- third means remotely located from said plurality of retail stores for receiving said information from said second means for further processing, storage and subsequent use by market researchers in performing "market basket" analyses.
Parent Case Info
This application is a continuation of application Ser. No, 155,052, filed Feb. 11, 1988, now abandoned.
US Referenced Citations (8)
Non-Patent Literature Citations (1)
Entry |
The Ethernet Sourcebook; 1985; Shotwell et al.; p. 292. |
Continuations (1)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
155052 |
Feb 1988 |
|