IP Verse

Method For Enhancing Customer Shopping Experience In A Retail Store

Patent No. US12039550 (titled "Method For Enhancing Customer Shopping Experience In A Retail Store") was filed by Alpha Modus Corp on Feb 1, 2022.

What is this patent about?

’550 is related to the field of retail analytics, specifically systems and methods for monitoring and analyzing consumer behavior within brick-and-mortar stores. The background acknowledges the challenges faced by physical retailers due to the rise of online shopping and showrooming. Existing methods for understanding consumer behavior, such as POS data, focus groups, and traffic counters, lack the real-time, granular data needed to personalize the shopping experience and effectively influence purchasing decisions.

The underlying idea behind ’550 is to leverage various technologies to capture and analyze in-store customer behavior in real-time, enabling retailers to deliver targeted and personalized experiences. This involves using a network of information monitoring devices such as cameras, sensors, and displays to track customer traffic, identify product interactions, and gather demographic data. The system then uses this information to engage customers with relevant content, promotions, and assistance, ultimately aiming to drive sales and improve the overall shopping experience.

The claims of ’550 focus on a method of obtaining and providing information analysis about shopping activities to either a brand entity or the retail store itself. This analysis is derived from data gathered by in-store monitoring devices, including traffic patterns, product interactions, and object identification . The method then involves enhancing the in-store experience based on this analysis, through targeted displays, personalized assistance from store personnel, tailored marketing, or the distribution of relevant coupons.

In practice, the system uses cameras and sensors to track customer movement and interactions with products on shelves. MAC address tracking can identify repeat customers and their browsing history. This data feeds into a central server that analyzes the information using various modules, such as demographic intelligence, traffic analysis, and object identification. Based on this analysis, the system can trigger personalized content on digital displays, alert store associates to assist customers, or send targeted promotions to customer's mobile devices.

The differentiation from prior approaches lies in the real-time, integrated nature of the system. Unlike traditional methods that rely on after-the-fact data or limited observation techniques, ’550 provides a comprehensive view of customer behavior throughout the store. By combining various data points and using intelligent algorithms, the system can deliver highly personalized experiences that are tailored to individual customer preferences and needs, effectively bridging the gap between online and offline retail.

How does this patent fit in bigger picture?

Technical landscape at the time

In the early 2010s when ’550 was filed, brick-and-mortar retailers were challenged with providing consumers a richer experience than online outlets, at a time when retailers commonly relied on point-of-sale (POS) data to understand consumer purchasing behavior, and when forecasting methods relied on historical data rather than real-time consumer behavior analysis.

Novelty and Inventive Step

The examiner approved the application because the closest prior art, consisting of Monaco et al. in view of Sharma et al. and Meyer et al., did not teach providing information analysis to a brand entity to enhance the in-store shopping experience in brick-and-mortar stores. Specifically, the prior art failed to teach the engagement of customers based on information analysis, the interaction with customers by store personnel based on electronic communication, the provision of targeted marketing, and the distribution of coupons based on analyzed information.

Claims

This patent contains 22 claims, with claims 1 and 12 being independent. The independent claims focus on a method of enhancing the in-store shopping experience by obtaining and providing information analysis about shopping activities. The dependent claims generally elaborate on and refine the specifics of the method described in the independent claims, such as the types of information gathered and the interactions with customers.

Key Claim Terms New

Definitions of key terms used in the patent claims.

Term (Source)Support for SpecificationInterpretation
Brick-and-mortar retail stores
(Claim 1, Claim 12)		“The retail industry is a highly competitive industry. Attracting and maintaining repeat customers is one of the industry's biggest challenges. Today, consumers shop in a multichannel environment, meaning they switch fluidly between brick-and-mortar, and online retail outlets. The increased use of the internet and social media provides retail customers with a greater amount of information to make purchasing decisions. Brick-and-mortar retailers are challenged with providing the consumer with a richer experience than they can obtain online, in order to increase in-store sales, and stay in business.”Physical retail locations where customers can shop.
Information analysis
(Claim 1, Claim 12)		“The disclosed system includes a retail store system that features and can include MAC address tracking, user eye tracking, object identification of goods on shelves, APIs, and an advertising broker rules engine. In addition, the system can include customer engagement with interactive output displays that include displays with demographic and facial expression intelligence, displays with demographics and MAC—panels throughout store at product, displays with demographics and MAC—single panel or few panels scattered throughout store, automated customer assistance at shelf, customer purchase at shelf.”An analysis of gathered information about shopping activities of a plurality of persons. The gathered information includes traffic information, product interaction information, and object identification information.
Information monitoring devices
(Claim 1, Claim 12)		“The system generally includes one or more (and typically most) of cloud services, computing devices, user input and output devices, POS devices, local servers, cameras and sensors, WIFI devices, in-store customer devices, and output devices. Additionally, the system generally includes a system for communicating to user devices, such as cell phones. Further, the system generally includes networking between all of the above, between the above and cloud based services, and between the above and user devices. The system further can also include standalone customer kiosks.”Devices used to gather information about shopping activities of persons, including traffic, product interaction, and object identification.
Object identification information
(Claim 1, Claim 12)		“The disclosed system includes a retail store system that features and can include MAC address tracking, user eye tracking, object identification of goods on shelves, APIs, and an advertising broker rules engine. In addition, the system can include customer engagement with interactive output displays that include displays with demographic and facial expression intelligence, displays with demographics and MAC—panels throughout store at product, displays with demographics and MAC—single panel or few panels scattered throughout store, automated customer assistance at shelf, customer purchase at shelf.”Information comprising the one or more products that the persons interacted with during the product interactions.
Product interaction information
(Claim 1, Claim 12)		“The system can include a reviews summary module for generating and tailoring information and review summaries. The present system offers a variety of added benefits, but at the core, the system's goal is to provide pertinent product information and reviews for the customer. It is because of this lack of information that 60% of showrooming customers choose to buy elsewhere. Without addressing this impediment effectively, then the supplementary benefits become futile.”Information about the type of interactions persons had with one or more products.

Litigation Cases New

US Latest litigation cases involving this patent.

Case NumberFiling DateTitle
2:25-cv-11234Nov 21, 2025Alpha Modus, Corp. v. Stratacache, Inc.
2:25-cv-01145Nov 21, 2025Alpha Modus, Corp. v. V-Count Global Holding, Ltd.
2:25-cv-01120Nov 12, 2025Alpha Modus, Corp. v. AtliQ Technologies Pvt. Ltd.
2:25-cv-00977Sep 24, 2025Alpha Modus, Corp. v. RetailNext Inc.

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US12039550

ALPHA MODUS CORP
Application Number
US17590605
Filing Date
Feb 1, 2022
Status
Granted
Expiry Date
Jul 18, 2034
External Links
Slate, USPTO, Google Patents