Systems and methods for merchandise display, sale and inventory control

摘要

An automated retail system according to embodiments of the present invention includes a front and/or rear product rack, each rack having a plurality of bins, each of which has a product door, the system further including a basket moveable along an x-y plane on a rail system to selectively open a product door of a product bin to permit the product within the bin to fall into the basket, the basket movable to a product delivery position to release the product from the basket. Such a system may include sensors and/or scanners to determine contents of each bin, such that any product may be placed in any bin, and inventory of each bin or all bins may be determined at any time. The basket may be configured to move in x and y but not z directions, and may also serve as the sole actuation mechanism for opening the doors.

主权项

1. A system for automated retail comprising:
a product rack, the product rack comprising a plurality of compartments arranged along one or both of a horizontal axis and a vertical axis; wherein at least one compartment of the plurality of compartments comprises a door configured to open and close the at least one compartment, wherein at least a portion of the door is substantially transparent; a basket; a gantry system, wherein the basket is movably coupled to the gantry system, wherein the gantry system is configured to position the basket adjacent to any of the plurality of compartments by moving the basket along one or both of the horizontal axis and the vertical axis; and a scanner that moves with the basket, wherein the scanner is configured to identify a product within the at least one compartment or to determine that the at least one compartment is empty, and wherein a scanner signal of the scanner is configured to pass through the at least a portion of the door.