AU2012200704A1 - Remote Ordering System and Method - Google Patents

Abstract

A method of remotely ordering an item from a merchant comprising causing a list of purchasable items to be 5 displayed on a mobile device display responsive to the mobile device communicating with a merchant tag, using a near field communication protocol. An order message generated by the user for ordering one of the purchasable items is placed with the merchant, utilising the mobile 10 device. (FIGURE 1)

Description

AUSTRALIAN COMPLETE PATENT SPECIFICATION Title: Remote Ordering System and Method Applicant: Brandtable Pty Ltd Inventors: Stephen Davis - 2 Remote Ordering System and Method Technical Field The present invention relates generally to a remote 5 ordering system and method and more particularly, but not exclusively, to a system and method for remotely placing food and/or beverage orders using a mobile wireless communications device, such as a mobile telephone, personal digital assistant (PDA),tablet device or the 10 like. Background Various technological advances have been made in recent years to improve the efficiency of processing in-store 15 goods and service orders, particularly in the retail and services industries. For example, it is becoming increasingly common for merchants to provide contactless EFTPOS terminals at point of sale counters for reducing the time taken to process a customer card payment. Other 20 advances include providing terminals within the retail store which dispense tickets to customers which are called (in turn) when a staff member becomes available. Often a designated waiting area with seating will be provided 25 While such advances have made the ordering process more efficient, it is still generally the case that the customer needs to wait in a queue (whether it be a physical queue or a virtual queue as described above) before they can gain access to the point of sale for 30 placing their order. It would be advantageous if there was provided a cost effective system for facilitating this process without requiring the customer to wait in a queue before placing their order.

- 3 Summary of the Invention In accordance with a first aspect of the invention there is provided a method of remotely ordering an item from a 5 merchant, the method comprising: causing a list of purchasable items to be displayed on a mobile device display responsive to the mobile device communicating with a merchant tag using a near field communication protocol; 10 receiving an order message generated by the user for ordering one of the purchasable items, utilising the mobile device. In an embodiment the method further comprises authorising 15 the order to be filled by the merchant in response to receiving payment. In an embodiment the method further comprises communicating with a third party payment processing system 20 to facilitate the payment and wherein the order is authorised to be filled in response to receiving a payment confirmation message from the third party payment processing system. 25 In an embodiment the method further comprises providing a notification message to the mobile device once the order has been filled and the item is ready for collection or delivery. 30 In an embodiment the notification message includes an order identifier for displaying on a display of the mobile device to facilitate the collection.

In an embodiment the method further comprises delivering the item to user once the order has been filled. In an embodiment the method further comprises providing 5 the mobile device with a web address of a merchant site for placing the order. In an embodiment the list is provided to the mobile device by the near field tag when in communicable range thereof. 10 In an embodiment the method further comprises causing the mobile device to communicate with the merchant site over a communications network to receive the list. 15 In an embodiment the method further comprises displaying merchant branding indicia in association with the merchant tag. In an embodiment the merchant tag is located on a surface 20 of a table. In an embodiment the method further comprises providing a plurality of merchant tags on the table which are each associated with, and utilised to order items from, 25 different merchants that are all located in nearby vicinity. In an embodiment the method further comprises communicating data from the tag to the mobile device which 30 allows the device to access a wireless network for retrieving the list of purchasable items. In accordance with a second aspect of the present - 5 invention there is provided a remote ordering system comprising: a merchant near field tag; a mobile device implementing a near field transmitter 5 and operable to display a list of purchasable items to a user responsive to the device communicating with the merchant near field tag; and a merchant site for receiving an order message generated by a user of the mobile device for ordering one 10 of the purchasable items. In an embodiment the merchant site further operable to cause the order to be filled in response to receiving payment by the user. 15 In an embodiment the system further comprises a third party payment processing system operable to communicate with the mobile device to facilitate the payment and to transmit a payment confirmation message to the merchant 20 site for authorising the filling of the order. In an embodiment the merchant site is further operable to transmit a notification message to the mobile device once the order has been filled and the item is ready for 25 collection by the user or to be delivered. In an embodiment the notification message includes an order identifier for displaying on a display of the mobile device to facilitate the collection. 30 In an embodiment the system further comprises a delivery system for delivering the item to user once the order has been filled.

- 6 In an embodiment the merchant tag is operable to provide the mobile device with a web address of a merchant site for placing the order when in communicable range thereof. 5 In an embodiment the merchant tag is further operable to provide data to the mobile device which allows the mobile device to automatically connect to a wireless network for retrieving the list. 10 In an embodiment the list is provided to the mobile device by the merchant tag when in communicable range thereof. In an embodiment the mobile device communicates with the 15 merchant site to receive the list. In an embodiment the merchant site is a web site. In an embodiment the merchant branding indicia is 20 displayed in association with the near field tag. In an embodiment the near field tag is secured to a table. In an embodiment a plurality of near field tags are 25 secured to the table, each of the tags being associated with, and utilised to order items from, different merchants located at a nearby location. In accordance with a third aspect there is provided a 30 computer program including at least one instruction which, when implemented by a processor of a computing system, causes the computing system to implement the method steps as described in accordance with the first aspect.

- 7 In accordance with a fourth aspect there is provided a method of remotely ordering an item from a merchant, the method comprising: 5 causing a list of purchasable items to be displayed on a mobile device display responsive to the mobile device communicating with a merchant tag using a wireless protocol, the merchant tag providing the mobile device with a URL which is utilised by the mobile device for 10 displaying the list; receiving an order message generated by the user for ordering one of the purchasable items, utilising the mobile device. 15 In accordance with a fifth aspect of the present invention there is provided a device operable to be interrogated by a mobile device using a wireless communication protocol, such that in response to being interrogated the device causes a list of purchasable items to be displayed on the 20 mobile device for remote ordering. In an embodiment the device is operable to communicate a URL to the mobile device which is utilised by the mobile device to access a webpage providing the list. 25 In an embodiment the device is a near field tag. Brief Description of the Drawings 30 Features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of embodiments thereof, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which; - 8 Fig. 1 is a schematic illustration of a system for carrying out embodiments of the present invention; 5 Fig. 2 is a schematic illustrating a process flow for ordering an item utilising the system of Fig. 1, in accordance with an embodiment of the invention; and Fig. 3 is a screen shot of an example menu interface 10 displayable by a mobile device, in accordance with an embodiment; Fig. 4 is a screen shot of an example payment processing interface displayable by a mobile device, in accordance 15 with an embodiment; Fig. 5 is a screen shot of an example notification message displayable by a mobile device, in accordance with an embodiment; 20 Fig. 6 is a schematic of a tag layout for a table, in accordance with an embodiment; and Fig. 7 is a block diagram showing modules implemented by 25 the merchant server system of Fig. 1. Detailed Description of an Embodiment Embodiments of the present invention find particular 30 application in the food and beverage service industry and are hereafter described in such a context. However, it will be understood that embodiments are not so limited and may extend to any industry where it is more convenient to - 9 place an order remotely rather than having to wait in a queue at a cashier counter to order and pay for the item. With reference to Fig. 1, there is shown a schematic of a 5 system 100 for carrying out embodiments of the present invention. The system 100 comprises one or more merchant tags which are each associated with a particular supplier of food 10 and/or beverages (hereafter 'merchants'). In the presently described embodiment the tags are in the form of near field tags (with four tags 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d being shown in the illustrated embodiment) which are located on tables 104 distribute throughout a food hall. 15 Each of the merchants have counters 107 within the food hall. A mobile device 106 equipped with a near field transmitter is operable to communicate with any of the tags 102 in order to bring up a menu for a particular merchant. A user of the mobile device 106 can 20 instantaneously place an order for an item on the menu with a centralised merchant order site 108 (e.g. while sitting at the table 104). A third party payment processing system 109 (e.g. such as the PayPalTM mobile payment system, details of which can be found at 25 http://www.paypal.com/) facilitates the payment and confirms that the payment has been processed to thereby allow for the order to be filled at the counter 107. According to the illustrated embodiment, the mobile 30 device 106 is in the form of an internet enabled smartphone, such as the Google Nexus 3G mobile handset. The handset 106 is equipped with the necessary hardware and software to communicate with both the merchant order - 10 site 108 and payment processing system 109. According to the illustrated embodiment, the mobile device 106 communicates with both the merchant order site 108 and third party processing system 109 over a communications 5 network in the form of a mobile communications network 110. With additional reference to Fig. 2, an embodiment of a basic order process implemented by the system of Figure 1 10 will now be described. At step Si, the user presents their mobile device 106 within near field communicable distance of a merchant tag 102 associated with a merchant selling goods (in the 15 presently described embodiment being in the form of food and/or drink) that they are interested in purchasing. At step S2, the near field tag 102 communicates merchant information to the mobile device 106 which causes the display of the device 106 to display a menu for the 20 merchant. In an embodiment, this is achieved by programming the tag 102 to communicate a URL/web address to the mobile device 106 upon a connection being established, which is subsequently used by a web browser of the device 106 to access a mobile webpage (e.g. 25 provided by the merchant order site 108) displaying the menu associated with the selected merchant tag 102. In an alternative embodiment, the tag 102 may be programmed to provide instructions to the device 106 for causing a native software application residing thereon (e.g. which 30 may be downloaded from an app store, etc.) to display the menu information in a graphical user interface. The application may be updated periodically to display new menu items, prices and the like. An example screen shot - 11 of a merchant menu displayed on the mobile device is shown in Figure 3. Once the user has navigated through the menu and found an 5 item or items that they would like to purchase they select those items and proceed to the checkout (step S3). At this point the user is directed to a user interface provided by the third party payment processing system 109, which according to the illustrated embodiment is an 10 interface provided by a mobile webpage or native application (again accessed and served by the web browser, or as part of the interface provided by the software application). According to the illustrated embodiment, payment is effected in real time. An example screen shot 15 of this interface is shown in Figure 4. The payment is then processed (step S4) and a payment confirmation message sent to the merchant site at step S5. At step S6, in response to receiving the payment 20 confirmation message, the merchant order site 110 sends the relevant order information to the relevant counter 107 (e.g. by way of a counter computer which manages incoming orders for filling by counter staff) for filling of the order. Additionally, the merchant order site may send 25 information to the mobile device for indicating a time until the order is ready to be collected. For example, "5 minutes 22 seconds until meal is ready". Once the order has been filled (step S7) the counter computer sends an order processed message to the merchant order site 108 30 which includes an identifier for the order. This is in turn communicated to the mobile device 106 in a notification message for notifying the user that the order is ready to be picked up from the counter 107. A screen - 12 shot of an example notification message displayable on the mobile device 106 is shown in Figure 5. As shown, the notification message includes a summary of the order as well as an order number or code (i.e. the order 5 identifier) which the user presents to the counter staff when picking up their order. The device 106 may also be controlled to vibrate and/or issue an alert tone for notifying the user that the order is ready to be collected. 10 In an alternative embodiment to that described above, the user may request that the order is delivered to them in which case the user may be asked to provide a delivery address (e.g. a table number) when placing the order at 15 step S3. With reference to Figure 6 there is shown an example tag layout for a food hall table. As shown the table 104 is provided with four tags 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d which are 20 equally distributed within an interactable tag zone. A separate eating zone (absent any tags) is provided adjacent the circumference of the table. The tags 102 may be embedded into a surface of the table 200 or mounted to the surface (e.g. using a suitable glue, or veneer/ 25 laminate, etc.). Displayed in association with each tag 102 (in this case overlaying) is branding indicia for the associated merchant. For example, overlaying tag 102a is "Hot Dog Joe's" stylised logo. In another embodiment, the tags may be displayed in association with a video display 30 that can be dynamically updated to advertise goods and services of a particular merchant. As the video display changes to show a new merchant's products/services the tag may also be updated to direct any interrogating mobile - 13 devices to the merchant site associated with the displayed goods/services. In an embodiment this may be achieved by interrogating each of the tags independently (e.g. using a tag read/writer as is known in the art) or could be done 5 centrally such that all tags in range of a centralised tag interrogating/writing device are updated at the same time. In this case it will be appreciated that the video displays would all show the same advertisement information. By way of example, all of the tags in a food 10 court may be displayed in association with a dynamically updatable display (e.g. an LCD screen embedded into the table). Each of the display screens may change from a food advert (e.g. as afore-described) to a movie advertisement whereby the central writer causes each of 15 the tags to be re-written with the URL of a mobile page hosted by a cinema which allows users to book and pay for a movie session. The individual elements of the merchant site 108 will now 20 be described in more detail. With additional reference to Fig. 7, the merchant order site 108 comprises a server computer 103 coupled to a menu database 105 providing menu information for each of the 25 subscribing merchants. As mentioned above, the merchant order server 103 functions primarily to provide menu information to requesting devices (i.e. associated with tags that the device has communicated with), facilitate the filling of orders once payment has been made and 30 finally to alert users when a purchased order has been filled and is ready for collection. To perform this functionality, the server 103 comprises computer hardware including a motherboard 314, central processing unit 316, - 14 read only memory (ROM) 317, random access memory (RAM) 318, hard disk 320 and networking hardware 322. In an embodiment, the server 103 communicates with the network 110 by way of a GSM modem and/or SMS gateway. In 5 an embodiment, these components are provided by the GSM network operator. The database 105 stores menu and coupon related information which can be updated by the respective merchants using a secure merchant server login. In addition to the hardware, the server 103 includes an 10 operating system (such as the Linux operating system, which can be obtained from the Internet at a website located at URL http://www.redhat.com) that resides on the hard disk and which co-operates with the hardware to provide an environment in which the software applications 15 can be executed. In this regard, the hard disk 320 of the server 103 is loaded with a web interface module which is arranged to provide the mobile web page which is accessible by the user devices to receive menu information and to place orders. A communications module allows the 20 server to communicate with the third party payment processing system 109 for receiving payment confirmation messages, as well as to communicate with the respective counter computers 107 for providing order information to allow an order to be filled. Finally, the communications 25 module allows the server 103 to communicate the notification message to the mobile devices 106 for order collection. According to the embodiment described above a third party 30 payment processing system 109 was utilised to facilitate the user payment. It will be understood, however, that the payment processing system may not be a third party system and instead be incorporated into the merchant site - 15 108 (e.g. incorporated into the merchant site functionality). It will be understood that the merchant order site 108 may 5 communicate with the counter computers over any suitable network and not necessarily by way of the network 110 as is illustrated in Fig. 1. In a particular embodiment, the merchants may maintain their own merchant order site, such that the system would incorporate numerous merchant order 10 sites 108 (e.g. each with their own server and maintaining their own menu database) corresponding to each merchant. According to such an embodiment the merchant order sites may be located at the respective counters, thus obviating the need for the counter computer. 15 According to the illustrated embodiment the network 110 is in the form of a standard 3G mobile telecommunications network. Although not illustrated in Fig. 1, the network 110 includes standard network elements including a 20 base station controller, home location register, mobile switching centre, message centre, equipment identity register, message gateway, etc. It will be understood, however, that the network 110 could be any form of communications network arranged to allow communication 25 between the mobile devices 106, merchant order site 108 and payment processing system 109 including, for example standard GSM networks, fourth generation networks, CDMA networks, among others. In an embodiment, the mobile device 106 may be configured to communicate with the 30 merchant site and/or third party payment processing system over a wireless network. The wireless network may, for example, be a so-called 'hot spot' network e.g. provided by one of the merchants or by the venue in which the - 16 merchants are located (which is particularly suited to the food service application described herein). In an embodiment, the tags may send data instructions to the mobile device for automatically accessing an open/public 5 wireless network or a hot-spot provided by the associated merchant rather than the mobile device communicating over a mobile network. For example, the instructions may include any relevant user name and password for accessing the hot-spot. 10 It will also be understood that in certain embodiments in may not be necessary to purchase the items (e.g. the items may be free) in which case the payment processing steps of Figure 2 would be omitted and the order automatically 15 filled once the user has entered their selection. In a particular embodiment the goods may purchased using coupons or vouchers that the user has collected or been awarded. 20 In an alternative embodiment to that described above, the mobile device may be configured to communicate with the tag using a wireless protocol other than the near field protocol for communicating the merchant provider web URL. For example, the mobile device could be configured to 25 communicate with the tag using Bluetooth 4.0, RFID, QR Code, ultrasonic communication techniques and the like. In yet another alternative embodiment, the tag may simply display the URL of the merchant provide which the user can manually enter into his internet enabled mobile device for 30 accessing the menu. As mentioned in preceding paragraphs, embodiments may extend to industries other than the food industry. For - 17 example, embodiments may be applicable to the retail industry, media industry, services industry and web based services. For example, according to an embodiment the system utilised within a retail industry context could 5 allow for the price matching of clothing / garments. The tag may, for example, be provided on the pricing label, giving users the ability to scan the tag with their mobile which bring up a mobile site in which the particular garment can be analysed for stock, sizing and availability 10 in other affiliated stores. Within the services industry, for example, users may scan tags to book particular services within a nearby local. For example, a user could scan a tag embedded within a movie poster advert which would take them to a site which brings up session times 15 for a nearby cinema. From here the user could order a ticket for a particular session using a similar payment methodology to that outlined above. It will be understood that numerous other applications may be envisaged depending only on the desired application. 20 While the invention has been described with reference to the present embodiment, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that alterations, changes and improvements may be made and equivalents may be 25 substituted for the elements thereof and steps thereof without departing from the scope of the invention. In addition, many modifications may be made to adapt the invention to a particular situation or material to the teachings of the invention without departing from the 30 central scope thereof. Such alterations, changes, modifications and improvements, though not expressly described above, are nevertheless intended and implied to be within the scope and spirit of the invention.

- 18 Therefore, it is intended that the invention not be limited to the particular embodiment described herein and will include all embodiments falling within the scope of the independent claims. 5 In the claims which follow and in the preceding description of the invention, except where the context requires otherwise due to express language or necessary implication, the word "comprise" or variations such as 10 "comprises" or "comprising" is used in an inclusive sense, i.e. to specify the presence of the stated features but not to preclude the presence or addition of further features in various embodiments of the invention.

Claims (35)

1. A method of remotely ordering an item from a merchant, the method comprising: 5 causing a list of purchasable items to be displayed on a mobile device display responsive to the mobile device communicating with a merchant tag using a near field communication protocol; receiving an order message generated by the user for 10 ordering one of the purchasable items, utilising the mobile device.

2. A method in accordance with claim 1, further comprising authorising the order to be filled by the 15 merchant in response to receiving payment.

3. A method in accordance with claim 2, further comprising communicating with a third party payment processing system to facilitate the payment and wherein 20 the order is authorised to be filled in response to receiving a payment confirmation message from the third party payment processing system.

4. A method in accordance with any one of the preceding 25 claims, further comprising providing a notification message to the mobile device once the order has been filled and the item is ready for collection or delivery.

5. A method in accordance with claim 4, wherein the 30 notification message includes an order identifier for displaying on a display of the mobile device to facilitate the collection. 20

6. A method in accordance with any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising delivering the item to user once the order has been filled. 5

7. A method in accordance with any one of the preceding claims, further comprising providing the mobile device with a web address of a merchant site for placing the order. 10

8. A method in accordance with claim 7, wherein the list is provided to the mobile device by the near field tag when in communicable range thereof. 15

9. A method in accordance with claim 7, further comprising causing the mobile device to communicate with the merchant site over a communications network to receive the list. 20

10. A method in accordance with any one of the preceding claims, further comprising displaying merchant branding indicia in association with the merchant tag.

11. A method in accordance with any one of the preceding 25 claims, wherein the merchant tag is located on a surface of a table.

12. A method in accordance with claim 11, further comprising provided a plurality of merchant tags on the 30 table which are each associated with, and utilised to order items from, different merchants that are all located in nearby vicinity. 21

13. A method in accordance with any one of the preceding claims, further comprising communicating data from the tag to the mobile device which allows the device to access a 5 wireless network for retrieving the list of purchasable items.

14. A remote ordering system comprising: a merchant near field tag; 10 a mobile device implementing a near field transmitter and operable to display a list of purchasable items to a user responsive to the device communicating with the merchant near field tag; and a merchant site for receiving an order message 15 generated by a user of the mobile device for ordering one of the purchasable items.

15. A system in accordance with claim 13, the merchant site further operable to cause the order to be filled in 20 response to receiving payment by the user.

16. A system in accordance with claim 15, further comprising a third party payment processing system operable to communicate with the mobile device to 25 facilitate the payment and to transmit a payment confirmation message to the merchant site for authorising the filling of the order.

17. A system in accordance with any one of claims 14 to 30 16, wherein the merchant site is further operable to transmit a notification message to the mobile device once the order has been filled and the item is ready for 22 collection by the user or to be delivered.

18. A system in accordance with claim 17, wherein the notification message includes an order identifier for 5 displaying on a display of the mobile device to facilitate the collection.

19. A system in accordance with any one of claims 14 to 16, further comprising a delivery system for delivering 10 the item to user once the order has been filled.

20. A system in accordance with any one of the claims 14 to 19, wherein the merchant tag is operable to provide the mobile device with a web address of a merchant site for 15 placing the order when in communicable range thereof.

21. A system in accordance with claim 20, wherein the merchant tag is further operable to provide data to the mobile device which allows the mobile device to 20 automatically connect to a wireless network for retrieving the list.

22. A system in accordance with claim 20, wherein the list is provided to the mobile device by the merchant tag 25 when in communicable range thereof.

23. A system in accordance with claim 21, wherein the mobile device communicates with the merchant site to receive the list. 30

24. A system in accordance with claim 23, wherein the merchant site is a web site. 23

25. A system in accordance with any one of claims 14 to 24, wherein the merchant branding indicia is displayed in association with the near field tag. 5

26. A system in accordance with any one of claims 14 to 25, wherein the near field tag is secured to a table.

27. A system in accordance with claim 26, wherein a 10 plurality of near field tags are secured to the table, each of the tags being associated with, and utilised to order items from, different merchants located at a nearby location. 15

28. A computer program including at least one instruction which, when implemented by a processor of a computing system, causes the computing system to implement the method steps in accordance with any one of claims 1 to 13. 20

29. A computer readable medium providing a computer program in accordance with claim 28.

30. A method of remotely ordering an item from a merchant, the method comprising: 25 causing a list of purchasable items to be displayed on a mobile device display responsive to the mobile device communicating with a merchant tag using a wireless protocol, the merchant tag providing the mobile device with a URL which is utilised by the mobile device for 30 displaying the list; receiving an order message generated by the user for ordering one of the purchasable items, utilising the 24 mobile device.

31. A device operable to be interrogated by a mobile device using a wireless communication protocol, such that 5 in response to being interrogated the device causes a list of purchasable items to be displayed on the mobile device for remote ordering.

32. A device in accordance with claim 31, wherein the 10 device is operable to communicate a URL to the mobile device which is utilised by the mobile device to access a webpage providing the list.

33. A device in accordance with claim 32, wherein the 15 device is a near field tag.

34. A method substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings. 20

35. A system substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.