Systems, apparatuses, and methods for establishing an indexed list of specialty properties to glean recommendations for a potential customer based on a nested multi-tiered set of queries. A set of queries may be directed to one or more types of specialty properties. As the potential customer answers the first set of queries, the identification of a type of specialty property best suited to the user is determined. Once a type of care is gleaned, a second set of queries about the user's preferences is presented based on the type of care determined. As the potential customer answers the second set of queries, an indexed subset of specialty properties may be presented best suited to the user in response to the received data about the second plurality of queries. This may typically be presented in a tanked listing of top-ten choices or the like.

The present invention provides a network transaction system for a network transaction platform, comprising a transaction platform sub-system, a service fee sub-system, an incentive fund sub-system and a seller client. The transaction platform sub-system calculates service fee data for transactional capital of each transaction according to a pre-determined service fee ratio, and sends the service fee to the service fee sub-system. The incentive fund sub-system calculates, according to all service fee data in a pre-determined period, a seller payment ratio of the sum of service fee corresponding to all transactions of each seller in the pre-determined period to a total service fee in the pre-determined period, and sends corresponding incentive fund to a corresponding seller based on the seller payment ratio according to the total incentive fund. The network transaction system further realizes an electronic agreement being signed between the transaction platform sub-system and the seller client. The present invention is capable of further improving security in transactions and reducing an instantaneous load in data processing for the server and the total data processing amount.

The present invention is an applications gateway that offers multiple functions and features for specific geographic venue locations, while providing easy access to advertising, purchasing, and redemption opportunities for that specific geographic venue location. Venue locations can be stadiums, shopping malls, amusement parks, open air spaces where people can congregate, and/or buildings, which most often require the presence of a concentration of people. The venue location may correlate to the location of the hand-held mobile unit or it may be a remote geographic venue location not near the location of the hand-held mobile unit. Access to the gateway application is through a hand-held mobile unit, which can include a mobile phone, smartphone device, or portable computer having a wireless radio transmission connection. (e.g. iPhone, Droid, iPad, Slate, etc.)

A virtual payment system for paying for goods, services and content ordered over an internetwork comprising a commerce gateway component and a credit processing server component (53) is disclosed. Buyers and sellers becomes registered participants by applying for virtual payment buyer and seller accounts. Once an account is established, a digital certificate is stored on the registered participant's computer. A buyer can then order a product, i.e., goods, services or content from a seller and charge it to the virtual payment account. When the product is shipped, the seller notifies the commerce gateway component, which in turn notifies the credit processing server, which applies the charges to the buyer's virtual payment account. The buyer can settle the charges using a prepaid account, a credit account, or by using reward points earned through use of the virtual payment card. A buyer may create sub-accounts.

Systems, methods, devices, and non-transitory processor readable media of the various embodiments enable in store voice picking systems. In various embodiments, an end-to-end voice ordering and fulfillment system for a retail store may enable a customer to place an order over the phone, a personal shopper to be directed to fill the order via voice commands, and the order to be made available for pickup at the retail store by the customer or delivered to the customer from the retail store.

One embodiment provides a system for dynamically optimizing inventory picking paths within a physical store. The system performs operations including receiving merchandise requests from customers, providing the merchandise requests to merchandise pickers, and receiving, from the merchandise pickers, picking data identifying picking paths executed by the merchandise pickers when picking items within the physical store to fulfill the merchandise requests. The operations further include analyzing the merchandise requests and the picking data to identify an algorithm suitable for determining an optimized picking path, and, in response to receiving a new online merchandise request, applying the algorithm to determine an optimized picking path for fulfilling the new online merchandise request. The optimized picking path is provided to at least one of the merchandise pickers. The algorithm is dynamically adjustable in response to receiving additional picking data identifying different picking paths that reflect changes to the store layout.

A method, system and computer program product for conducting an online auction of a plurality of heterogeneous items between a plurality of selling and potential purchasing parties. The method includes the steps of accepting an offer in respect of an item, accepting one or more subsequent offers that is/are preferable to a previously accepted offer, and rejecting the previously accepted offer. While the offer/s is/are binding on a party making the offer, acceptance of the offer/s is/are not binding on a party accepting the offer. Classes of seller strategies, for offering items to potential purchasing parties, and buyer strategies, to decide which offers to accept, are also disclosed. As a result of the interaction of the buyer and seller strategies, the auction mechanism converges to an allocation of items to buyers at particular prices and assists in discovering a free and fair competitive equilibrium price.

Disclosed are various embodiments for detecting item scans with audio signal processing. A first machine-readable identifier may be rendered in a display device associated with at least one computing device, where the first machine-readable identifier is associated with a first item in a list of items. An audio signal may be captured using a microphone and analyzed to identify a predetermined tone in the audio signal indicative of a scan being performed on a register device. In response to the predetermined tone in the audio signal being identified, the first machine-readable identifier may be replaced with a second machine-readable identifier in the display device, where the second machine-readable identifier is associated with a second item in the list of items.

A method executed by a computer. The method includes, acquiring a first image of a customer, acquiring a second image of a responder who responds to the customer, identifying the customer based on the first image, acquiring customer information corresponding to the customer, identifying the responder based on the second image, determining a reading authority of the responder, and instructing a terminal of the responder to display information, the information being selected from the customer information in accordance with the reading authority.

Some embodiments include a motorized transport unit providing customer assistance at a shopping facility, comprises: a transceiver; a control circuit; a motorized wheel system; a lift system; and a memory coupled to the control circuit and storing computer instructions that when executed by the control circuit cause the control circuit to: activate a motorized wheel system, while continuing to monitor location information, to position the motorized transport unit under the item container and aligned, based on the location information, relative to a frame of the item container; and activate the lift system to lift on the frame of the item container lifting a first portion of the item container such one or more wheels of the item container are lifted off of a floor while two or more other wheels of the item container remain in contact with the floor.