According to an embodiment, a mobile body acquires product information given to a product to be purchased and transports the product to be purchased. The mobile body includes a cart body, an acquisition device, and a holder. The cart body is moved to transport the product. The acquisition device acquires the product information. The holder detachably holds the acquisition device.

A system for monitoring and controlling shopping cart usage comprises a wheel assembly that attaches to a shopping cart. The wheel assembly includes a wheel, a brake that can be activated to inhibit rotation of the wheel, a controller that controls the brake, a VLF receiver, and an RF transceiver. The RF transceiver may, for example, operate in a 2.4 GHz frequency band. In some implementations, the RF transceiver may be used to detect entry of the shopping cart into a checkout area of the store, and the VLF receiver may be used to detect that the shopping cart is exiting the store. The controller may activate the brake if the shopping cart attempts to exit the store without first passing through a checkout area.

A stackable handcart includes a cart frame, a display, and a restriction member. The cart frame includes a receiving portion on which a shopping basket is placeable and a front end portion that abuts a first stackable handcart when the stackable handcart is stacked with the first stackable handcart from behind the first stackable handcart. The display is attached to the cart frame. The restriction member is attached to the cart frame at a position to abut a front end portion of a second stackable handcart when the second stackable handcart is stacked with the stackable handcart from behind the stackable handcart. The restriction member is positioned such that a display of the second stackable handcart does not abut the display of the stackable handcart when the front end portion of the second stackable handcart abuts the restriction member.

According to one embodiment a shopping cart includes an imaging unit configured to acquire images of a surface at a location of the shopping cart and a controller. The controller is configured to detect a boundary pattern in images acquired by the imaging unit. The boundary pattern is painted or drawn on the surface at a boundary between a first area and a second area. Based on the detected boundary pattern the controller determines whether the shopping cart has been moved from the first area to the second area or from the second area to the first area. The controller then controls mobility of the shopping cart based on whether the shopping cart has been moved from the first area to the second area or from the second area to the first area.

An electronic device enclosure for retail shopping carts is disclosed having a cart mounting bracket attached to the side of a shopping cart near the front handle cross bar that does not interfere with the nesting of the cart as it was designed. An enclosure comprising a housing for an electronic device such as a tablet computer has a mounting bracket being incorporated into the rear of the housing and further having a mounting arm containing secured locking means to securely seat into the cart mounting bracket. The apparatus further contains means of transmitting via NFC to a CPU or to one of several networked CPU beacons docking confirmation and location data. The cart mount bracket is designed to withstand prolonged outdoor weather conditions without malfunctioning.

According to an embodiment, a mobile body acquires product information given to a product to be purchased and transports the product to be purchased. The mobile body includes a cart body, an acquisition device, and a holder. The cart body is moved to transport the product. The acquisition device acquires the product information. The holder detachably holds the acquisition device.

A cart has a wheeled base unit with a first frame portion on one side and a second frame portion on another. The frame portions are coupled by a frontend part. A handle unit connects the frame portions at a backside of the cart and also connects the base unit to a basket. An inner frame portion is between the frame portions and extends to the frontend part of the base unit. The inner frame portion includes a front contact portion and a stopper portion. A spacer portion is attached to the inner frame portion closer to the backside of the base unit than the stopper portion. The spacer portion is positioned to contact a front contact portion of another cart when carts are nested. A coupling portion is sandwiched between the inner frame portion and a frontend part of another cart when carts are nested.

A curbside voter cart for transporting a voting terminal to a parked motorist, comprising a pair of opposing side-rails defined by contiguous tubing, a horizontal long-axle strut spanning the side-rails, a pair of wheels mounted on an axle supported in the long-axle strut, a forwardly-disposed stabilizer spanning the side-rails beneath the axle strut and projecting forward to a horizontal short-axle strut, and a pair of castors mounted on each side of the short-axle strut. In addition, a terminal support platform is adjustably mounted on the side-rails above the wheels and is repositionable anywhere along an upper extent of said side rails for adjustably positioning the voting terminal relative to a voter seated in a car.

The invention relates to a push handle unit of a shopping cart having at least one first and one second end piece, wherein a free-standing gripping unit which rises upward is arranged on at least one end piece, the gripping unit being designed as an object holder for receiving at least one beverage container and/or a scanner and/or a magnifier for enlarging text on a package and/or a handle cap and/or a smart phone.

Physical shopping carts can have product detection systems and associate physical shopping carts with mobile computing devices (e.g., smartphones, tablet computing devices, smart watches, wearable computing devices). For example, physical shopping carts can be equipped with one or more product detection systems (e.g., scanners, sensors, cameras) that can electronically tally products that are placed in physical shopping carts. Mobile computing devices can be associated with and mounted on the physical shopping carts to provide a variety of enhanced shopping cart features not possible with conventional physical shopping carts, such as electronically tracking the contents of a shopping cart, checking-out from the mobile computing device (instead of at conventional check-out areas, such as point of sale terminals), and others.