Method and system to reduce food waste and optimize markdowns and control prices in retail

Abstract

Systems for determining a price of goods, reducing food waste, optimizing markdowns for the goods, and controlling prices of the goods in a retail setting are described. A scanner scans a readable identification tag affixed to a good during a time period. A pricing engine of at least one server queries, dynamically and in real-time, a database to identify, from the readable identification tag, the good and the information associated with the good. The pricing engine then applies algorithms to the identified good to calculate a price of the good and modify the calculated price of the good during the time period to optimize a target function. The optimization of the target function depends on price-calculation factors associated with a shelf-state of the good and associated with a future stock of the good. At least one calculated price based on the expiration date of the good is displayed.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A system for optimizing pricing of goods to achieve greater revenue while reducing waste in a retail setting, the system comprising:
 a good;   a readable identification tag affixed to a good;   at least one server comprising:
 a dynamic pricing engine comprising one or more algorithms; 
 a memory; 
 a processor; and 
 a database configured to store information associated with the good, wherein the information comprises one or more price-calculation factors associated with a shelf-state of the good and one or more price-calculation factors associated with a future stock of the good; and 
   a barcode scanner connected to a point-of-sale (POS) terminal in the store, the POS terminal being connected to the at least one server, wherein the barcode scanner is configured to scan the readable identification tag affixed to the good during a time period;   the dynamic pricing engine being configured to:
 query, dynamically and in real-time, the database to identify, from the readable identification tag, the good and the information associated with the good; and 
 apply the one or more algorithms to the identified good to:
 calculate a price of the good; and 
 modify the calculated price of the good during the time period to optimize a target function, wherein the optimization depends on the one or more price-calculation factors associated with the shelf-state of the good and the one or more price-calculation factors associated with the future stock of the good; and 
 
   the at least one server being configured to transmit at least one calculated price of the good based on an expiration date of the good to another system managing one or more displays in real-time.   
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the readable identification tag is selected from the group consisting of: a Radio-Frequency Identification (RFID) tag, a barcode, a matrix barcode, and a data-enabled barcode. 
     
     
         3 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein each of the one or more displays is selected from the group consisting of: an electronic shelf-label, a screen affixed to an entire width of a shelf, a display of a mobile device, a sticker, and a display associated with the POS terminal. 
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one server is further configured to transmit a non-discounted price of the good to a display of the one or more displays. 
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 1 ,
 wherein the time period is a first time period,   wherein the at least one calculated price of the good is a first price of the good,   wherein the at least one server is further configured to:
 apply the one or more algorithms to the identified good to:
 calculate a second price of the good during a second time period; and 
 modify the calculated second price of the good during the second time period to optimize the target function, wherein the optimization depends on the one or more price-calculation factors associated with the shelf-state of the good and the one or more price-calculation factors associated with the future stock of the good. 
 
   
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 5 ,
 wherein the first price of the good is greater than the second price of the good, and   wherein the second time period is closer to an expiration date of the good than the first time period.   
     
     
         7 . The system of  claim 5 ,
 wherein the second price of the good is greater than the first price of the good, and   wherein the second time period is further from an expiration date of the good than the first time period.   
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 5 , wherein the process continues in case of any future changes in a shelf-state. 
     
     
         9 . A system for optimizing pricing of goods to achieve greater revenue while reducing waste, the system comprising:
 a good;   a readable identification tag affixed to a good;   at least one pricing server comprising:
 a dynamic pricing engine comprising one or more algorithms; 
 a memory; 
 a processor; and 
 a database configured to store information associated with the good, wherein the information comprises one or more price-calculation factors associated with a shelf-state of the good and one or more price-calculation factors associated with a future stock of the good; and 
   a barcode scanner connected to a point-of-sale (POS) terminal in the store, the POS terminal being connected to the at least one pricing server, wherein the barcode scanner is configured to scan the readable identification tag affixed to the good during a time period;   the dynamic pricing engine being configured to:
 query, dynamically and in real-time, the database to identify, from the readable identification tag, the good and the information associated with the good; and 
 apply the one or more algorithms to the identified good to:
 calculate a price of the good; and 
 modify the calculated price of the good during the time period to optimize a target function, wherein the optimization depends on the one or more price-calculation factors associated with the shelf-state of the good and the one or more price-calculation factors associated with the future stock of the good; and 
 
   the at least one pricing server being configured to transmit at least one calculated price of the good based on an expiration date of the good to another system managing one or more displays in real-time, wherein each of the one or more displays is selected from the group consisting of: an electronic shelf-label, a screen affixed to an entire width of a shelf, a display of a mobile device, a sticker, and a display associated with the POS terminal.   
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 9 , wherein the at least one pricing server is a virtual server, a cloud server, a cluster of servers, or a cluster of computers, and wherein the at least one pricing server is located in-store or in a POS datacenter. 
     
     
         11 . The system of  claim 9 , wherein the algorithm is selected from the group consisting of: a reinforcement learning algorithm, a deep learning algorithm, a machine learning algorithm, and a classic optimization algorithm, and wherein the machine learning algorithm that runs the dynamic pricing depends on factors that initially are based on a simulated environment. 
     
     
         12 . The system in  claim 9 , wherein at least one display of the one or more displays is configured to present, by the at least one pricing server, two prices of the good simultaneously, and wherein each of the two prices of the good are associated with a different expiration date. 
     
     
         13 . The system in  claim 9 , wherein at least one display of the one or more displays is configured to present, dynamically and in real-time by the at least one pricing server, different pricing for the good per expiration date as defined by the one or more algorithms. 
     
     
         14 . The system in  claim 9 , wherein at least one display of the one or more displays is configured to present, dynamically and in real-time by the at least one pricing server, at least two prices for the good per expiration date as defined by the one or more algorithms. 
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 9 , wherein the target function is based on factors selected from the group consisting of: waste associated with the good during the time period, revenue associated with the good during the time period, waste associated with the good and other goods during the time period, revenue associated with the good and other goods during the time period, and marginal profits associated with the good during the time period. 
     
     
         16 . A method for optimizing pricing of goods to achieve greater revenue while reducing waste, the method comprising:
 scanning, via a barcode scanner connected to a point-of-sale (POS) terminal in a store, the POS terminal being connected to at least one pricing server, a readable identification tag affixed to a good during a time period;   querying, dynamically and in real-time by the at least one pricing server, a database of the at least one pricing server to identify, from the readable identification tag, the good and the information associated with the good,
 wherein the information comprises one or more price-calculation factors associated with a shelf-state of the good and one or more price-calculation factors associated with a future stock of the good, 
 wherein the at least one pricing server comprises a dynamic pricing engine, and 
 wherein the dynamic pricing engine comprises one or more algorithms; 
   applying, by the dynamic pricing engine, the one or more algorithms to the identified good to:
 calculate a price of the good; and 
 modify the calculated price of the good during the time period to optimize a target function, wherein the optimization depends on the one or more price-calculation factors associated with the shelf-state of the good and the one or more price-calculation factors associated with the future stock of the good; and 
   transmitting, by the at least one pricing server, at least one calculated price of the good based on an expiration date of the good to a system managing one or more displays in real-time, wherein each of the one or more displays is selected from the group consisting of: an electronic shelf-label, a screen affixed to an entire width of a shelf, a display of a mobile device, a sticker, and a display associated with the POS terminal.   
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 16 , further comprising:
 transmitting, by the at least one pricing server, a non-discounted price of the good to at least one display of the one or more displays.   
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 16 , further comprising:
 calculating, by the at least one pricing server, a second price of the good during a second time period; and   modifying, by the at least one pricing server, the second price of the good to optimize the target function, wherein the optimization depends on the one or more price-calculation factors associated with the shelf-state of the good and the one or more price-calculation factors associated with the future stock of the good.   
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 16 , wherein at least one display of the one or more displays is configured to present, by the at least one pricing server, two prices of the good simultaneously, and wherein each of the two prices of the good are associated with a different expiration date. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 16 , wherein at least one display of the one or more displays is configured to present, dynamically and in real-time by the at least one pricing server, different pricing for the good per expiration date as defined by the one or more algorithms.