SHREYAS SANE

KEVIN DEVINCENTIS

LIAM POWER

Loves, Hates and Interests

Common Loves:

Common Hates:

Portable Technology, Fast Internet, Control Hubs, Integrated Circuit

Technology , Automation

Slow Computers, Short Battery Lives, Traffic, Finding a Parking Spot

Common Interests:

Electronics, Physics, Robotics, New Technologies, Video Games

Defining the Problem

STEP 1 OF THE PLTW DESIGN PROCESS

Problem Statement

Our top ideas:

Parking Spot Finder

Food / Item Checkout Scanner

Floor Plan Mapper

Traffic Management System

Touchpad for Laptops / Devices

Problem Statement

Development of Problem Statement:

1.

(Parking Spot Finder) Locating empty spaces in parking lots is time

consuming and frustrating. A system needs to be designed that can notify
drivers of where available parking spaces are located.

2.

(Checkout Scanner) While automated checkout systems are gaining

popularity, they pose a risk to asset protection to the stores that use
them. A security system needs to be designed to make checkout faster
and easier, while accounting for the issues of security and maintenance.

Problem Statement

Our final problem statement:

Automated checkout systems are gaining popularity, a 2014

world study inAustralia, France, Germany, Italy, Japan,
Russia, Spain, UK, and the US, 90% identify themselves as
users of self-checkouts;however, theypose a risk to the
asset protection of thestores that use them. A system must
be designed to make checkout faster and simpler, while
accounting for the issues of security and maintenance.

Supporting Evidence

Interview with Giant Food Stores

What are some of the flaws that are existent in these machines? In the
system?

Answer:

Freezes a lot

Once or twice a week

What theftrisksare there, and how do you manage them?

Answer:

Noticeable amount of theft

Requires an attendant constantly watching

High risk area

Higher risk than a normal checkout

People feel like they aren't being watched

Supporting Evidence

Food Marketing Institute

Shoplifting Prevention Organization

This document was prepared to provide local, state and federal legislators and
prosecutors, the judiciary, and law enforcement agencies without previous experience
in dealing with organized retail theft, a better understanding of retailings major
criminal problem today - professional shoplifting or organized retail theft.

shoplifting has become one of the most prevalent crimes in the U.S., averaging
about 550,000 incidents per day resulting in more than $13 billion worth of goods
being stolen from retailers each year. That is more than $35 million in losses per day.

ECR Shrinkage Group

One retailer found thatmanned checkouts operators are three times more likely to
not scan an item than acustomer using self scan.

Problem Justification

Reaching out to Experts:

Letters
Brochur
e

Survey Data

Survey Data

Supporting Information

Improve the scanning. Sometimes the scanner does not read the
code

I would change the bagging area. It is not user friendly and much too
small.

Bagging areas are too small and difficult to manage

Don't like to have to wait to scan next item until previous one was
bagged, don't need any voice feedback. I would like to scan the item
the first time I put it in the cart, instead of having to remove and then
re-pack.

Improved scanning & weighing capabilities.

Research: Shopping Cart that Enables SelfCheckout

Advantages:
Excellent theft
prevention.
Implements fast and
efficient check-out.
Good for large orders that
fit in one cart
Disadvantages:
High maintenance
Monetary expense is
large
Still requires the cashier
to unpack the goods
Limited Space
Bad for small orders

Research: MC18 Personal Shopper

Advantages:
Ergonomic and easy to
use
Relates inventory
information to the user
Works with all clients
Easily adaptable
Get better over time
through software
Disadvantages:
Does not solve the
security issue
Requires charging and
battery replacement
Need a large quantity of
devices in order to work
efficiently.

Research: Enhanced Purchase Verification

for Self-Checkout System

Advantages:
Barcode changes
after being scanned
Remarkably secure
Multiple methods of
verifying product
Barcodes are
difficult to
reproduce
Disadvantages:
Proprietary
barcodes
High machine cost
High maintenance
Cannot handle
heavy and large
items.

Research: Self-Checkout Kiosk and Retail

Security System
Advantages:
Does not limit item
size or quantity
Difficult to deceive
the computer
Does not take any
extra time
Disadvantages:
Large, expensive
infrastructure
Requires RFID tags
on all items

Generating Concepts
STEP 2 OF THE PLTW DESIGN PROCESS

Brainstorming Mind Map

Brainstorming Mind Map

Brainstorming Mind Map

Brainstorming Mind Map

Brainstorming Mind Map

Brainstorming Thumbnail Sketches

In Cart Payment
System
Holds onto items until
paid
Can eject unwanted
items
Pay at the cart
RFID Remote Pay
Scans for items at
ranges of 10m
Charges automatically
instead of checkout

Item RFID System

EPC Gen 2 has a range
of 10m
Propagating back
scatter
Stores 96 bits of data
max
Inventory System
POS connect to item
database
Removes and adds
inventory as its
inputted and outputted

Brainstorming Rough Sketches

Concept 1: A doorway or an enclosed box which you can go through

and a sensor will scan all your items.

Brainstorming Rough Sketches

Concept 2: A scanner equipped shopping cart that reads labels as you

put items in, and is capable of payment.

Brainstorming Rough Sketches

Concept 3: A camera present at the conveyor belt near the cash

register than can read the tags on products, and input them into
customers database.

Refined Sketches Mobile Cart Scanner

As each item is placed in the cart, it is
automatically scanned as it enters the
cart. The items then appear on an LCD
display attached to the cart with its price
and other information. This occurs
because an RFID reader in cart can read
all the RFID tags, which are attached to
each item, in the cart. Once the customer
is finished, they can proceed to checkout,
with the bagging and scanning process
already complete.

Refined Sketches Tag Recognition

Scanner
The customer removes the items from the
bags, and places them one at a time, with
sufficient spacing, on the conveyor. The
conveyor moves the items into the box at
a steady pace, and pauses at each item to
take a picture. The three cameras then
illuminate the item with a circular flash
from the top and two sides, and takes a
picture. The image is then compared with
the database to ascertain the items
identity, and added to the cart. The user
can view the cart on the outside as items
are added, with the option for an override.
The items are then passed through to the
other end to be bagged.

Refined Sketches Walk-through Scanner

When it is time to check out, the customer
simply pushes the cart through an
archway and all their items appear on the
computer screen. The archway has a built
in RFID reader that is able to detect RFID
tags located on each item no matter
where the items are in the cart. This data
is then transferred to a computer just as a
barcode scanner would. The customer can
then proceed to checkout as normal. The
walk-through scanner makes the scanning
and bagging process take only seconds to
complete.

Developing a Solution
STEP 3 OF THE PLTW DESIGN PROCESS

Decision Matrix

Product Specifications
Overview: (Ordered by importance with 1 being the most important)
1. Maximum wait time is four minutes, as our survey showed this was the average acceptable
wait.
2. Secure and able to prevent the theft of items through tricking the machine into thinking the
item was scanned, not scanning the item at all, and label swapping, which our interviews
show are the most common forms of stealing via self-checkout.
3. Able to handle small products such as: bakery, deli, produce, meat, beverages, and health
and beauty products, which are the products most commonly used in self-checkout per our
survey.
4. Methods of use able to be understood by the majority of the user population, which is a
common flaw with current self-checkout systems, as seen in the many complaints in our
survey.
5. Able to handle at least 16 items, which is the average number of items used among the
populace surveyed.
6. Closed loop circuit, capable of relaying information to other systems regarding remaining
stock, as this gives it an edge that makes it more appealing to stores.
7. Less expensive than current self-checkout systems, as this aids in sales.

CAD Model

Color Schemes

Black
o Strength, power
White
o Health, purity
Grey
o Neutral, cool
Brown
o Warm, neutral

Beige
o Warm or cool
depending on
surroundings

Red
o Hot, violence
o Causes physical
effects
Orange
o Energetic
o Muted: Earth
o Friendly
Yellow
o Bright, energetic
Green
o New beginning
o Energetic calm
Blue
o Calm, responsible
Purple
o Royalty

Constructing and Testing

the Prototype
STEP 4 OF THE PLTW DESIGN PROCESS

Mockup
Materials Used for
Construction of Mockup:
Cardboard
Tape
Wooden Support Pieces

(1/2) Scale

Prototype Construction

Final Prototype

Cost Analysis

Prototype:

Foam: $61.63

Reader: $445

Acrylic Cover: $1.85

Tags: $0.20 per tag

Total: $508.48

Production Model:

Reader: $445

Mold: $3400

Plastic per product: $687

Acrylic cover: $1.85

Tags: $0.10 per tag

Total: $4533.95

Testing

The tests we conducted:

1.

Range

2.

Functionality

3.

Checkout Time

4.

Materials

5.

Quantity of Items

6.

Consumer Response

7.

Durability

8.

Reliability

Testing

Testing

Testing

Testing

Data Evaluation
Maximum Wait Time: Average Scanning time is significantly less than
the current checkout process.
Secure: More complex to fool the system. Needs further testing.
Able to Handle Small Products
Our system is just as capable as a standard cart, and thus meets
this spec.
Able to be understood by most users: Device is simple and easy to
use.
Able to handle at least 16 items
Per the Quantity of Items test, the device can handle up to 50
tags, which is triple this constraint
Closed Loop Circuit
Via telnet data transfer and a script that writes into a database,
this spec is met

Evaluating the Solution

STEP 5 OF THE PLTW DESIGN PROCESS

Prototype results

The good:

Shows good proof of concept.

Scans RFID tags and sends the data to a registry.

Significantly shorter amount of time is required to scan the tags.

The bad:

Can sometimes miss some items.

Can accidentally scan too many items.

Proposed modifications
More powerful reader
More antennas
Different base design

The End
QUESTIONS?