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Title:
TRANSPARENT SHOPPING CART WITH EMBEDDED ADVERTISING AND METHODS OF MANUFACTURE AND USE OF SAME
Document Type and Number:
WIPO Patent Application WO/2013/112644
Kind Code:
A1
Abstract:
The present invention is directed to an improved shopping cart including a basket portion for holding purchased items. The basket portion has at least one transparent wall portion. An integrally molded advertising material is located within the interior space of the at least one transparent wall portion. The at least one integrally molded advertising material is oriented in the transparent wall portion such that it is visible from the at least exterior of the basket through the at least one transparent wall portion of the basket. The cart has a handle portion operably connected to the basket portion. The basket portion of the cart is operably connected to a plurality of wheels for rolling the cart through a store.

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Inventors:
HILL KATIE (US)
Application Number:
PCT/US2013/022819
Publication Date:
August 01, 2013
Filing Date:
January 23, 2013
Export Citation:
Click for automatic bibliography generation   Help
Assignee:
HILL KATIE (US)
International Classes:
B26B5/00
Foreign References:
US20020145038A12002-10-10
DE3305378A11984-09-06
US2560117A1951-07-10
CN201741357U2011-02-09
US20020020976A12002-02-21
US5385358A1995-01-31
US4120384A1978-10-17
US20070210155A12007-09-13
Attorney, Agent or Firm:
HAMILL, Mark, A. (P.C.788 Willis Stree, Glen Ellyn IL, US)
Download PDF:
Claims:
Claims

What is Claimed is:

1. An improved shopping cart comprising:

a basket portion for holding purchased items, the basket portion having at least one transparent wall portion;

an integrally molded advertising material located within the interior space of the at least one transparent wall portion, the at least one integrally molded advertising material being oriented in the transparent wall portion such that it is visible from the exterior of the basket through the at least one transparent wall portion of the basket;

a handle portion operably connected to the basket portion; and

a plurality of wheels operably connected to the basket portion.

2. The improved shopping cart of Claim 1 wherein the at least one transparent wall portion is molded from a substantially transparent thermoplastic resin and the integrally molded advertising material is constructed of a color fast, heat resistant material that substantially retains its shape and color during molding of the at least one transparent wall portion.

3. The improved shopping cart of Claim 1 wherein the at least one transparent wall portion is injection molded from a translucent thermoplastic resin and wherein the integrally molded advertising material is formed by placing a three-dimensional graphic mold insert into an injection mold cavity prior to formation of the transparent wall section and then molding the thermoplastic resin around the three-dimensional graphic mold insert to form both the at least one transparent wall portion and the integrally molded advertising material.

4. The improved shopping cart of Claim 1 wherein the integrally molded advertising material includes an advertising message, which is simultaneously visible to shoppers through the at least one transparent wall portion from both the exterior of the basket portion and the interior of the basket portion.

5. The improved shopping cart of Claim 1 wherein the at least one transparent wall portion includes a detachable mount, which detachably mounts the at least one transparent wall portion to the remainder of the basket portion so that the at least one transparent wall portion can be replaced by a substitute transparent wall portion.

6. The improved shopping cart of Claim 1 wherein the integrally molded advertising material is formed from a colored printed film insert made from a heat resistant and color fast film material which retains a substantially planar shape and the color printed thereon after the molding transparent thermoplastic resin around the colored printed film insert to mold the integrally molded advertising material into the transparent wall portion of the basket portion.

7. The improved shopping cart of Claim 1 further comprising a frame portion operably connected to the basket portion, the handle portion and the plurality of wheels.

8. The improved shopping cart of Claim 7 further comprising a detachable basket mount, which detachably mounts the basket portion to the frame portion of the improved shopping cart so that an original basket portion can be detached from the frame and a replacement basket portion may be mounted to the same frame.

9. An improved shopping cart comprising:

a substantially transparent basket for holding purchased items, the basket having a front wall, a first side wall, a second side wall, a back wall, and a bottom wall; each of the front wall, first side wall, second side wall, back wall, and bottom wall being molded from a transparent thermoplastic resin;

a handle portion operably connected to the basket portion; and

a plurality of wheel assemblies operably connected to the basket portion.

10. The improved shopping cart basket of Claim 9 further comprising a frame having a handle extension dimensioned to telescopically mate with the handle portion and having a basket extension dimensioned to telescopically mate with the basket portion.

11. The improved shopping cart basket of Claim 10 further comprising a detachable basket fastener for detachably securing the telescopically mated substantially transparent basket to the basket extension of the frame whereby the substantially transparent basket is readily removable and replaceable with a replacement substantially transparent basket.

12. The improved shopping cart basket of Claim 10 further comprising a detachable handle fastener for detachably securing the telescopically mated handle to the handle extension of the frame whereby the handle is readily removable and replaceable with a replacement handle.

13. The improved shopping cart of Claim 9 further comprising a pair of hinge members joining the front wall of the basket to each of the first side wall and second side wall, respectively, the pair of hinge members being operable between a first closed basket position for retaining purchased items within the basket and a second open gate position for allowing removal of bulky items from the front of the basket through the space formerly occupied by the front wall when in the first closed basket position.

14. The improved shopping cart basket of Claim 11 further comprising a detachable basket fastener for detachably securing the telescopically mated substantially transparent basket to the basket extension of the frame, a detachable handle fastener for detachably securing the

telescopically mated handle to the handle extension of the frame, a detachable wheel assembly fastener for detachably securing at least one wheel assemblies to the frame, and a pair of hinge members detachably joining the front wall of the basket to each of the first side wall and second side wall, respectively, whereby each of the basket, handle, at least one wheel assembly, and front wall of the basket is readily removable and replaceable with a like replacement part.

15. The improved shopping cart of Claim 9 wherein the wheels have an outer tread surface with a rounded, substantially hemispherical cross section and wherein the outer tread surface of the wheels are made from a relatively soft, elastomeric material.

16. The improved shopping cart of Claim 9 further comprising a crush zone protection divider hingedly mounted to the bottom wall of the basket, the crush zone protection divider being movable between a first horizontal bulk item receiving position so that even very large items can fit within the basket and a second substantially vertical crush zone protection position to define a boundary of a crush protection zone of the cart.

17. The improved shopping cart of Claim 16 further comprising a child seat that is hingedly mounted to the back wall of the basket, the child seat being movable between a first substantially vertical position in which the child seat is stowed away and a second extended position in which the child seat is relatively horizontal, the child seat covering a pair of leg holes formed in the back wall of the basket in the first substantially vertical position and uncovering the pair of leg holes in the second extended position.

18. The improved shopping cart of Claim 17 wherein the child seat when placed in the second extended position defines an upper boundary of the crush protection zone when the crush zone detection divider is in its second substantially horizontal crush zone protection position.

19. An improved shopping cart comprising:

a basket for holding purchased items,

a handle portion operably connected to the basket;

a plurality of wheel assemblies operably connected to the basket; a data gathering member for gathering data from the cart;

a microprocessor operably connected to the data gathering member for processing electrical signals transmitted to the microprocessor; and

a display unit operably connected to the microprocessor for displaying the data.

20. The improved shopping cart of Claim 20 further comprising a coding member permanently embedded into the cart, the coding member identifying at least one of the store at which that cart is located, the retailer owning the cart, and the geographic location where the cart is located.

21. The improved shopping cart of Claim 19 wherein the item data gathering member includes a purchased item price gathering input device.

22. The improved shopping cart of Claim 19 further comprising a purchased item data output member which is selectively operably connected to a cash register purchased item data input member at checkout, the purchased item data output member providing the identity of each of the purchased items in the cart as well as the individual price of each purchased item as well as the sum total prices of all of the purchased items in the cart to the purchased item data input member of the cash register at checkout to eliminate the time consuming process of individually scanning each of the items.

23. The improved shopping cart of Claim 19 wherein the purchased item data gathering member is an RFID reader.

24. The improved shopping cart of Claim 19 wherein the purchased item data gathering member is an optical scanner.

25. The improved shopping cart Claim 20 wherein the data gathering member is an optical scanner of a personal mobile computing device, wherein the display unit operably connected to microprocessor is the display of the personal mobile computing device, and wherein the personal mobile computing device is programmed to receive point of purchase marketing message via wireless communication from at least one of the store owning the cart, a participating advertiser of the store owning the cart, and a point-of- purchase marketing network.

26. An improved method of providing mobile point-of-purchase marketing display within a store comprising the steps of:

providing a plurality of shopping carts each having a basket, each of the plurality of shopping carts having at least one transparent wall portion defining a portion of the basket with an integrally molded advertising material located within the interior space of the at least one transparent wall portion, the integrally molded advertising material being viewable simultaneously through the at least one transparent side wall portion from both the interior and exterior of the basket;

allowing at least one shopper to utilize one of the plurality of shopping carts having at least one transparent wall portion with an integrally molded advertising material formed therein to gather items for purchase throughout the store; and,

simultaneously displaying the integrally molded advertising material through the at least one transparent wall portion to other shoppers through the exterior of the at least one transparent wall of the basket and to the at least one shopper through the interior of the at least one transparent wall of the basket continuously while the at least one shopper is gathering items for purchase in the shopping cart throughout the store.

27. The improved method of Claim 26 wherein the plurality of shopping carts includes a transparent front wall, a transparent back wall and transparent sidewalls defining the basket thereby providing other shoppers in the store with an unencumbered, continuous simultaneous view of the integrally molded advertising material from the front, back, and sides of the shopping cart.

28. The improved method of Claim 27 wherein the at least one of the plurality of shopping carts includes a plurality of integrally molded advertising messages formed within the interior space of at least two of the transparent walls defining the basket thereby providing the shoppers in the store with an unencumbered, continuous simultaneous view of the plurality of integrally molded advertising materials from the front, back, and sides of the shopping cart.

29. The improved method of Claim 26 wherein plurality shopping carts include a transparent front gate portion having a first integrally molded advertising message, the transparent front gate detachably mounting to the sidewalls of the basket and wherein the method further includes the steps of (a) removing the transparent from gate portion having a first integrally molded advertising message and (b) providing a replacement front gate portion having a differing integrally molded advertising message molded therein thereby allowing the store to readily substitute different mobile point of purchase messages on the plurality of shopping carts.

30. The improved method of Claim 26 wherein plurality shopping carts include a frame and a detachable basket mounted to the frame and wherein the method includes the further steps of (a) removing a first detachable basket mounted to the frame having a first integrally molded advertising message and (b) attaching a substituting a basket having a differing integrally molded advertising message molded therein to the frame thereby allowing the store to readily provide different mobile point of purchase messages on the same shopping cart.

Description:
TRANSPARENT SHOPPING CART WITH

EMBEDDED ADVERTISING AND METHODS OF MANUFACTURE AND USE OF SAME

0001 This Application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. Patent Application Ser. No.

61/589,437 filed on January 23, 2012.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention

0002 The present invention is directed to an improved shopping cart for use in a variety of retail store environments. More particularly, the invention is directed to a novel shopping cart design which includes integrally molded advertising material inside of a portion of the basket of the shopping cart as well as to methods of manufacture and use of such improved carts and advertising materials.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART

0003 There are a wide variety of different shopping carts available in the commercial marketplace. There are also a significant number of patents directed to the various shopping cart designs and to systems and methods for affixing advertising messages to such carts. For example, United States Patent No. 5,613,696 is directed to a plastic shopping cart having slots for holding advertising materials formed in both its sidewalls and the front wall of the basket portion. One problem with this approach is that the advertising panels can obstruct the view of the checkout person at the register when the cart is rolled past the checkout stand increasing the chances of theft. Another problem with such designs is that the advertising panels can partially obstruct the view of the shopper when maneuvering through the store such that collisions with other shoppers, other carts or store fixtures are more likely. Lastly, the advertisements can fade and become distorted over time.

0004 Another approach to shopping cart advertising is shown in US Patent No. 5,794,953, which utilizes a frame attached to the front or side walls of the shopping cart for receipt of an advertising panel in a slot formed therein. The flimsy natures of the advertising panel as well as its impermanent look and feel of the frame render the system of the '953 patent less aesthetically pleasing than is desirable for many consumer packaged goods companies. This is an important consideration as such companies spend a great deal of advertising and marketing money to create a positive brand image for their companies and their products. The use of flimsy, impermanent advertising materials detracts from a professional looking branded image or message and therefore many image conscious companies have, in the past, avoided use of shopping cart advertising.

0005 Furthermore, since shopping carts are frequently taken out of doors by customers to load purchased products into their cars, the carts are frequently exposed to rain, snow, and freeze/thaw temperature cycles. Thus, even if an advertising display material were aesthetically acceptable when first installed onto a cart, the materials can quickly deteriorate into an aesthetically unacceptable appearance. Moreover, shopping carts are frequently nested together in a stacked arrangement by store personnel for transportation and storage in the store parking lot or within the store itself. This means that the advertising materials can often be exposed to forceful mechanical contact with other carts or with the shopping cart corral structures found in many parking lots. For these reasons the advertising display materials need to have a very high degree of aesthetic appeal, yet be durable enough to maintain that appeal when exposed to the challenges of the retail environmental and to harsh outdoor weather conditions.

0006 Another problem with shopping cart advertising display systems is that the installation and maintenance of the advertising frame panels is more cumbersome and involves more expense than the present inventor believes to be desirable. This is because the companies that sell advertising space on such carts have attempted to prevent retail customers from removing their advertising materials by making removal from the cart relatively difficult for children or others without immediate access to the required hand tools. For example, US Patent No. 3,677,570 discloses that it may include a plastic shell portion that is designed to protect the advertising material displayed therein from the attentions of children or adolescents.

0007 Still further, an advertising and marketing field that is rapidly grown in the past 10 to 15 years is known in the trade as "shopper marketing." Where traditional advertising messages are directed to a mass audience through mass media in order to create brand awareness in consumer's mind, shopper marketing is any advertising or marketing material presented to a customer at or near the point where a purchase decision is made for particular product category. Prior art shopping carts have not had a significant role as a platform for shopper marketing messages for most consumer product packaged goods companies because these companies viewed the prior art carts as lacking a sufficiently high quality appearance and aesthetic appeal to serve as appropriate platform for their point of purchase message. The perceived quality problem exists because of some of the inherent design flows in many prior art shopping carts that render them excessively noisy when pushed, difficult to control, particularly if one or more wheels is misaligned or the cart's frame is bent, and generally aesthetically unappealing.

0008 Another problem with existing shopping cart designs is that older or frail persons can have trouble placing bulky or heavy items in their baskets. Such items may simply be too heavy or awkward for a frail or older person to feel comfortable hoisting over the basket wall and then gingerly dropping into the basket without damage to the item or risk of injury to the shopper. Furthermore, prior art carts have maneuverability problems, such as, when one or more of the wheels begin to wobble. The wobbling of shopping wheels can make it very difficult for a frail or elderly person to control their cart. Also, when carts are heavily loaded with dense items such as milk, bottled water, etc., it can be difficult for even strong fit persons to make the front of the cart turn accurately and under control. One further problem with existing shopping carts is that fragile items can become crushed during a shopping trip. This typically occurs when a customer inadvertently stacks a heavy product on a light, soft or fragile product. Lastly, the current checkout process is slowed down by the bar code scanning process at the checkout register in which each product is removed from the basket and dragged across an optical scanner built into the checkout stand.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION

0009 It is one object of the invention to provide a shopping cart that includes high quality advertising material permanently embedded into at least a portion of a shopping basket.

00010 It is a further object of the invention to provide a substantially solid shopping cart basket which shoppers can see through while shopping and can look through to view an advertising message which appears to be permanently embedded in a wall of the shopping cart basket.

00011 It is another object of the invention to provide advertising materials integrally molded into a shopping cart basket wall so that the advertising materials displayed therein are both durable and aesthetically pleasing.

00012 It is still further object of the invention to provide a branded shopping cart which utilizes a wholesaler or retailer's branded color scheme or trade dress as well as a permanently wholesaler or retailer's advertising message (or iconic logo) molded into one or more walls defining the shopping cart basket. 00013 It is still another object of the invention to provide a shopping cart advertising system in which at least a portion of the cart basket includes an integrally molded advertising message and in which the portion bearing the advertising material is detachable and interchangeable to allow for changing over to a new advertising message.

00014 It is still another object of the invention to provide a shopping cart that allows for bulky items to be placed in the cart without having to lift the item over the sidewalls of the cart to ease the placing of bulky, awkward or heavy items in the shopping basket.

00015 It is another object of the invention to provide a more maneuverable shopping cart having improved wheel assemblies and wheel placement.

00016 It is another object of the invention to provide a shopping cart with improved aesthetic appeal to both shoppers and consumer packaged goods companies.

00017 It is still further object of the invention to provide shopping carts which have sufficiently high perceived quality and aesthetically appeal to serve as a significant shopper marketing message platform.

00018 It is another object of the invention to provide a shopping cart with a crush proof zone for storing fragile items during a shopping trip.

00019 It is still further object of the invention to provide a cart that can improve the speed and efficiency of the checkout process at a cash register.

00020 It is still another object of the invention to provide a high perceived quality shopping cart that is quieter when pushed and more solid and controllable when turned even under a heavy load condition.

00021 It is another object of the invention to provide a modular cart in which each of the cart frame, handle, and basket components are designed to be easily removable so that they can be easily replaced by the end user.

00022 It is another object of the invention to provide a cart with a high quality advertising message having a permanent appearance that can be substantially continuously viewed by both the shopper pushing the cart and other shopper substantially simultaneously from the front, back and sides of the cart.

00023 It is still another object of the invention to provide a shopping cart with an identifying code embedded in a portion of the cart that is conspicuous to the shopper so that the shopper may scan in the identifying code into the shopper's smart phone so that point-of- purchase marketing messages can be generated and displayed on the shopper' s smart phone with message being specific to the shopper's geographical location, store, shopper, or participating advertisers. 00024 It is another object of the invention to provide a shopping cart with a crush proof zone for storing fragile items during a shopping trip.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

00025 In one aspect of the invention, an improved shopping cart is provided, which has a basket for holding purchased items, a frame attached to the basket, a handle portion attached to the frame, and the plurality of wheels attached to the frame, the basket having at least one portion molded from a transparent or translucent thermoplastic resin and having at least one advertising material integrally molded within the interior walls of the at least one portion molded from the transparent or transparent resin such that the advertising material molded therein is visible from at least the exterior of the basket through the transparent or translucent resin of the basket. Preferably, the frame portion is fabricated from a suitable gauge of metal material such as steel, aluminum or other suitable metals. Further, the outer tread surfaces of the wheels preferably have a rounded, hemispherical cross section and are made from a relatively soft, elastomeric material, such as, polyurethane. For the purposes of this patent disclosure, the term transparent and/or translucent as used herein are defined in terms of the advertising function of the cart. Thus, those terms mean the transparent or translucent structures described herein must allow sufficient light to pass through the molded resin material forming the structure that the integrally molded advertising message within the structure can be detected by the shopper pushing the cart and/or other shoppers in the retail store. In other words, the transparent or translucent portions of the shopping cart basket defined herein do not significantly obscure the advertising material integrally molded into such portions of the basket when viewed from either the interior or exterior of the cart.

00026 In a further aspect of the invention, an improved shopping cart is provided, which has a substantially solid, molded basket formed from a transparent or translucent thermoplastic resin for increasing the aesthetic appeal of the cart, allowing the shopper to view his surroundings through the basket, for reducing the noise the cart generates when moved, increasing the perceived quality of the cart by providing a solid, sturdy, yet maneuverable feel to the cart, and for allowing store personnel to verify that the cart is empty of items to be purchased upon the completion of checkout, a handle portion for steering the cart, and the plurality of wheels having soft, elastomeric treads with a hemispherical cross section for movement of the cart. Preferably, the substantially transparent or translucent molded basket includes a transparent or translucent gate portion with advertising material integrally molded into the interior of the transparent or translucent gate portion. The solid basket may be tinted with a suitable color to match a wholesaler, retailer, or advertiser's trade dress, but retaining sufficient light transmission to ensure delivery of the advertiser's message to shoppers viewing simultaneously from both interior and exterior of the cart. The use of the improved soft, elastomeric tread with a hemispherical cross-section wheel treads cuts down on vibration and noise when the cart is pushed thereby contributing to the high perceived quality experience the shopper has with the cart. Moreover, it is preferred that any fasteners joining portions of the cart include elastomeric bumpers or washers to dampen noises created by movement of the cart and to provide it with a solid feel while being pushed. The noise dampening and sturdy feel of the cart also contributes to the high perceived quality experience associated with the cart.

00027 In another aspect of the invention, an improved shopping cart is provided, which has a basket having a substantially planar floor portion for receipt of purchased items, a frame attached to the basket, a handle portion attached to the frame, a plurality of wheels attached to the frame, and a crush zone protection divider hingedly mounted to the floor of the basket. When the crush zone protection divider is in its first horizontal position, the entire floor area of the basket is available to receive purchased items so that even very large or bulky items can fit within the basket. When the crush zone protection divider is rotated about its hinge into its second upright (or substantially vertical) position, it defines the inner most boundary of a crush protection zone of the cart. That zone begins at the back wall of the basket and extends inwardly to the crush zone protection divider. Thus, the cart of this embodiment of the invention provides the shopper with a crush protection zone where fragile, light and/or crushable products are protected by the divider from having heavier items inadvertently sliding rearward into such products. When the child safety seat is folded down, the seat provides additional protection to products located in the crush zone from having heavier items stacked on top of fragile, light or crushable items. The crush zone protection divider is preferably molded from a translucent or transparent thermoplastic resin to avoid obstructing the shopper's view of products in the basket. The crush zone protection divider may also include an integrally molded advertising material in its interior such that the advertising material is visible through the translucent or transparent thermoplastic from at least the shopper's perspective when pushing the cart.

00028 In still another aspect of the invention, a method is provided for serial display of different advertising material on a shopping cart by performing the steps of (a) providing a shopping cart which includes a basket having a first translucent or transparent portion and a first advertising material integrally molded within the interior of the first translucent or transparent basket portion; (b) viewing the first advertising material from at least the exterior of the cart through the first substantially translucent or transparent basket portion; (c) removing the first translucent or transparent basket portion of the shopping cart; (d) installing a second transparent basket portion having a second advertising material integrally molded within the interior of the second translucent or translucent basket portion, the second advertising material having a different advertising message than the first advertising material; (e) and viewing the second advertising message from at least the exterior of the cart through the second substantially translucent or transparent basket portion.

00029 In a still further aspect of the invention, the cart handle is molded from a thermoplastic resin, which includes a hollow interior space into which an RFID reader, microprocessor and display unit can be installed. The RFID reader is programmed to track each item as it is placed in the interior of the cart basket, furthermore the microprocessor is programmed to send an item price signal to a display unit mounted in the handle to indicate the price of each item as it enters the cart, the microprocessor is also programmed to calculate the sum total of the prices for the items currently held in the cart and to generate a new display signal for the sum total price each time an additional item is added or removed from the cart. Furthermore, the RFID chip can be programmed to send a radio frequency signal containing the identity of each of the items in the cart as well as their individual price and sum total prices to a cash register at checkout to eliminate the time consuming process of individually scanning each of the items.

00030 In yet another aspect of the invention, a branded shopping cart is provided which has a basket molded from a tinted, translucent thermoplastic resin, the tint color being selected to match one of the prominent colors of a retailer, wholesaler or advertiser's trade dress (or one of its trademarks); a frame attached to the basket painted a color selected to match or contrast one of the prominent colors of the retailer or wholesaler's trade dress, a handle portion attached to the frame, and a plurality of tinted wheels attached to the frame, the wheel tint being selected to match one of the prominent colors of the retailer or wholesaler's trade dress; and the basket having at least one advertising material integrally molded within the interior walls of the shopping cart such that the advertising material molded therein is visible from at least the exterior of the basket through the transparent or translucent resin of the basket. The branded shopping cart may further include a hinged front gate portion of the shopping cart having an integrally molded advertising material molded therein. As indicated above, for purposes of this patent application, the color selected to match a wholesaler or retailer's "trade dress" also includes one or more of the wholesaler or retailer's trademarks or logos.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

00031 FIG. 1 is a front side perspective view of a shopping cart in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

00032 FIG. 2 is a plan view of the cart of FIG. 1 with its front gate completely opened and with its crush zone divider swung up in its vertical position.

00033 FIG. 3 is a side view of the cart of FIG. 1 with the front gate in its closed position and with its crush zone divider swung into its vertical position.

00034 FIG. 4 is an enlarged right side, back corner perspective view of the handle and child seat portion of the cart of FIG. 1 with the child seat closure flap in its upright position.

00035 FIG. 5 is a back, left corner perspective view of the cart of FIG. 1 with the child seat closure flap in its upright position.

00036 FIG. 6 is an enlarged, left side perspective view of the basket portion of the cart of FIG.

1 (with the hinge and front gate portion removed).

00037 FIG. 7 is an enlarged, right side perspective view of the front gate (with hinge removed) of the cart of FIG. 1

00038 FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of the RFID reader, display, checkout computer, smart phone, and retailer networked computers in accordance with a method and system of the invention including the cart of FIG. 1.

00039 FIG. 9 is a rear perspective view of a shopping cart with a smart phone holder in accordance with another embodiment of the invention.

00040 FIG. 10 is an enlarged side view of a wheel assembly for use on a shopping cart in accordance with still another embodiment of the invention.

00041 FIG. 11 is an enlarged front perspective view of the wheel design in accordance with

FIG. 10.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

00042 Referring to a first embodiment of the invention shown in FIGS. 1-7, a shopping cart 20 is formed of a number of structural components including, a substantially transparent basket 22, a frame 40 attached to and supporting the transparent basket 30, a front gate 50 at the front end of the basket 22, a rear handle 60 on the back end of the basket 22, a pair of front caster assemblies 70a and 70b attached to the frame 40, a pair of fixed back wheels 80a and 80b attached to the frame 40, and a bottom tray 90 attached to the frame 40.

00043 The substantially transparent basket 22 is injection molded from a substantially transparent thermoplastic resin. The preferred thermoplastic resins for formation of the shopping cart basket 22 are Tritan® or Tenite®, which are products of Eastman Chemical Company of Kingsport, Tennessee. However, other transparent or translucent thermoplastic resins such as polycarbonate (PC) resin or Styrene acrylonitrile (SAN) resin SAN may also be used to form the transparent or translucent portions of the shopping cart basket 20. Furthermore, although the shopping cart basket 22 of FIGs 1-7 are shown as being substantially transparent and thus no tinting materials have been added to the thermoplastic resin, substantially transparent or translucent tinted shopping cart baskets are within the scope of the invention as discussed in detail below. The use of transparent or translucent materials in the shopping cart basket allows shoppers to view the integrally molded advertising message that is molded into the walls of a portion of the shopping cart basket 20 simultaneously from a variety of different angles through the walls of the transparent basket 22. In the embodiment of FIGs 1-7, the advertising message is shown having been integrally molded into the front gate portion 50, side wall 24a, and sidewall 24b of the shopping cart basket 22. However, it is contemplated that advertising messages may also be integrally molded into other portions of the shopping cart basket such as the shopping cart basket floor 21, crush zone divider 36, or back wall 39.

00044 The shopping cart basket 22 has a number of void areas 25 in sidewalls 24a and 24b in the embodiment of the invention shown in FIGs 1-7. However, it is contemplated that additional spaced apart voids in the side walls 24a and 24b may be introduced in order to reduce the overall weight of the cart, particularly if a relatively dense elastomeric resin is selected for the cart basket 22. If a lighter material is selected, the sidewalls 24a and 24b may be molded without void areas. Furthermore, as best seen in FIGs 3-5, the shopping cart basket floor 21 include at least some void areas so that the cart basket 22 does not collect water when left outside during a rain event. Likewise, tray 90 also includes a number of spaced apart voids 91 to serve the same drainage purpose. Basket floor 21 is substantially planar in its central portion and begins to curve upwardly in transition zones 26a and 26b into substantially vertical sidewalls 24a and 24b. The thickness of basket floor 21 and sidewalls 24a and 24b is preferably between about 1/4 inch and about 1 inch so that the cart basket 22 has a solid, high quality look and feel due to the increased structural rigidity and noise dampening properties of the substantially solid shopping cart basket 22 of the shopping cart 20. Depending upon the particular thermoplastic resin and wall thicknesses selected within the preferred thickness range, it will typically require between about 30 pounds and about 50 pounds of plastic resin to mold each basket portion 22, excluding the front gate 50, which is discussed in detail below. Optionally, a structural reinforcement wire 68 may be molded into the walls of shopping cart 22. The structural wire reinforcement is preferably embedded in rim 27 so that it does not obscure the view of any of the advertising messages 30 embedded into the cart 22. Additional structural reinforcement wires may be embedded into the shopping cart walls so long as they do not obscure the view of the advertising material 30 from either the interior or the exterior basket 22.

00045 Basket 22 further includes an outwardly extending rim 27 along its upper perimeter.

As best seen in FIGs 1, 3, 4 and 5, the rim 27 terminates at its attachment point to rear handle portion 60 near the back of the basket 22. The rim 27 terminates adjacent to the handle sockets 59a,b. The handle sockets 59a,b, are dimensioned to telescopically mate with frame elongated tubular arms, 41a,b, respectively. The handle 60 is connected to the basket 22 at wing member 45 by fasteners 35a and 35b which pass through apertures in the wing member 45a,b and aligned apertures (not shown) found in the handle 60. As mentioned briefly above, wherever the shopping cart pieces use fasteners or connectors, such as fasteners 45a and 45b, an elastomeric bumper or washer is preferably utilized to cushion the contact between the parts to dampen vibration and any noise created by movement of the cart. In the case of fasteners 45a,b an ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) washer is placed between each of the fasteners and their respective point of contact with the cart basket 22 or handle 60. While EPDM bumpers and washers are preferred because of their superior elasticity, durability, and UV resistance, washer and bumpers made from other elastomeric material may be utilized in the shopping carts of the invention.

00046 The advertising materials 30 are preferably three-dimensional graphic mold inserts bearing an image of a logo, trademark, or trade name of a wholesaler, retailer, or advertiser. The use of the three-dimensional material embedded in the transparent or translucent wall of the shopping cart basket 22 provides for an eye-catching, permanent, high quality presentation of the chosen advertising message. The advertising material 30 must be made of a heat resistant material such as polycarbonate, PET, acrylic, ABS, PVC and PS to withstand the hot, chemically volatile conditions found in the mold cavity during the injection molding process. The advertising may be a relatively rigid applique sheet that stands readily in the mold cavity prior to injection, but may include cut outs and voids to provide the advertising material 30 with a three-dimensional character with the cutouts voids filled by resin. A substantial number of cutouts voids can be provided in the advertising material 30 so long as those features do not detract from the overall rigidity of the applique sheet. Alternately, the advertising material 30 may be printed onto a carrier film that enters the mold cavity via an automated reel to reel feed mechanism. The preferred films for printing advertising material are heat resistant polyester carrier films, such as, Avoloy™ or Softouch™. When combined with the aesthetically appealing features of the substantially transparent (or translucent) shopping basket, applicant believes the quality of aesthetic appeal of such advertising will be far more appealing to consumer packaged goods companies as a platform for shopper marketing messages. Furthermore, as the advertising material is embedded in a transparent portion of the shopping cart 22, it is simultaneously visible from a wide variety of viewing angles on the exterior of the shopping cart as well as from the viewing angle of the shopper pushing the cart. If the advertising material 30 includes numbers, letters or other symbols that would look odd or different when viewed from the inside versus the outside of the cart, it is preferred that an opaque backing layer is first applied to applique sheet or the carrier film prior to the printing on the advertising material 30. The use of an opaque backing layer on the advertising material 30 allows the advertising message to be printed on both the front facing and rear facing sides of the applique (or carrier film) with the numbers, letters or other symbols appropriately oriented prior to insertion of the advertising material 30 into the mold cavity.

A crush zone protection divider 36 is hingedly mounted to the basket floor 21 so that it may be selectively moved between a horizontal position when large or bulky items are to be loaded into the basket 22 and a vertical position when crushable items need protection. The child's seat base 38a and backrest 38b are located interior of handle 60 and extends further toward the interior portion of the shopping basket 22. The combination of the child's seat base 38a and backrest 38b provides an upper shelf like structure which overhangs most of the crush protection zone 31 so that heavy or large items cannot be inadvertently loaded onto the fragile items loaded therein. When the crush zone protection divider is rotated about its hinge into its upright (or substantially vertical) position, it defines the inner most boundary of the crush protection zone 31. The crush protection zone 31 is defined at its back end by the back wall of the basket 22. Thus, the cart 22 provides the shopper with the option of creating a crush protection zone 31 by hinging up the divider 36 to protect fragile, light and/or crushable products from having heavier items inadvertently sliding rearward. The crush protection zone can also be fortified in order to protect crushable items from having heavier items inadvertently stacked on top of them via the seat base 38b and backrest 38a. The crush zone protection divider 36 is preferably molded from a translucent or transparent thermoplastic resin to avoid obstructing the shopper's view of products in the basket. The crush zone protection divider 36 may also include an integrally molded advertising material in its interior such that the advertising material is visible through the translucent or transparent thermoplastic from at least the shopper's perspective when pushing the cart. The molding of the crush zone protection divider 36 and any integral advertising message (not shown) can be accomplished via the same injection molding in mold decorating processes that are described below for the advertising material 30 formed in front gate 50. The hinging may be accomplished by use of hinge hardware (not shown) bolted to the shopping basket floor 21 and to the base of the crush zone protection divider 36. Alternately, the hinging may be accomplished by snap fitting feet (not shown) projecting from the crush zone protection divider 36 into a pair of L-shaped slots (not shown) formed in the basket floor 21. When the crush zone protection divider 36 is rotated into its horizontal position, the entire basket floor 21 is available to receive purchased items so that even very large items can fit within the basket.

Frame 40 includes a pair of elongated tubular arms 41a, 41b and a u-shaped basket brace member 42 which extends from a pair of substantially vertical rear legs 46a,b. The brace member 42 is engaged by basket clamp 34 located on the bottom surface of basket floor 21 of basket 22. The frame 40 further includes a rear cross bar 43, front cross-plate 44a, rear cross-plate 44b, and mid-cross-plate 44c; a pair of front frame feet 51a,b; rear frame feet 51c,d; a pair of rear legs 46a and 46b; and a pair longitudinal supports 48a and 48b running lengthwise under the periphery of the tray 90. Front cross-plate 44a and front frame feet 51a,b may be fabricated from a single continuous piece of bar stock or front feet 51a,b may be seam welded to cross-plate 44a. The more curvilinear portions of the frame 40, such as, the curvilinear brace member 41 and rear legs 46a and 46b, are preferably separately manufactured by metal forging or metal injection molding (MIM) processes using either a corrosion resistant alloy of steel or aluminum. These forged or MIM produced parts are joined together with the other metal parts of the frame by spot or seam welding along their respective points of contact or seams of contact. The relatively linear portions of the cart frame such as the crossbar 43, cross-plates 44a-c, supports 48a and 48b, and frame feet 51a-d, are fabricated from a suitable metal such as 6 gauge steel or 8 gauge aluminum flat or tubular bar stock that is bent (when needed) into the preferred configuration. However, the tray 90 can be molded from a tinted thermoplastic resin or can be made from a suitable sheet stock of steel or aluminum. Where the tray 90 is fabricated from metal, the ridge portion 92 of the tray can be formed from a suitable piece of sheet metal and welded to the base of the tray 90 along its curved point of contact therewith. Where a metal tray 90 is used, it adds to the structural of the frame 40 and is thus considered part of the frame 40. The use of a plastic tray has the advantage of being relatively light weight. Where tray is molded from a tinted, substantially transparent or translucent resin, it enhances the visual cohesiveness and appeal of the branded shopping cart 122. No matter which option for tray the material is selected, the resulting frame 40 is both relatively, rigid of solid construction and still relatively lightweight, which serves to further enhance the high quality perception of the shopping cart 20.

00049 After the metal parts of the frame 40 are joined together by spot (or seam) welding and are suitably sanded and grinded to a relatively seam free appearance, a high quality, corrosion resistant paint is applied to the frame 40. The paint may be applied via an electrostatic powder coating process or it may be painted by an electrodeposit paint dipping process into a suitably large receptacle filled with a highly corrosion resistant paint. Since the appearance of the shopping cart 20 is of importance for its adoption as a shopper marketing platform, it is preferable that the painting process for the frame include the application of multiple coats of paint beginning with a corrosion resistant neutral color primer coat and ending with more aesthetically appealing colored coatings as is commonly used on metallic automotive body parts that are visible to customers.

00050 During fabrication of the front gate 50 and sidewalls 24a,b, if the advertising material

30 is a rigid applique, it is preferably prepositioned in the mold cavity by an automated robotic arm prior to injection of the substantially transparent or translucent thermoplastic resin. However, for large volume runs of front gates having the same advertising message, reel-to-reel in mold decorating processes are preferred due to the lower cost per mass printed graphic image on the film relative to manufacturing large volumes of separate rigid appliques. Front gate 50 is molded from the same transparent translucent thermoplastic resin as basket 22. However, front gate 50 has a cross-sectional thickness in the range of about one quarter of an inch to about a third of an inch, which is substantially thinner than the basket floor 21 and sidewalls 24a and 24b. Thus, the front gate 50 is significantly lighter than the other portions of the basket 22 so that front gate 50 can be swing upwardly into its open position even by weaker or frail shoppers. Depending upon the particular translucent or transparent thermoplastic resin used and the thickness chosen for the front gate 50, it will typically weigh between about 3 and 5 pounds so that its own weight is sufficient to keep front gate 50 closed under the normal operating conditions of the shopping cart 20.

00051 Front gate 50 is joined to the sidewalls 24a and 24b by a pair of hinges 52a and 52b, which connects the top surface of the front gate 50 to the top of the sidewalls 24a and 24b. The hinges 52a and 52b are seated in a pair of hinge holes 29a,b (see FIG. 6) formed on the inner surface of the front end portion of rim 27 of the basket 22. Front handles 56 are formed in upper and lower portions of the front gate 50 and, in order to facilitate gripping of the handles 56, they have more rounded edges than the remainder of the front gate. The other end of the pivotal hinge 52a, 52b seats in hinge openings 53a,b (see FIG. 7) formed in the upper gate end projection 57a and 57b of the gate 50. The pivotal hinges 52a and 52b pass through apertures 53a, 53b in the front gate 50. The gate 50 includes a pair of hook member 54a,b which latch onto ribs 32a,b, respectively, when the gate 50 is in its fully closed position. As mentioned briefly above, wherever the shopping cart use fasteners or hinging member, an elastomeric material bumper, washer, or gasket are utilized to cushion the contact between parts to dampen vibration and any noise created by movement of the cart. In the case of hinges 52a,b, two ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) washers are placed between each of the hinge heads 52c - f and their respective point of contact with the cart basket 22 or front gate 50. In order to allow front gate 50 to smoothly swing into its open position (best seen in FIG. 2), a pair of chamfered cut outs 33a,b (FIG. 6) are molded into rim 27 of the shopping cart basket 22. In the open position, the front gate 50 allows shoppers to place heavy items in the cart without having to wrestle them over the cart sidewalls 24 and lower them into the interior of basket 22. Optionally, instead of detachable hinge mounting of the front gate to the basket, the front gate 50 may be detachably mounted to the front end of the basket 22 by sliding the outer edges of the front gate into a pair of channels (not shown) formed in the inner surface of the sidewalls 24a,b adjacent to the front opening. In this optional slide mount configuration, replacement of the front gate 50 with a replacement gate having a different advertising message could be accomplished by the store personnel without having to use any hand tools.

00052 As best seen in FIGs 4-5 and 10, a rear handle 60 is molded from a transparent or translucent thermoplastic resin. It may have a simple cup holder 37 mounted as shown in FIGS. 1-7 or may include the combined smart phone holder 61a and RFID/microprocessor 63 unit as shown in FIG. 9. In the embodiment of FIG. 9, a housing 61 is dimensioned to hold an RFID reader 63 and a smart phone holder 61a, smart phone interface 62 and may optionally also include display screen 65. RFID reader 63 includes a combined radio frequency receiver/transmitter component 63b for decoding RF signals received by antenna 63a and generating the appropriate RF signal for transmission by the antenna 63a. The receiver/transmitter 63b is programmed to receive and decode the radio frequency signals detected by antenna 63 a from a RFID tag 64 found on each item as it is placed in the interior of the cart basket 22. Upon decoding an RF signal, the receiver/transmitter 63b generates an appropriate electrical signal which includes the newly decoded information and passed the electrical signal to microprocessor 63c within the RFID reader 63. Power is supplied to the RFID reader 63 by system power management module 63f, which is electrically connected to a battery management module 63g, which may be, optionally, in turn electrically connected to an AC/DC adapter unit 60h if the RFID reader 63 is rechargeable (See FIG. 8 for Schematic). Each of the items stocked in the store includes their own RFID tag 64 which are programmed to send a unique RF signal as soon as the tag 64 is activated by entering a low level electromagnetic magnetic field generated within the basket 22 of shopping cart 20. That field is preferably generated by a separate field generating component 63e located on the RFID reader 63, but may be generated by the combination of the receiver/transmitter 63b and antennae 63a of RFID reader 63. In either case, the field is generated by means of a pulsed electrical signal sent through a field generating wire 68 (which also may function as a structural reinforcement wire) embedded in at least a portion of the basket 22 with rim 27 and/or front gate 50 of the cart beings preferred locations, although generating wire/structural reinforcement wire 68 may also be embedded in other portions of the cart 22 so long as its placement does not interfere with the internal or external view of the advertising material. The generating wire 68 is embedded into the selected molded part by inserting wire 68 into the mold cavity prior to injection molding of the part(s) it is to be embedded. The RFID reader 63 preferably electrically communicates with cart user's smart phone 105 through interface 62. It may also communicate with the user's smart phone via Blue Tooth, a wire-free network or other wireless communication systems. The shopper's smart phone 105 is preferably loaded with a software application which allows input and storage of one or more user grocery lists. The list is displayed on the smart phone display (not shown) and/or may be displayed on the display 65. When an item from the list is placed into the basket 22 of the cart 20, the RFID reader sends a signal to the smart phone through the interface 62 that the specific item is now located in the basket 22 and the smart phone is programmed by the software application to check the item off the list on the display so the user can visually track purchase of each item on a grocery list and can verify when the purchase of the items on the list is complete.

Once the item RFID tag 64 is activated by the low level cart electromagnetic field, it briefly transmits an item RFID signal which includes both item price and unique item identifying information. The microprocessor 63c is programmed to receive the item RFID electrical signal and to generate an electrical display signal which is communicated to display 65 mounted in handle 65 to indicate the price of each item as it enters the cart 20. As shown in FIG. 9, the display 65 preferably has both a price/identity display region 65 a and sum total price display region 65b to allow simultaneous display of the price/identity of the new item as well as the sum total of the prices of all the items currently in the basket 22 at any moment time during a shopping trip. The microprocessor 63c is also programmed to calculate the sum total of the prices for each of the items currently held in the cart 20 and to generate a new electrical display signal for the sum total price each time an additional item is added or removed from the cart 20. This is done by programming the microprocessor 63c to send a signal to memory module 63e with a query directed to accessing the current price total summary stored in a database therein each time it receives a new electrical item signal from the receiver/transmitter 63b. The microprocessor 63c is also programmed to add each new item's price to the prior sum total of prices stored in the sum total price database of the memory component 63e and to calculate a new sum total price signal based on that information and then to send a signal to store the updated sum total in the sum total database of the memory device 63e. The microprocessor 63c is further programmed to send a new sum total price display signal to the display 65 each time the total sum changes so that the shopper pushing the cart 20 has a continuously updated sum total price of the items currently residing in the cart 20. Moreover, when an item is removed from the basket 22, the removed item' s RFID tag 64 is programed to be activated by the sudden absence of the low level basket electromagnetic field to send an item removal RF signal which is received by antennae 63a and decoded by receiver/transmitter 63b. The item removal RF signal includes both the item price and its identifying information, which the receiver/transmitter 63b decodes and sends as an electrical signal to microprocessor 63c. The RFID microprocessor 63c is programmed to generate an electrical item removal query signal upon detection of the electrical item removal signal generated by the RFID receiver/transmitter 63b. The microprocessor 63c is further programmed to calculate a new sum total price upon removal of the item from the cart after receiving a response to the removal query signal from the memory device 63e, which includes the current sum total price stored in the sum total price database. The microprocessor 63e then subtracts the removed item price from the stored sum total price. The microprocessor 63c send a signal to update the sum total price database with the newly calculated value is memory device 63e and deletes the removed item's identifying information from the purchased items database stored in the memory module 63e. The microprocessor 63c then generates a new sum total electrical display signal, which is passed along to sum total region 65b of display 65.

00054 If the user's smart phone 105 has the shopping list software application activated, its microprocessor is programmed to generate a signal to the smart phone display to show the sum total and to show that a specific item has been removed from the basket 22 of the cart 20. Furthermore, the smart phone microprocessor generates a signal for receipt by the smart phone processing circuit indicating the identity of the individual item removed from the basket. The smart phone software application this program to generate an item lists check signal which queries the smartphone memory, and if the item appears on the list the microprocessor is program to generate a check mark removal signal which removes a checkmark from the list shown on the smart phone display.

00055 Furthermore, at store checkout, the checkout stand generates a low level RF frequency checkout signal, which is received by the antenna 63a and decoded by RFID receiver/transmitter 63b before being passed as a corresponding electrical checkout signal to the RFID microprocessor 63c. In response to receipt of that signal, the microprocessor 63c is programmed to send an electrical checkout query signal to the sum total price database and to the individual item database stored in the memory device 63e. The query signal seeks all of the prices and identifying information for each of the items in the purchased items database stored in memory device 63e. The microprocessor 63c is also programmed to then generate a checkout sum total price query signal seeking the sum price total stored in sum total price database in the memory device 63e. Upon receipt of those signals, the microprocessor 63c is programmed to generate an electrical checkout sum total price signal and an electrical individual items signal. Those electrical check out signal are encoded by receiver/transmitter 63b into an RF checkout signal which is transmitted by antennae 63a. The RF checkout signals is received by a checkout stand RFID receiver placed at or near the checkout stand. The checkout stand RFID receiver is programmed to decode the RF checkout signal and to generate an electrical checkout sum total price signal and individual items signal, which it passed along to a checkout register computer 69a (or microprocessor) which is programmed to interpret the data. Upon interpreting the data, the checkout register microprocessor generates both an electrical individual items signal and electrical total price signal, which are both stored in a sum total price database and individual items databases of a retailer memory device on computer 69 or on a remotely networked computer via and internet or intranet connection. Upon receiving payment information, the register may also generate a customer ID signal, which can be associated with the information stored in the databases of the store memory device. In this way, the time consuming process of individually optically scanning each of the items purchased in the store can be avoided. Thus, the RFID system of the invention can greatly increase the speed of checkout and may reduce the number of employees necessary to man checkout registers.

00056 Alternately, customers may be provided with their own RFID cards or RFID digitals in the memory of their smart phone which automatically generate a RF customer identification signal received by antennae 63 a, decoded by receiver/transmitter 63b and converted into an electrical a customer identification signal. That customer identification signal supplies customer identifying information and demographic information, which is stored in a customer database in the shopping cart memory module 63a. Such arrangement provides the option of having in-store RFID receivers spaced apart within the store, which are programmed to detect the presence of the customer and display marketing or sales information based on the customers past sales activity and/or demographic profile. The customer's presence would be detected by the in-store RFID receivers upon detection of a low-level, limited radius RF customer identification signal periodically broadcast by antenna 63a in response to instructions provided by microprocessor 63c to receiver/transmitter 63b. Such a system would provide the cart with additional means of providing specific shopper marketing messages displayed on video displays at or near the precise point of product purchase decision to precisely target marketing messages to demographically appropriate shoppers. Optionally, the store computer system 69 can generate a coupon or marketing message signal in response to recognition of the customer ID information and the purchased item information from the current shopping trip that is transmitted from the computer system to the RFID microprocessor 63c, which then relays the coupon or marketing message to the user's smart phone through the interface 62 or through an optional Blue Tooth or wireless interface (not shown).

00057 The caster assemblies 70a and 70b attach to frame feet 51a,b which have receiving apertures (not shown) formed therein. The receiving apertures align with corresponding apertures formed in upper plate portion 71 of the caster assemblies 70a,b. The frame 40 narrow considerably between cross brace 43 and front brace 44a. Similarly, the basket 22 narrows proportionately to the frame 40 between its rear end and front end. The narrowing of the frame and basket from back to front allows for the carts to be nested together when they are being gathered by store personnel. Furthermore, the back to front narrowing of the frame 40 allows the front casters 70a and 70b to be more closely spaced so that the front end of the shopping cart 20 is provided with increased maneuverability. Still further, the pair of inwardly projecting prongs 72a-b further narrows the distance between the front wheels 78a and 78b of the caster assemblies 70a,b. The preferred caster assemblies for use in the shopping cart 22 of the embodiment of the invention shown in FIGs 1-7 is the Uni- Tine™ caster assembly manufactured by Frog Legs, Inc. of Ottumwa, Iowa. However, the use of other high-quality wheel tread caster assemblies which utilizes soft polyurethane, hemispherical cross-section tire treads and high-quality bearings is acceptable. The caster assemblies 70a-b further include an inner, axle portion 76 connected to a hub portion 77which terminates in a wheel section 78 and a tread portion 75 cover covering the wheel portion 78. Of course, as with all caster type assemblies, the caster assemblies 70a-b freely rotate around the axis of the legs to which they are attached, in this case, front legs 45 a and 45b shopping cart 22. The axial caster rotation further enhances the maneuverability of the front end of the shopping cart 22.

In the embodiment of the shopping cart shown in FIG. 9, a unique QR code 108 is embedded in a portion of the cart that is conspicuous to the shopper so that the shopper may scan the unique QR code into the shopper's smart phone 105. In FIG. 9, QR code 108 is shown embedded into both handles 60 and the smart phone holder 61, but it could the embedded in other structures of the cart 20. The QR code 108 identifies at least the retailer that owns the cart, but may also be identified an individual store on owned by a retailer, the geographical region in which the store is located, and may even be uniquely identify an individual cart. Optionally, the cart can include embedded instructions (not shown) to guide the shopper on how to install a downloadable smartphone software application that provides point-of-purchase shopper marketing messages to the shopper. Preferably, the installation of the smart phone software application includes a shopper registration page in which the shopper provides demographic and shopping preference information to the point- of-purchase shopper marketing network 110. This information can also be shared through the permission received from the shopper on the registration page to the individual retailer that owns the improved carts of the invention cart or to participating advertiser' s computer networks. The point-of-purchase shopper marketing messages that are generated by such the point-of-purchase marketing network 110, retailer 69a, store 69 or the participating advertiser' s computer network (not shown) are preferably specific to the store in which the cart is found and may also be specific to the shopper. Optimally, the smart phone software application is wirelessly linked to stored data concerning the individual shoppers purchasing history at a retailer, a given store, with participating advertisers, or with the point-of-purchase shopper marketing network. When the QR code is scanned into the shopper smart phone 105, a wireless signal is sent to the point-of-purchase shopper marketing network 110, which indicates that the specific shopper is at a specific geographical location and is preparing to shop with a specific retailer at an identifiable store location. In this way, the point-of-purchase shopper marketing network 110 can generate electronic messages to be displayed on the shopper's smart phone 105 that can be narrowly tailored to a specific geographic location, retailer, store, shopper or participating advertisers. Optionally to reduce cart costs, the RFID portion 63 and wired smart phone interface 62 of the combined smart phone holder/RFID reader 61 may be omitted so that only a mechanical smart phone mount is provided on the handle 60. In this case, the communication between point-of-purchase shopper marketing network 110 and smart phone 105 would be through the wireless communication capabilities of the smart phone 105. Preferably, such wireless communication would be facilitated by the store providing a dedicated, in-store wi-fi network to link the shopper marketing network 110 and smartphone 105, but such communication might also be through a cellular phone network or satellite phone network system.

The caster assemblies 70 are shown in in greater detail in FIGs 11 and 12. The hemispherical cross-section of the tire tread 78 is more readily apparent in the enlarged FIGs 11 and 12. In FIGS 11 and 12, front wheel fastener 79 is shown securing the wheel assembly 70 to a front frame foot 51 of the frame 40. The fastener 79 preferably includes an EDPM shock absorbing pad or gasket to prevent excessive vibration in the front wheel assemblies 70. The pronounced hemispherical curvature of the tire tread 78 prevents the caster from being deflected sideways when rolling over a pebble, rock, crack or other impediment as the shopping cart is pushed by the shopper. Such minor wheel obstructions are very commonly found in parking lots where shopping carts are wheeled to load the items purchased into the shopper's vehicle. The applicant has found that the use of the high quality soft polyurethane, hemispherical cross-sectional tire treads contributes greatly to the stability of the wheels and shopping cart when rolling over such obstructions and further provides for a substantially reduction in the noise generated by the wheels under such circumstances.

00060 The back wheel assemblies 80a and 80b are attached to back frame feet 51ai and 5 lbi of the rear legs 41a-b of the frame 40. The wheel assemblies 80a,b include upper plate portion 81 with apertures (not shown) for receipt of a pair of back wheel fasteners (not shown), and the frame feet 51ai and 51bi likewise include matching apertures fore receipt of the back wheel fasteners. The increased width of the backend of the frame 40 and the larger space between the fixed wheels 88 of the back wheel assemblies 80a-b provide enhanced backend stability to the shopping cart 22. This ensures that the backend of the cart will faithfully track behind the more maneuverable caster assemblies 70a-b on the front of the shopping cart 22. The fixed wheel assemblies 80a-b also preferably use of high- quality, soft polyurethane, hemispherical cross-section tire treads and high-quality bearings. The wheel assemblies 80 further include an inner, axle portion 86 connected to a hub portion 87 which terminates in a wheel section 88 covered in a tread portion 85. The fasteners are preferably used in conjunction with EDPM shock absorbing gaskets, washers or pads to prevent excessive vibration in the back wheel assemblies 80a,b.

00061 In yet another embodiment of the invention, a branded shopping cart is described below.

The basket of the branded cart is molded from a tinted, substantially transparent thermoplastic resin, the tint color being selected to match one of the prominent colors of a retailer or wholesaler's trade dress (or one of its trademarks). The frame is painted a color selected to match one of the prominent colors of the retailer, wholesaler's or advertiser's trade dress. The handle 160 may also be color matched or complement one of the prominent colors of the trade dress. A plurality of tinted wheels treads are provided to of wheel assemblies. The wheels are tinted to match or compliment one of the prominent colors of the retailer or wholesaler's trade dress. The basket has at least one advertising material integrally molded within the interior walls of the shopping cart such that the advertising material molded therein is visible from at least the exterior of the basket through the color tinted resin of the basket. Additional advertising materials could be molded into other portion of the basket such as the basket floor, basket back wall or basket side walls. As indicated above, for purposes of this patent application, the color selected to match a wholesaler advertiser's, or retailer's "trade dress" also includes one or more of the wholesaler or retailer's trademarks or logos. It is preferred that hubs and wheel treads also have contrasting logo colors. Furthermore, it is also preferred that the tray is tinted or painted a logo color. Still further, it is preferred that the advertising message placed in each of the front gates can be simultaneously viewed by both shopper pushing the cart and other shoppers from different vantage points around the cart. This requires that the cart not be too darkly tinted to obstruct views of the advertising message when viewed through more than one substantially transparent portion of the cart, e.g., when looking through both the basket sidewall at an angle to the message displayed in the substantially transparent front gate.

In still another aspect of the invention, advertising messages are serially displayed by replacing the advertising material 30 on a shopping cart 20 with a substitute advertising material having a different advertising message. This process includes the steps of providing a shopping cart 20, which has a basket 22, having a first translucent or transparent gate portion 50, and a first advertising material 30, integrally molded within the interior of the first translucent or transparent gate 50. The first advertising material 30 is then viewed by shoppers from at least the exterior of the cart through the first substantially translucent or transparent gate 50. Next, the first translucent or transparent gate portion 50 is removed from the shopping cart 20. Then a second transparent gate (not shown) with a second, different advertising material integrally molded within the interior of the second transparent gate is installed onto the shopping cart 20. The second advertising material preferably has a significantly different advertising message than the first advertising material that was removed from shopping cart 20. The second advertising message is viewed by shoppers from at least the exterior of the cart through the second substantially translucent or transparent gate. Likewise, third, fourth and fifth gates and advertising messages may serially replace a stale advertising message over the course of a given time, for example, over the course of one year. The shopping cart owner may then elect to begin the process from the beginning and return to the first advertising material 30 and once again cycle through the series of message in order to keep fresh messages in front of the shoppers. Alternately, the shopping cart owner may elect to replace the advertising message completely new messages after a fixed period of time. For this purpose, the applicant would manufacture replacement front gates with new advertising messages to the order of the shopping cart owner.