Abstract: An online store offering a product that is currently unavailable can still fulfill an order for the product by querying a multi-store inventory database to see if the product is available from brick-and-mortar stores near the customer. Proximity of local stores is based on a customer location in the customer's profile. Local store selection can be based on product matching policies such as a threshold price difference for the product compared to the online store price. If the customer approves local store pickup, the service generates a voucher to purchase the product directly from the local stores, and presents it to the customer via the online presence. The customer can then redeem the voucher at any of the indicated local stores and pick up the product. When the system receives confirmation of redemption of the voucher, a credit is issued from the online store to the local store.

Abstract: A computer-implemented method for providing a user interface to a user includes receiving wearable article data describing wearable articles for physical shipment to users via electronic interactions; generating a user interface for an electronic transactions platform based at least on the received wearable article data; causing display of the user interface depicting one or more of the wearable articles; receiving a selection of a wearable article of the displayed one or more wearable articles via the user interface; determining a condition of the selected wearable article at least based on the received wearable article data in response to the selection; reserving the selected wearable article for a predetermined period of time in response to the selection; updating and causing display of the user interface depicting the selected wearable article and the determined condition; and determining whether the selected wearable article is purchased or borrowed during the predetermined period of time.

Abstract: A garment life cycle tracking system utilizes a Radio Frequency Identification, RFID, device to retrieve life cycle data about the garment. The RFID device may be scanned by an interactive device, such as a mobile phone, and the RFID identifier may be used to retrieve data from a database, such as through a website interface. A mobile phone or other computing device may have an application software that interfaces with the database or website. Life cycle data may include date of manufacture, former locations of purchase, date of purchase, cost of garment, date of return of garment, type of garment and the like. A customer may track a garment after returning a garment to see when and where the garment is subsequently purchased. This system may promote recycling of garments and reduce the environmental impact of garment production.

Abstract: Systems, methods, and machine-readable hardware to facilitate a diagnosis of a failure of a first part in a vehicle. The system receives a maintenance message, over a network at a network-based marketplace. The maintenance message includes characterization information received from a component in the vehicle. The component includes a sensor that senses the first part to generate the characterization information. The system identifies sub-system processing rules based on the maintenance message and executes the sub-system processing rules. The sub-system processing rules cause a smart component engine to perform operations comprising identifying a sub-system and scanning the sub-system responsive to identifying an increase in a likelihood of failure of the first part based on the characterization information.

Abstract: Techniques for enhancing functionalities of a voice-based user device are described. In an example a computer system generates, from a first taxonomy, a second taxonomy for a user based on an item purchase history. The computer system also identifies items based on this history and generates a list that associates the items with categories of the second taxonomy. Based on a user utterance, the computer system generates text-to-speech content from the list. This content includes category information and item information. The category information identifies a first category from the categories. The item information identifies a first item from the items, where this item is associated with the first category. The category information and the item information are presented to the user. The computer system adds an identifier of the first item to an item checkout process based on the presentation of the item information.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide systems to identify products comprising: product vector database; a plurality of portable computing devices comprising a camera and a control circuit configured to: access an image captured by the camera; perform an optical character recognition on the image; apply a vector modeling rule to key text, generate a first query product vector and wirelessly communicate the first query product vector to the product recommendation system; the product recommendation system is configured to apply a vector evaluation rule to the first query product vector to identify a first product; and wirelessly communicate to the portable computing device the first product identifier; wherein the control circuit receives the first product identifier, accesses a product information, causes product information to be displayed; and causes the first product to be virtually added to a virtual cart.

Abstract: Navigation and reward techniques involving physical goods and services are described. In one example, digital content is configured to aid navigation of a user between different physical goods or services. This navigation includes user specified good or services as well as recommended goods or services that are not specified by the user. In another example, digital content is provided as part of a reward system. In return for permitting access to user data, the user is provided with rewards that are based on this monitored interaction. In this way, an owner of the store may gain detailed knowledge which may be used to increase likelihood of offering goods or services of interest to the user. In return, the user is provided with rewards to permit access to this detailed knowledge.

Abstract: Provided herein are system, apparatus, device, method and/or computer program product embodiments, and/or combinations and sub-combinations thereof, for identifying second products in an inventory of a second ecommerce site that are at least similar to a first product currently being displayed to an user by a first ecommerce site, and displaying the second products for viewing and purchase by the user at the first ecommerce site.

Abstract: A method and apparatus is described to push to-be-recommended products onto users' terminals based on similarities in the to-be-recommended products and products in the users' historical records of products. To improve the pushed recommendations various technics are applied, including: using predefined criteria to filter products provided from the users' historical records, applying temporal decay to provide real-time recommendations, removing already obtained products from the to-be-recommended products to be pushed, improving similarity calculations by determining similarity using pairwise variations between products both in and out of the candidates for to-be-recommended products, sorting the to-be-recommended product according to a preset recommendation policy, calculating pairwise variations using multiple types of similarity measures, using weights to determine the to-be-recommended products, and applying a preset recommendation policy based on a given scenario.

Abstract: Systems and methods for controlling sales permissions pertaining to sales activities by users of an online game are disclosed. Exemplary implementations may: store information on electronic storage related to the users of the online game; execute an instance of the online game and implement the instance of the online game; receive supervisory input from a supervisory user; receive user input to request or initiate a sale; determine whether the request is in accordance with the one or more sales permissions; effectuate a performance of the sale of one or more particular virtual items, responsive to a determination that the request is permitted; and effectuate presentation of a notification to the user that conveys the user lacks permission, responsive to a determination that the request is not permitted under the one or more sales permissions.

Abstract: One embodiment of the present invention provides a system for generating a product recommendation. During operation, the system obtains data indicating vertices and edges of a graph. The vertices represent consumers and products and an edge represents an access relationship. The system may receive a query indicating an ego for determining a product recommendation. The system may then traverse the graph from a vertex representing the ego through a plurality of edges to a plurality of vertices representing products. The system may traverse the graph from the plurality of vertices representing products to a plurality of vertices representing other consumers. The system may then traverse the graph from the plurality of vertices representing other consumers to a plurality of vertices representing other products. The system may generate a recommendation that based on the plurality of vertices representing other products.

Abstract: The present invention is generally directed to systems and methods of providing automatic scaling pure-spot clusters. Such dusters may be dynamically rebalanced for further costs savings. In accordance with some methods of the present invention may include a method of utilizing a cluster in a big data cloud computing environment where instances may include reserved on-demand instances for a set price and on-demand spot instances that may be bid on by a user, the method including: creating one or more stable nodes, comprising spot instances with a bid price above a price for an equivalent on-demand instance; creating one or more volatile nodes, comprising spot instances with a bid price below a price for an equivalent on-demand instance; using one or more of the stable nodes as a master node; and using the volatile nodes as slave nodes.

Abstract: An order processing system and method includes sending, to a backend, an order queue comprising at least one order identifying a delivery object associated with a client and comprising at least one ordered item, receiving, from the backend, an updated preparing status of each target ordered item in the order queue, updating the order queue based on the preparing status of each target ordered item, determining the preparing status of each target ordered item in the target order based on the updated order queue, and sending the preparing status of each ordered item in the order to the client associated with the delivery object of the order.

Abstract: A service processing method comprises: receiving, by a first server possessing a first service function, a first service request sent by a client; generating a first service result based on the first service request; and sending the first service result to the client and a second server possessing a second service function, for the second server to directly generate a second service result based on the first service result, and after the second server receives a second service request generated by the client based on the first service result, to send the generated second service result to the client.

Abstract: Computer systems, methods, and apparatuses that use granular specifications and non-personally identifiable information provided by a consumer and a third party to suggest suitable products and services utilizing the Universal Consumer Identification Systems (UCIS) and subsystems. The Universal Consumer Identification (UCID) is assigned to each registered consumer to maintain privacy and to create a unique profile for the UCIS to present relevant products and services to a consumer on a personal computer, laptop, smart phone, smart watch, and other smart devices with electronic notifications or visual and audible alerts via a battery-powered wireless Universal Smart Alert (USA) apparatus at any physical location in the world that third parties are participated.

Abstract: A computer implemented method for analysis and tracking perishable items for selection of perishable items using IOT devices that includes registering a consumer to a system that assists the selection of perishable items using IOT devices based upon consumer preferences, in which the system collects data from the user, wherein the user can revoke permission to the system at any time; and monitoring harvesting of a plurality of perishable item types using a plurality of internet of things (IOT) devices. The method may further include recording a consumer profile on the system that assists in the selection of perishable items from the consumer including consumer preferences for freshness of perishable items. The method may further include matching perishable items having freshness data from monitoring the harvest to the consumer based upon consumer preferences from the consumer profile.

Abstract: In embodiments, methods and systems for order management and processing based on a distributed commerce platform are provided. A distributed commerce platform supports end-to-end integrated product publication, order-management and payment services. In particular, the distributed commerce platform supports components based on Application Programming Interfaces (API) that standardize the implementation of a distributed commerce solution or configuration of off-site buying experiences. Using the distributed commerce platform, merchants can concurrently offer, sell, and process orders for products through a plurality of different affiliate channels. The distributed commerce platform can also be implemented as a federated portal from which a merchant can identify affiliate channels to publish product objects, access the plurality of affiliate channels and define configurations for processing objects of the merchant's distributed commerce solution.

Abstract: A method including a user who has brand affinities about a product brand or a product brand category. The method can include analyzing whether the user has brand affinities for the product brand or the brand category with two binary classification models that can include (a) a model one to determine an affinity to a particular product brand and (b) a model two to determine an affinity to a particular product brand category. The method also can include analyzing whether the user has affinities for a similar product brand or a similar product brand category by a model three neural network. The method can include displaying recommendations and the promotions for a product brand, a product brand category, a similar product brand, or a similar product brand category to the user. Other embodiments are disclosed.

Abstract: In an information processing system 1, a display controlling unit 2 displays, on a terminal device, a first form containing fields. An accepting unit 3 accepts, from a user, an entry in the fields contained in the first form. A determining unit 4 determines whether or not each of the entered fields contained in the first form satisfies a determination condition that is associated in advance with each field. When there is an unsatisfied field that fails to satisfy the determination condition among the entered fields contained in the first form, the display controlling unit 2 displays a second form that gives a higher priority to the unsatisfied field and lays out the unsatisfied field above a satisfied field satisfying the determination condition among the entered fields contained in the first form, and, the accepting unit accepts, from the user, an entry in the fields that is contained in the second form.

Abstract: Systems, computer programs, and methods for coordinating automated components and employee activities to facilitate fulfillment of orders for items and/or services sold by retailers and made available for delivery or pick-up at a retail location are provided. In some embodiments, the methods comprise: receiving an order; selecting a preferred source location for each retail item in the order; preparing a first portion of the order at a fulfillment center; preparing a second portion of the order at a first store; preparing a third portion of the order at a second store; combining the first and second order portions and loading the combined order portions onto a transportation vehicle for transfer to the second store; and assembling the order including the first, second, and third order portions at the second store.