Patent ID: 7290707
Filing Date: 2007-11-06
Classification: G06Q

Abstract:
1. A tele-inventory system for counting the number of commodities and/or checking the expiration dates of the commodities for inventorying various kinds of commodities in a shop by a human operator from a remote management apparatus that is installed remotely from the shop, comprising: at the shop camera means for taking images of object commodities to be inventoried; image-transmitter means for transmitting said taken images of the object commodities to the remote management apparatus; at the remote management apparatus image-receiver means for receiving said taken images of the object commodities from said image-transmitter means; display means for displaying said taken images of the object commodities which images have been received by said image-receiver means; pointer means for pointing by the human operator the individual object commodity in said taken images of the object commodities which images have been displayed on said display means; marker means for selectively labeling said taken image of the individual object commodity, which image has been pointed by said pointer means, with either one of a predetermined mark and a special mark other than the predetermined mark; and counter means for counting the number of images of the object commodities which have been labeled with the predetermined marks by said marker means, whereby the human operator is able to make an inventory of the object commodities at the remote management apparatus.