Patent ID: 6762674
Filing Date: 2004-07-13
Classification: G06Q

Abstract:
An electronic shelf label (ESL) system comprising:a plurality of electronic shelf labels (ESLs), each disposed on one of a shelf and a product, for displaying information including product information; an electronic shelf label (ESL) server for managing the ESLs and management information including the product information with ID information; a radio communication base station for radio-transmitting the management information from the ESL server to the ESLs; and a radio relay station for receiving response information from each of the ESLs and transmitting relay information based on the response information to the radio communication base station, wherein upon receiving the management information from the radio communication base station, each of the ESLs radio-transmits the response information with ID information by means of weak radio waves, wherein the radio relay station is located close to the ESLs than to the radio communication base station, and the radio relay station receives the response information on the weak radio waves from each of the ESLs and also receives the management information transmitted from The radio communication base station to the ESLs, wherein the radio relay station is adapted to detect, based on the ID information included in the management information and the ID information included in the response information, any ESL which failed to normally receive the management information, and radio-transmits to the radio communication base station reception failure information indicative of the ESL which failed to normally receive the management information, wherein the radio communication base station, upon receiving the failure information, transmits the reception failure information to the ESL server, and wherein the ESL server, upon receiving the reception failure information, re-transmits the management information to the detected ESL via the radio communication base station.