Patent ID: 7292158

Claim:
A system for detecting and rewarding the returning of shopping carts to a collection point, comprising a first detection means ( 5 ) to generate a first signal A during a purchase and a second detection means ( 7 ) to generate a second signal B when a shopping cart ( 1 ) is returned to a collection point ( 6 ), and a data processing unit to correlate the two signals A and B to issue a bonus, wherein the first detection means ( 5 ) is for identifying or individualizing a particular customer by optical recognition of physical characteristics of the customer when generating the first signal A and includes an optical signal transmitter ( 15 ) located in the shopping center, and the second detection means includes a second optical signal transmitter ( 18 ) at the collection point ( 6 ) and a number of optical detectors ( 17 ) that cooperate with the first and the second signal transmitters ( 15 , 18 ), said detectors being attached to the shopping carts ( 1 ) and being provided for the generation of signals A and B.