Sam’s Club has patented and plans to pilot this spring a new technology for its Scan & Go service.
Scan & Go allows shoppers to add items to their virtual cart as they walk through the store and check out with the touch of a button rather than waiting in line.
Sam’s Club Now is a location in Dallas where the company has been experimenting with numerous innovations, including augmented reality, wayfinding and navigation, and one-hour pickup.
Related: Check out this video of the technologies Sam's Club Now has been piloting.
With the new technology set to be piloted soon, shoppers can point their phones in the direction of the product to scan rather than having to line up the phone with the bar code, according to a news release. The technology allows the scanning app to recognize the product as a whole rather than the bar code.
“We also anticipate incorporating this same technology into the tools our associates use,” Eddie Garcia, vice president of product and member experience, said in the release. “By making their jobs easier, they’re able to spend more time serving members. It’s a win-win for everyone.
“Following these tests, we’ll experiment with the use of machine learning and artificial intelligence to help manage member shopping lists,” Garcia said.