US 11,748,761 B2
Systems and methods for processing third-party returns
Maheer Manmohan, Newark, CA (US); Douglas E. Humphrys, Bentonville, AR (US); Sid Shake, Rogers, AR (US); Charles Harry Lobo, Cave Springs, AR (US); Tripuresh Pandey, Bengaluru (IN); Zhijian Huang, San Diego, CA (US); Nivea Mandavia, Sterling, VA (US); Casey S. Hulliberger, Rogers, AR (US); and Darren W. Stanley, Falls Church, VA (US)
Assigned to Walmart Apollo, LLC, Bentonville, AR (US)
Filed by Walmart Apollo, LLC, Bentonville, AR (US)
Filed on Apr. 20, 2021, as Appl. No. 17/235,669.
Claims priority of provisional application 63/036,069, filed on Jun. 8, 2020.
Claims priority of application No. 202041016928 (IN), filed on Apr. 20, 2020.
Prior Publication US 2021/0326878 A1, Oct. 21, 2021
Int. Cl. G06Q 20/40 (2012.01); G06Q 10/0837 (2023.01); G06Q 30/0601 (2023.01)
CPC G06Q 20/407 (2013.01) [G06Q 10/0837 (2013.01); G06Q 30/0639 (2013.01)] 18 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A system for processing product returns, the system comprising:
a point-of-sale (POS) terminal, wherein the POS terminal is located in a retail facility, and wherein the POS terminal is configured to:
receive an order identifier, wherein the order identifier is associated with an online order that includes a product, wherein the product was purchased from a third-party seller via a retailer's website, wherein the retail facility is a brick-and-mortar facility associated with the retailer, and wherein the third-party seller is not the retailer;
present, via a display device of the POS terminal, a custody prompt, the custody prompt requesting an input of a confirmation that possession of the product has been transferred to the retailer;
receive, via a user input device of the POS terminal, selection of the custody prompt, the selection of the custody prompt serving as a confirmation that an employee of the retailer accepted the product and the possession of the product has been transferred to the retailer; and
transmit, to a control circuit, the order identifier and an indication of the selection of the custody prompt;
a database, wherein the database is configured to store order information; and
the control circuit, wherein the control circuit is communicatively coupled to the POS terminal, the control circuit configured to:
receive, from the POS terminal, the order identifier;
determine, based on accessing the database, the product;
determine, based on accessing the database, that the product is eligible to be returned;
determine, based on accessing the database, a refund amount for the product;
determine, based on accessing the database, a location to which the product should be returned;
generate, based on the location to which the product should be returned, a return label;
transmit a notification to a computing device of the third-party seller indicating that the product is being returned;
transmit, to the POS terminal, the return label;
transmit a signal to the database to update, in the database in response to receipt of the indication of the selection of the custody prompt, a custody flag, wherein the custody flag is associated with the product, and wherein the custody flag indicates the possession of the product by the retailer;
responsive to the update of the database to include the custody flag, trigger a start of a timer, the timer setting a predetermined threshold period of time for the third-party to issue a refund to a customer for the product returned to the retailer, wherein upon an expiration of the timer, the control circuit is programmed to issue the refund to the customer for the product returned to the retailer even if the third-party has not issued the refund to the customer for the product returned to the retailer;
permit the POS terminal to print the return label; and
prevent the POS terminal from printing the return label until the indication of the selection of the custody prompt is transmitted from the POS terminal to the control circuit.