How Embedded Vision Contributes to Smart Retail Revolution
Published on : Thursday 04-05-2023
With cutting-edge advancements in AI/ML, and edge computing, the future of embedded vision in retail is immensely promising, says Maharajan Veerabahu.
Embedded vision is rapidly disrupting the retail landscape, propelling businesses towards unparalleled success by elevating customer experiences, streamlining operations, and fostering exponential growth. This cutting-edge technology seamlessly integrates computer vision capabilities into everyday objects, devices, and systems, unlocking transformative opportunities for retailers. From augmented reality and virtual reality experiences to real-time in-store analytics and IoT device integration, embedded vision is revolutionising how retailers interact with customers and manage operations. In this article, we delve into the pivotal role of embedded vision in the smart retail revolution, reshaping the way retailers operate in the dynamic digital age.
What is embedded vision?
Embedded vision refers to the integration of vision-based capabilities into various devices and systems, allowing them to capture, analyse, and interpret visual information in real-time. This is made possible by combining high-performance image sensors with powerful processors and advanced algorithms, enabling devices to ‘see’ and ‘understand’ the visual world around them. Embedded vision systems can be found in a wide range of applications, from smartphones and smart cameras to robots, drones, and IoT devices. In the retail industry, embedded vision is being leveraged to create smart retail solutions that are changing the way consumers shop and retailers operate.
Enhanced customer experiences
One of the key areas where embedded vision is making a significant impact is in enhancing customer experiences in retail stores. By leveraging computer vision capabilities, embedded vision systems can capture and analyse visual data to provide personalised and interactive experiences to shoppers. For example, smart shelves equipped with embedded vision can detect when a customer picks up a product and display relevant information such as product details, pricing, and reviews on a digital display, enhancing the shopping experience and providing valuable information to the customer at the point of decision-making.
Optimised store operations
Embedded vision is revolutionising store operations by enabling retailers to optimise various aspects of their operations. For instance, retailers can use shelf monitoring cameras and autonomous robots that track all the shelves in the store, providing accurate data on inventory levels, detecting out-of-stock or misplaced items, and triggering alerts for re-stocking or re-arrangement. This helps retailers maintain accurate inventory levels, reduce stockouts, and improve overall operational efficiency. Additionally, embedded vision systems can be used for people counting and tracking, allowing retailers to gather data on customer footfall, dwell times, and traffic patterns to optimise store layouts, staffing levels, and product placements. The data gathered can be used to make informed decisions on store operations and merchandising strategies, resulting in improved store performance and increased sales.
Loss prevention and security
Loss prevention is a significant concern for retailers, and embedded vision is playing a crucial role in addressing this challenge. Embedded vision systems, including surveillance cameras and cameras fixed in checkout stations, can be used for real-time video analytics to detect and prevent theft, shoplifting, and other security breaches. By analysing video feeds from these cameras, embedded vision can automatically detect suspicious behaviors, such as unusual movements, loitering, unauthorised access, and monitoring empty baskets on the checkout counter to track people knowingly or unknowingly escaping product billing. These systems can trigger alerts to store personnel or security teams, enabling retailers to proactively respond to security threats and prevent losses, improving overall store security and reducing the risk of theft-related losses.
Data analytics and insights
Another area where embedded vision is contributing to the smart retail revolution is in data analytics and insights. Embedded vision systems generate vast amounts of visual data, which can be analysed and processed to gain valuable insights into customer behavior, preferences, and buying patterns. This data can be used to optimise pricing and promotion strategies, personalise marketing campaigns, and tailor product offerings to meet customer demands. Embedded vision can also be combined with other data sources, such as transaction data, customer profiles, and social media data, to create a holistic view of customer behavior and preferences. This data-driven approach allows retailers to make informed decisions, drive targeted marketing efforts, and create personalised shopping experiences, ultimately leading to improved customer satisfaction and increased sales.
Seamless checkout and payment
Embedded vision is also transforming the checkout and payment process in retail stores. Traditional checkout processes can be time-consuming and cumbersome, leading to long queues and customer dissatisfaction. However, with embedded vision, retailers can implement cashierless checkout systems that use computer vision to automatically detect and track items as customers pick them up and place them in their shopping carts. These systems can accurately calculate the total purchase amount and enable customers to make payment through digital wallets or mobile apps, eliminating the need for traditional checkout counters and reducing waiting times. This seamless checkout and payment process not only improves the customer experience but also increases operational efficiency and reduces labour costs for retailers.
In-store analytics and heat mapping
Embedded vision can provide valuable insights into how customers interact with products and store layouts, through in-store analytics and heat mapping. By analysing visual data, embedded vision systems can generate heat maps that indicate the most visited areas of a store, popular product placements, and customer movement patterns. This data can help retailers optimise store layouts, product placements, and visual merchandising strategies to enhance customer engagement, drive sales, and improve overall store performance. In-store analytics and heat mapping enable retailers to make data-driven decisions and continuously optimise their store operations to meet changing customer demands.
Integration with Internet of Things (IoT) devices
Embedded vision is often integrated with other IoT devices to create smart retail solutions that offer a seamless and connected shopping experience. For example, embedded vision can be combined with smart shelves, smart mirrors, or interactive kiosks to create an immersive and interactive shopping environment. Customers can interact with these IoT devices using gestures, voice commands, or touchscreens, and embedded vision can capture and process the visual data to provide relevant information, recommendations, and personalised offers. This integration of embedded vision with other IoT devices creates a connected ecosystem that enables retailers to offer personalised and convenient shopping experiences, while also collecting valuable data for further analysis and insights.
Challenges and future outlook
Embedded vision is revolutionising the retail industry by enhancing customer experiences, optimising store operations, and driving business growth. Applications such as augmented reality and virtual reality experiences, seamless checkout and payment processes, in-store analytics and heat mapping, and integration with IoT devices are transforming how retailers interact with customers and manage their operations. However, there are challenges that need to be addressed, including privacy and security concerns associated with capturing and analysing visual data of customers. Ensuring proper data privacy and security measures are in place to protect customer information and comply with data protection regulations is crucial. Additionally, the cost of implementing embedded vision systems, including high-performance image sensors, processing power, and advanced algorithms, remains a challenge. However, as technology advances and becomes more affordable, embedded vision is expected to become more accessible to retailers of all sizes, enabling them to leverage its benefits.
With cutting-edge advancements in machine learning, artificial intelligence, and edge computing, the future of embedded vision in retail is immensely promising. From facial recognition for personalised offers to emotion recognition for understanding customer preferences, and real-time video analytics for optimising store operations, embedded vision opens up unparalleled possibilities for retailers. This transformative technology has the potential to reshape the retail industry, making it smarter, more efficient, and customer-centric, empowering retailers to stay ahead in the ever-evolving retail landscape.
Maharajan Veerabahu, co-founder at E-Con Systems, is an entrepreneur, engineer and enabler, part of the founding team that built a bootstrapped company from 0-350+ people. Building embedded products and have seen more than 150+ customer products that e-con Systems has successfully designed, developed, and released to the market. Successfully established an OEM hardware product company shipping to customers around the globe (US, Germany, Japan, South Korea, etc).
