Supermarket chain Colruyt is equipping all its stores with an "easy check-out" system that uses artificial intelligence to recognise items in customers’ trolleys, eliminating the need for manual scanning, reports Het Laatste Nieuws on Saturday.
Belgium’s largest supermarket chain plans to install the system in all of its 270 stores. “Above each checkout will be a smart camera that automatically recognises items as they are transferred from one trolley to another by our employee,” said Geert Gillis, Colruyt’s regional sales director. “The cashier no longer needs to search for barcodes with a handheld scanner.”
This innovation streamlines the checkout process. Colruyt claims it makes the scanning process 17% faster.
The camera can recognise up to 85% of products and can distinguish between multiple barcodes on items like multipacks. However, items at the bottom of the trolley, such as crates of beer or water, still need to be scanned manually at present.
The system is already operational in 70 stores. Colruyt aims to complete the rollout across the remaining stores by the end of next summer.
