Project


  • Project Conception

    The Innovative Retail Laboratory (IRL) is an application-oriented research laboratory of the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI), which was installed in the head office of the German chain store GLOBUS SB-Warenhaus Holding in St. Wendel. This close cooperation with Globus experts provides the individual projects with the possibility to concentrate on the precise demands and potentials of future self-service stores and accelerates the implementation of research results.

    IRL RetailLaboratoryIRL

  • Topics

    In IRL we conduct testings in a large number of different fields all connected to intelligent shopping consultants, which range from a virtual assistant responsible for matters of dieting and allergies, over a digital sommelier, to personalised cross and up selling, smart items with digital product memories as a further development of the RFID technology, indoor positioning and navigation as well as new logistics concepts, to see if they are suitable for everyday life and useful for customers. .

  • New ways

    New ways of customer interaction are developed and tested for implementation. The range varies from personalised shopping assistants, “talking” products as well as intelligent shopping carts, which plan and show the way through the store according to your shopping list. Furthermore they can give advice on what to buy for the recipes you have in mind, they compare products, point out special offers in a personalised way and give additional information about the products.

  • New interaction paradigmas

    But the concepts and technologies that regard the self-service store of the future as a place for shopping are not IRL’s only focus. The relation between the store and its customers begins way before the shopping trip itself takes place. It starts with an individual shopping preparation and a personalised presentation of offers at home and will be continued afterwards through advice that is given about purchased goods and information about their use.

  • The Lab

    On 500 square metres IRL provides a unique infrastructure for intelligent shopping environments. The public will be invited to experience demonstrators, recent developments and visions for the future of shopping on a first hand basis during selected events and guided tours.